Stories from

Fresh off a Section V title, the boys of Oakfield-Alabama's cross-country team competed this weekend for a state title. The team entered as the eighth seed but notched a sixth-place finish.

They competed at Chenango Valley State Park, outside of Binghamton, "against the very best Class D runners in all of New York State," said Paul Beuler, who provided the photos and information.

Junior Cole O'Donnell from OA-E, finishing in fifth place in Class D at the Sectional Meet on Nov. 5th. 

Senior Mike Bowen from OA-E finishing in 32nd place at the Sectional Meet on Nov. 5th at Wayne High School.

Senior Josh Larmon from OA-E, on the right, finishing in ninth place at Sectionals. 

Sophomore Mark Anauo from OA-E finishing in 15th place.

A car has struck a deer on Kelsey Road near Harloff in Batavia.

There was airbag deployment and the woman passenger is pregnant.

A Mercy EMS ambulance is requested to the scene for evaluation.

A minor injury is reported.

Batavia fire responding.

Members of Notre Dame's basketball team from 1969, which won a state title known as the Manhatten Cup, were together once again last night for the school's Hall of Fame dinner. In the picture above, they pose in front of a case which holds a replica of the 1969 trophy.

For more on the inductees, click here.

A car has reportedly hit a tree or a pole in the area of Caswell Road and Clinton Street Road, Stafford.

There may be injuries. 

Stafford fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.

Responders advised to use caution, the pole is about to come down.

UPDATE: Reader submitted photo. We didn't hear any more on this call.

Winners of City fire's annual fire safety poster contest were at the Fire Hall yesterday for their pizza party and tour and demonstrations of firefighting equipment.

The winners:

• Grade K-1: First Place, Lillian Clarke, Jackson Primary School, Mrs. Torrey/Mrs. Aquilio, 1st Grade; Second Place, Addison Horton, Jackson Primary School, Mrs. Nelson/Mrs. Aquilio, 1st Grade; Third Place, Natalie Battaglia, Jackson Primary School, Mrs. Amerine, Kindergarten;
• Grade 2-3: First Place, Xavian Cramer, John Kennedy, Mrs. Searls, 3rd Grade; Second Place, Gretchen Redder, John Kennedy, Mrs. Dobbertin, 3rd Grade; Third Place, Caitlyn Brinkman, John Kennedy, Ms. Gonyeau, 2nd Grade;
• Grade 4-5: First Place, Hailey Kirkpatrick, Batavia Middle School, Mrs. Schwenk, 5th Grade; Second Place, Hannah Fry, Batavia Middle School, Mrs. Schwenk, 5th Grade, Third Place, Ava Anderson, John Kennedy, Mrs. Restiva, 4th Grade.

Photo and info submitted by Batavia Fire Department.

Batavia got into a shootout Saturday night at Ralph Wilson Stadium against the Dunkirk Marauders and came up a bullet short, losing a fight to the finish 50-48.

Both teams scored seven touchdowns apiece, but Dunkirk made one more two-point conversion than the Blue Devils, and that made all the difference.

A win would have propelled Batavia into a chance at a state title, instead, their season is over.

"This is a great group of kids and I couldn't be more proud of them," said Head Coach Brennan Briggs after the overtime loss. "It didn't turn out the way we wanted, but once again, I'm proud of these guys. Ten and one is a great football season."

The game, in many ways, was a battle of two big-play backs, Batavia's Ray Leach and Dunkirk's Alton Ingram. Leach, a sophomore, came into the game just shy of a 1,000-yard season and Ingram had more than 1,100 yards rushing.

Saturday, Leach carried the ball 20 times for 224 yards and Ingram ran 33 times for 240 yards. Both backs scored four touchdowns each.

Coming into the game, Batavia knew Ingram would be a challenge.

"You’ve got to gang-tackle him," Briggs said. "You can’t arm tackle him. He’s a big kid. He runs hard. He makes you pay if you try to arm tackle him. He’s a good football player. I tip my cap off to him. I wish we could have done a little bit more to stop him but that’s football."

The sophomore Leach finished the season strong.

"He did a great job," Briggs said. "He busted the big plays. He made the runs. He made the plays he could have made. I look forward to having him for two more years. He did a great job. He’s hard to stop."

The game opened fast and never let up. A minute into the first quarter, Leach scored on a 59-yard run.

On Dunkirk's first play from scrimmage on its first possession, Dunkirk's QB Evon Hernandez connected on a 61-yard pass to Elwin Gomez.

In the battle of two-point conversions on these first two touchdowns, the Marauders came out on top, and led 8-6.

Before the end of the quarter, the two teams would combine for another four touchdowns and Dunkirk entered the second quarter with a 22-20 lead.

Jerry Reinhart and Chandler Baker also had big games for Batavia. 

Reinhart scored twice on the ground, part of his total of 131 yards on 14 carries, and tossed TD passes to Leach and Baker. He was 3-9 passing for 48 yards.

Baker gained 54 yards on seven carries and caught two passes for 37 yards.

Dunkirk came into the game as a big-score team, strong run game and some athletes who could move the ball. Briggs said he and his coaches knew they would be tough to stop.

"We knew we would probably have to outscore them," Briggs said. "It was a great game. We just didn’t come out on top."

To purchase prints, click here.

Members of the Batavia Ramparts and Notre Dame Ice Hockey were on hand today at Falleti Ice Arena so young children could give hockey a try.

The Try Hockey for Free event is held annually.

The  First Presbyterian Church hosted its 14th Annual Worldwide Christmas Fair today, featuring artisans and vendors selling locally made items.

The Zonta clubs of Batavia and Genesee County sponsored Holiday Festival today featuring artisans and vendors at Batavia Downs.

An accident with entrapment is reported at Downey Road and Galloway Road, Batavia.

Town of Batavia fire and Mercy EMS dispatched.

UPDATE 2:40 p.m.: Two people transported to the hospital.

The Pavilion Cub Scouts collected more than 250 food items this morning for the Pavilion food pantry. The pantry helps more than 30 families in the area and this is its busiest time of year.

Info and photo submitted by Tom Stringham.

Jessica Havens submitted this photo of a pair of bald eagles she spotted in her backyard on Pratt Road, Corfu.

"Charlie" decided to go on a little unsupervised adventure yesterday while in Oakfield and has been missing since.

The beagle, who lives in Batavia, ran off from his owner while on Farnsworth Avenue, with green collar and leash still attached.

Somebody spotted Charlie yesterday on Maltby Road between the school and North Pearl, but the spotter doesn't think Charlie was dragging his leash along with him at that point. 

If you know anything about Charlie's whereabouts, call (585) 344-0787.

Helene Biandudi, a host on WXXI's "Need to Know" program and producer of an upcoming documentary on clothing, "The Empty Hanger," visited Genesee Community College's fashion program yesterday.

Her visit including filming for her documentary.

From the film's description: 

The Empty Hanger is a human interest news project revealing the stories, the people, and the history behind the clothes we wear. The series explores how dress not only impacts culture and everyday life, but can also be used as a tool for social change.

We didn't catch the location, but this is interesting: A Batavia police officer was dispatched to deal with a loose dog and he now reports that the dog is not letting him out of his patrol vehicle.

A backup unit is dispatched to help deal with the shepherd-white pit bull mix, which is deaf.

The best season in Alexander football history came to a disappointing end Friday night at New Era Field in Orchard Park, where the Trojans lost a regional playoff game to the #1 Class D team in the state, Maple Grove, by a score of 28-0.

The Trojans managed to hold the Dragons to just eight points in the first half, but turnovers and an inability to get its offense moving allowed Maple Grove to run away with the game.

Maple Grove held Alexander to 142 total yards on offense, most of them on the arm of P.J. Brennan, who was 10-29 passing for 122 yards.

To purchase prints, click here.

Today, we stopped by the Batavia VA Center and the Jerome Center for Veterans Day observances.

Officers Marc Lawrence and James Defreze prepare coffee during a Coffee with Cops event hosted by Batavia PD this morning at Tim Hortons.

Philip J. Briatico conducts the Genesee Valley Wind Ensemble at 4 p.m., Sunday, at Elba Central School.

The concert will include pieces by Samuel Barber, Danny Elfman, John Philip Sousa, Mark Camphouse, among others.

Rep. Chris Collins, who was the first member of Congress to endorse Donald Trump for president, has been named to the executive committee of the Trump transition team, according to NBC journalist Frank Thorp.

Thorp posted a screen shot of a memo on Twitter.

The team is comprised of elected officials, business leaders and family members.