Attica

Attica was able to convert two Oakfield-Alabama turnovers in the second half into big plays to literally run away with the game in Oakfield last night, capturing a 34-21 win.

Spirits were high for Oakfield when the team emerged from the locker room on homecoming night with a 14-7 lead, but on its first possession of the third quarter, a fumble gave Attica the ball well into Hornets' territory and a few plays later, Brandon Rollings squirted into the end zone on a 14-yard run. It was Rollings' second TD of the night.

Attica Head Coach Jeff Cusmano said turn overs and the Blue Devils' ability to convert those turnovers into big plays was the key to the game.

"We got the running game going," Cusmano said. "They were clogging up the middle and we got to the outside a bit. We were just digging down and grinding it out."

The game remained tied until the third quarter when another fumble by Oakfield, now 1-4, was followed by a 56-yard dash by Brad Clark. It was Clark's first of three TDs of the night.

"The first half we came out like I expected them to, and just like Notre Dame last week, we came out firing on all cylinders," Coach Brian Palone.  "We’ve just got to find a way to finish games. Right now we’re not playing four quarters of football."

Oakfield pulled even again on an 84-yard run by Jason Stanley. It was Stanley's second long TD run of the night. He also scored in the first quarter, going 64 yards for the TD.

But it was all Attica (4-1) from that point on in the game. Clark scored twice on runs of 62 and 81 yards to seal the victory.

Cusmano said Clark, who had 296 yards on 27 carries, was the star of the game, but also praised the offensive line.

"They just did a tremendous job," Cusmano said. "They dug down and just ground it out. I would have to say it all starts up front and Brad will be the first guy to tell you that without the blocking up front, he wouldn’t have had what he had."

It was some of those big plays that helped Clark run up so many yards that were the undoing for Oakfield, Palone said.

"We can’t allow big plays," said the Oakfield Coach. "Attica was able to get some big plays on us and put together some big drives on us and it was tough for us to battle back."

The turnovers, of course, were crucial mistakes.

"It came down to what we preached for the past couple of weeks – we’ve got to protect the ball and we weren’t able to do that, and defensively, we can’t allow big plays," Palone said. "Attica was able to get some big plays on us and put together some big drives on us and it was tough for us to battle back."

Next week, Alexander goes against undefeated Holley. Cusmano thinks his team will be ready.

"We’re making progress every week and you know the kids are growing," Cusmano said. "They’re going to make mistakes; you know, you roll out a bunch of young kids and they’re going to make mistakes. We’re getting better every week and cutting down on our mistakes. We'll go into the Holley game next week and see what happens."

Besides Clark, for Attica, Brandon Rollings had six carries for 37 yards. Brandon Banks led the defense with nine tackles. Alex Arnone had seven tackles and two fumble recoveries.

For OA, Jason Stanley rushed for 199 yards and scored 3 touchdowns. Matt Osmancickli rushed for 36 yards and Matt Smith carried the ball a total of 35 yards.

James D. Henry, Jr., 54, of 8296 E. Main Road, Le Roy, is charged with a felony count of criminal possession of a forged instrument and a felony count of attempted grand larceny. Henry, a former Village of Le Roy employee, allegedly entered the village office on Monday possessing a forged doctor's prescription. It stated that Henry "would be out until further notice" in an attempt to gain sick leave compensation, which would have totaled more than $3,000. Henry was arraigned and released under supervision of Genesee Justice.

Robin L. Pirdy, 50, of 588 Route 98, Attica, is charged with DWI and aggravated DWI with a BAC of .08 or greater. Pirdy was reportedly found parked on the side of Molasses Hill Road in Bethany by Deputy Kevin McCarthy. Upon investigation, McCarthy determined that Pirdy had allegedly been driving while intoxicated.

Steven Robert Gorecki, 23, of 106 Tracey Ave., Batavia, is charged with petit larceny. Gorecki is accused of shoplifting from Target.

Willie A. Sabb, Jr., 35, of 19 Porter Ave., Apt. 2, Batavia, is charged with assault in the third degree, endangering the welfare of a child and harassment. Police picked up Sabb at his residence on warrants issued by City Court. The charges stem from three separate alleged incidents. No further details were released.

A reader sent along a link to the USGS site about an earthquake in Attica on Sept. 23 because no media reported the event.

Granted, it was a small one, but still worth noting.

The 2.4 shaker was actually 3 miles southeast of Attica.

There was also a temblor reported in Attica on June 5.

Alexander Fire is being dispatched to a report of railroad ties on fire at Genesee Street and Maplewood Road in Attica.

UPDATE: Attica is being dispatched for additional manpower. The first responder reports its only a couple of ties on fire, but in the midst of very steep terrain and will be accessible on foot only.-

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Jenna L. Josephite, 20, of 1605 Nesbitt Road, Attica, is charged with driving while on drugs, unlicensed operation of a motor vehicle and criminal possession of a weapon. Josephite was allegedly stopped by Sheriff's deputies following a complaint in the City of Batavia of criminal mischief by a passenger in her vehicle (no details provided). Brass knuckles were allegedly found in the center compartment. Joseph E. Marr, 31, of the same Attica address, was reportedly the passenger in the vehicle and was also charged with possession of a weapon as well.

Coneie A. Munio, 22, 41 Clinton St., Brockport, is charged with DWI and DWI with a BAC of .08 or greater.  Munio was arrested following a complaint of a suspicious vehicle parked illegally on Peachey Road. When Deputy H.J. Carlson arrived, he reportedly found Munio in the car. Munio also received a ticket for allegedly "standing on pavement/parked wrong direction."

Elliott M. Hickman, 18, of 26 Granson Ave., back-upper, Batavia, and at 17-year-old companion and another youth is charged with petty larceny. Hickman and his companions allegedly each tried to leave Kmart with one pair each of ear phones without paying for them.

 My friend from Oakfield Dave Nanni and his band,Redheaded stepchild.Tim Pitcher sat in.They played in Attica on Wednsday night,at the gazebo concert series.It's nice at the Attica park.They have an outdoor pool too.

Former Attica standout Derek Wolfley received a Division I basketball scholarship to Iona College last season, and played in 25 games during his freshman season.

But now he's coming home.

The 6-foot-7 forward has decided to take his college basketball career to the University at Buffalo, where he expects to see more playing time next season.

Attica's all-time leading scorer with 1,474 points and 932 rebounds averaged 7.5 minutes per game for the Gaels, while scoring 1 point and 0.9 rebounds per contest.

He will be playing as a walk-on next year but will have an opportunity for a basketball scholarship because six seniors will graduate from next year's UB squad.

In California, any temblor less than 4.5 on the Richter Scale isn't even worth a little chit-chat by the water cooler, but in New York, anytime the earth shakes, people notice.

A reader sent in this message:

Workers at the Attica Prison have reported feeling an earth tremor that shook the building and has also been felt in other areas of attica. Has this been felt in other places as well or just Attica?

The USGS Web site, which notes any tremor of 1.0 or greater, does not list any earth movement in Western New York.

UPDATE: We just received this e-mail:

My mom just called me and told me there was a very large boom at her house  outside of attica and it shook her house pretty good and my aunt who lives in  the town of attica also heard it and it shook her house also.  Do you know  what it was???????

UPDATE II: I just called the Attica Police Department. They've receive reports, too. The boom was about an hour ago. "We have not been able to confirm what it was," a dispatcher said.

UPDATE III:  USGS now confirms an Earthquake:

Magnitude: 2.9
Date-Time: 11:07:52
Location: 42.828°N, 78.248°W
Depth: 3.1 miles

Three miles from Attica, five miles from Alexander.

Milk and cats go together like dogs and bones. So it's no surprise that prison dairy farms, such as the one at Wyoming Correctional Facility in Attica, is a magnet for felines.

But Governor Paterson's cost-cutting decision to eliminate farm operations at correctional facilities has put prisoners' "pets" in peril.

A tipster at Attica let the cat out of the bag, so to speak. He said inmates were told to quit feeding the cats, some of which are "orphans" from Genesee County.

But starvation and neglect tactics would be unlawful, a misdemeanor for "failure to provide sustenance" under Agriculture and Markets regulations.

The correctional authorities claimed no knowlege of the situation when Sue Davila inquired about it last week. She's a state licensed animal cruelty investigator with the Wyoming County SPCA.

Up to 100 cats are believed to be living at the facility, which Davila got permission to visit last week. She and SPCA board member Janice Stenman, aided by guards and inmates managed to round up 14 cats and kittens. Live traps were put out Monday to catch more.

The animals confiscated Friday were tested for disease and given immunizations. They were treated as needed for fleas, worms, ear mites and given antiobiotics. One very pregnant female had a gaping abcess on her neck. One had a respiratory infection, one was brain damaged and a male was neutured and declawed.

"Part of the problem is local -- people show up at night and dump their cats at the prison," Stenman said. "It's not entirely the prison's fault that (the cats) are there."

The problem is not new.

Stenman said a guard told her that four years ago an order was given to get rid of the cats. They were corraled into a shed and a truck driver backed up to the shed and gassed the cats with exhaust fumes. They were purportedly then dumped into a mass grave and their killer got a bounty of $8 per cat. No one wants to talk about it publicly, Stenman said, because they fear reprisals.

The dairy farm cats are indoors only -- use to being fed and thus unsuited to suddenly fending for themselves. Perhaps some may become adoptable once they are quarantined and evaluated.

Speaking of which, the folks at the donation-dependant SBCA are feeling kind of desparate.

"This situation has put horrible pressure on us," Stenman said, adding that money for food and medication plus a barn to use as a temporary quarantine site are the most immediate needs.

Wyoming County SPCA is a no-kill facility which can accommodate 200 cats, not 300. It also accepts animals from facilities in several other counties.

Lollipop Farm in Monroe County is also a no-kill facility that works with SPCAs and volunteers to care for homeless pets.

In Genesee County, the government animal shelter in Batavia can handle caging for 25 to 35 cats at a time, but by law only those from Genesee County residents.

Local animal control officer Aggie Jaroszewski said 578 cats were adopted or found foster homes through the Genesee shelter last year.

Those were the lucky ones. Many cats are euthanized. If feral populations in particular are allowed to grow unfettered, the incidence of sickness and disease increases. Last year, a cat tested positive for rabies in the Village of Leroy, Jaroszewski said.

Feral or nearly feral cat populations are not uncommon in mobile home parks and apartments, places where property owners often ban pets, Jaroszewski said.

Attica's Luke Pariso wasn't supposed to beat defending New York State Public High School Athletic Association champion Cody Hutcheson of Bath. Pariso has won a couple of sectional titles, but Hutcheson was a monster.

Pariso won the 171-pound title at SuperSectionals Saturday at Rochester Institute of Technology, but that was far from the biggest upset of the day.

Holley's Kyle Steadman has a season record of just 35-10 after the weekend, but he's moving on to states after shocking the thousands of people there to watch the SuperSectionals. He beat Genesee Region League foe Dave Jennings of Attica at 189 pounds, 3-1 in overtime, to move on.

"It feels really good, coming back from sixth place and taking the title," Steadman said.

Steadman wasn't even ranked in the top five by armdrag.com and was seeded sixth in his weight class. It was the second Holley grappler to win the championship on Saturday and could be the fourth to advance to states next weekend.

"I hope Tim (Banks) goes because he has a lot of points," Holley coach John Grillo said. "He should go to states because of his past reputation and history of going to states. Quinton Murphy had an electrifying match, but Kyle Steadman was a surprise. He had a lot of losses, but has wrestled quality kids all year. We knew he had it in him and we just had to get it out of him."

"I wrestled him before and I know he's really strong on top," Steadman said. "I just had to go my hardest and give it all I had - never quit."

Steadman had a pin and a decision in Friday's opening two rounds before winning a 7-2 decision over Caledonia-Mumford's Jon Grann in the semifinals.

The other Holley wrestler to win a championship was Murphy at 119 pounds. The defending state champion at 103 pounds didn't need much time in the finals to get a return ticket to the big show. 

After a technical fall and two pins earning him a trip to the championship match, he dropped Palmyra-Macedon's Tyler Marlow in 1:36.

"It felt great," Murphy said. "I'm really known for that move so when I knew it was there, I went for it."

Banks was the other Holley finalist at 130 pounds, but lost to Pal-Mac's Matt Hausbrouck 3-1 in overtime.

Murphy says that he "just wants to re-win" a state title, while it is a different story for Steadman. He will be working with 2004 state champion Andrew Grillo - John's son - over the next week to prepare for another shot at an upset.

"Coach has to get me prepared because I've never been to states before," Steadman said.

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 Hutcheson will get to states with a wild card, but his loss to Pariso definitely stung. 

The Attica senior was ranked second but very few gave him a shot to knock off a state champion because he had never advanced past sectionals. But Pariso scored early and then got defensive to earn the title and a trip to Albany next weekend.

"I knew I had to go hard," Pariso said. "He has really good endurance so I knew I had to push the pace on him. I had that inside trip and put him on his back."

Pariso got that 2-point takedown with just 15 seconds left in the first period and then had an escape midway through the second to make it 3-0. He simply hung on in the third period to get the 3-0 decision.

"I didn't want him to get a reversal and put me on my back," Pariso said. "It could be 4-0, 4-3 or maybe a pin. I just rode him real tight and kept on at his cross-wrists and rode him for the rest of the match."

Pariso had two decisions on Friday and then topped Batavia's Anthony D'Aurizio 3-1 to advance to the finals. Now he looks forward to facing an even bigger challenge than what he's seen in Section 5 next week.

"I can't wait," Pariso said. "There is a real tough kid from Section 4, Kyle Beckwith, who has won a couple of national titles. I'm going to have to push the pace and beat him to, win a state championship."

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 The Batavia wrestling team had nine grapplers compete in SuperSectionals, but end up with just one champion.

Nick Lazarony was the second ranked wrestler at 112 pounds and won three decisions to make it to the finals, where he was paired up with top-seeded Joe Smaldone of Geneva. 

Both were going to get a trip to states via wild card, even if they lost. That was enough reason for Smaldone - who took second at 112 last year - to forfeit his finals match. 

Lazarony had a crack at states last year and will have another one this season. 

"He's looking good," Stewart said. "There are a couple of good kids we've scouted so far. He is in the top six there for sure. He still has to wrestle, but it's well deserved. He's given us four good years."

Ryan Darch was seeded No. 1 at 160 pounds and three easy decisions en route to the finals, where he was paired up with Brandon Mills of Canisteo-Greenwood, who was the No. 2 seed.

Darch took a 1-0 lead in the first period when Mills was called on a technical violation, then scored another point in the second period on an escape.

But Mills had a takedown at the mid-point of the frame and tied the match at 2. He had an escape in the third period and then kept Darch from making a move the rest of the way. He tried, making a few attempts to lunge and get ahold of Mills, but the Canisteo grappler was too slippery.

"It was a very defensive match," Stewart said. "He got caught in that little scramble there and tried to battle back from it. It is what it is."

Darch should get a wild card trip to states, but we will not know until it is announced Monday night.

Batavia's Troy Ireland lost to Mills in the semifinals, but won his wrestle-back to take third. He won a 7-6 decision over Wellsville's Ethan Lamphier.

After losing to Pariso in the semifinals, D'Aurizio lost his bid for third place against Byron-Bergen's Zack Green. Green won the third-place match with a pin at 3:53.

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The highlight match of the Division II card was at 135 pounds, where two three-time defending state champions and NCAA Division I scholarship recipients squared off.

Warsaw's Ian Paddock - who will attend Ohio State next year - won a 3-0 decision over Pal-Mac's Alex Ekstrom - who will attend Oklahoma. 

Two other Genesee Region League wrestlers made the finals but lost as Kendall's Jake Requa took second at 96 pounds and Lyndonville's John Brabon was second at 140.