Going up against defending Class B champions Waterloo, the Notre Dame Girls Basketball Team came up a little short on points to fall 61-58 on Wednesday.
The Lady Irish were led by Freshman Sofia Falleti, who dominated with a double-double of 26 points and 11 rebounds.
Also contributing to the Irish were senior Nina Bartz with 14 points and Emma Sisson with 10 points and eight rebounds.
Photos by Pete Welker.
The Batavia Blue Devils are officially 1-0 on the season after defeating Brockport 57-51 in the team's 2023-24 season home opener.
Carter Mullen and Justin Smith led the way, with Mullen scoring 16 points and Smith scoring 14. Joey Marranco scored 10 points.
The Blue Devils held on to win despite being outscored 19-13 in the final quarter.
Also in Boys Basketball on Wednesday, Le Roy beat Cal-Mum 78-49. Merritt Holly scored 31 points. Jean Agosto and Aaric Luce each scored nine.
Note: Merritt Holly scored 13 points in the third after Cal- Mum pulled to within 3 early in the period extending the margin to 16 after three.
To view or purchase photos, click here.
Photos by Steve Ognibene
Press Release:
The Batavia Muckdogs are excited to announce Cooper French as the Muckdogs Assistant Manager for the 2024 season.
Cooper is entering his first season with the Muckdogs and the PGCBL. He found a great deal of success in the Commonwealth Collegiate Baseball League of Kentucky, leading his team to an 18 & 2 record, league championship, as well as winning the Coach of the Year Award.
Cooper coached players of all levels ranging from Division I to Division III. Cooper enters his second season as the Assistant Baseball Coach at Hanover College in Indiana during his collegiate regular season. Cooper Primarily works with pitchers & outfields for the Hanover College Panthers & has learned a great deal from the entire Hanover staff. While coaching he plans on studying to achieve his MBA.
The Muckdogs will have Holiday office hours all day on Thursday, Dec. 14 from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Fans can get their favorite Muckdogs gear, get their 2024 season tickets, or pick out something special for that baseball fan in their life.
Alexander had an easy time of it against Lyndonville on Monday, netting the Trojans their second win of the season, 104-18.
Scoring:
Also on Monday, Oakfield-Alabama beat Barker, 64-44.
Photos by Pete Welker.
For the second straight year, the Karl Marth Cup came down to the final match and for the second straight year, the BBA North team came out on top.
In competition on Saturday at Medina Lanes, the North squad, comprised mostly of bowlers from the Medina and Oakfield area, defeated the South team of mostly Batavia-area bowlers by a score of 62.5-60.5.
Points were awarded for winning scores in Doubles, Singles, Baker Doubles and Baker Team events. The North team now holds a 17-12 advantage in the series, which began in 1994 as a Batavia versus Albion match in the former Batavia Bowling Association.
This year, the North withstood a spirited rally by the South, surviving by taking one of three closing Baker team events. The North came out hot, winning all six Doubles matches.
The teams split the points in Singles and Baker Doubles, and the South won two of the three Baker Team events but just fell short.
Last year, the North won, 62-61, at Mancuso Bowling Center.
Individually, Alex Allis of Medina earned the Scott Wright Memorial Award by winning three of his four matches for the North. The South’s Paul Bacon received the Joe Trigilio Memorial Award, also taking three of his four matches.
Scott Gibson and Jake Rosenbeck each averaged 229 for the day to lead the North while Scott Culp’s 225 and Mike Johnson’s 223 paced the South.
Persistent rain and a sloppy track set the stage for racing at Batavia Downs on Saturday night (Dec. 2) but the inclement conditions didn’t prevent Ricky B Sharp from excelling in the $15,000 Open I Handicap trotting feature.
Credit List (Kyle Cummings) grabbed the first lead before relenting to Staghouse (Ray FIsher Jr.), who pulled past the eighth to take the front before the :30.2 quarter. As they moved into the stretch for the first time, Kevin Cummings moved Johnny Boy early from fifth and was flying on the outside, catching Staghouse in turn three. Staghouse then made a break and caused interference with trailing horses including Ricky B Sharp (Mike Baumeister) who was fifth at that point.
Johnny Boy opened up a 2-¼ length lead over Credit List approaching three-quarters while Ricky B Sharp extricated himself from the road trouble, moved into third and gained ground with every stride. The top three separated from the field while tightening up between themselves and rounded the last turn in a pack. Johnny Boy took his diminishing lead into the stretch while Credit List and Ricky B Sharp continued to gain ground with every pylon. The three crossed the wire together with Ricky B Sharp getting the nod by one-half length in 1:59.2.
It was the fifth win of the year for Ricky B Sharp ($10.80) and owner Jennifer Signor. Ron Baumeister trains the winner.
The top pace was an upper-level conditioned event that went for $12,500 and Stranger Things claimed his ninth win of the year after closing late with enthusiasm.
JMs Delight (Greg Merton) was commander of fractions to the half but Alta Engen N (Kyle Cummings) came first-over at that station and took the lead midway up the backstretch from the fading JMs Delight. Now on the point, Alta Engen N was under duress from Stranger Things (Kevin Cummings) who had shadowed the leader since the half. Stranger Things drew alongside Alta Engen N midway through the last turn and the two pacers duked it out from there. The pair stayed even until halfway down the stretch where Stranger Things imposed his will and pulled away to a 2-½ length victory in 1:55.1.
It was win number nine this year for heavily backed Stranger Things ($2.60) who is owned by Kathy Schoeffel, Virginia Schoeffel, and James Reuther and trained by Angelo Nappo.
Driver John Cummings Jr. led all drivers on Saturday with a grand slam in the bike. He won with J-S Swanman (2:02.1, $4.30), Bluesville (1:56.3, $4.40), Win Not Lou (156.2, $8.50) and Third Edition (1:56.4, $3.20).
There are only two days of live racing left in the 2023 meet at Batavia Downs and the action resumes on Wednesday (Dec. 6) at 6:00 p.m. with a $786 carryover in the Jackpot Hi-5 pentafecta wager in race 13.
Free full past performance programs for every live card of racing at Batavia can always be downloaded at the Downs’ website (bataviadownsgaming.com) under the “Live Racing” tab and all the racing action can be viewed as it happens for free at the Batavia Downs Live Facebook page.
Chase Cone of Bergen experienced the thrill of a United States Bowling Congress-certified 300 game this week when he strung 12 consecutive strikes in the opening game of the Tuesday Night Coed League at Mancuso Bowling Center in Batavia.
The 37-year-old right-hander registered a perfect game a couple years ago, but it was in a non-certified league at Mancuso's.
By rolling a 300 game in a certified league, he can claim his ring from the USBC.
Using a Brunswick Infinity bowling ball, Cone put all 12 shots in the 1-3 pocket, finishing on lane 13. He added games of 236 and 208 for a 744 series.
Employed as a damage prevention tech at Bermex Inc. in Rochester, Cone's previous high certified game was 279.
In other Genesee Region USBC league action:
-- Robbie Hanks stayed hot in the Thursday Men's Triples at Oak Orchard Bowl in Albion, posting 264-276-216--756 to lead the way.
-- Rich Wagner of Batavia topped the list of scores in the Toyota of Batavia 4-Man at Mancuso's with 263-245-244--752.
-- Matt Bourg of Alexander recorded his first 700 series, starting with 265 in a 707 effort in the Brighton Securities Tuesday Triples at Mancuso's.
For a list of high scores, click on the Pin Points tab at the top of the home page.
Byron-Bergen is the 31st winner of the Warsaw Kiwanis Tip-Off Tournament after beating Filmore on Saturday 80-54.
For the Bees, Braedyn Chambry had a big night, scoring 41 points. Brody Baubie scored 22 points.
Photos by Jennifer DiQuattro.
Pavilion dropped the afternoon consolation game in the 31st Annual Warsaw Kiwanis Tip-Off Tournament on Saturday, losing to Warsaw, 82-54.
Case Cummins scored 19 points for the Golden Gophers. Landan Stoddard scored 10 points.
Photos by Jennifer DiQuattro.
Elba won the Rich Martello Hall of Fame Tournament in Wayland-Cohocton on Saturday, beating Wayland 41-35.
Mike Long was named the tournament MVP.
He scored 12 points in the final.
Nicholas Scott and Ryan Marsceill scored nine each, and Ashton Bezon scored seven.
Martello was a member of the Wayland-Cohocton faculty for 34 years. He was boys varsity basketball coach from 1971 to 1975 and athletic director from 1976 to 1997. He coached track and field for 32 years. He's been inducted into the Section V Track and Field Hall of Fame, the Wayland-Cohocton Hall of Fame, and the Mount Morris Hall of Fame.
Photos by Doug McFarland.
Byron-Bergen beat Pavilion 63-47 in the 31st Annual Warsaw Kiwanis Tip-Off Tournament on Friday night.
For the Bees, Brody Baubie scored 19 points and had 12 rebounds. Colin Martin, 12 points and five steals. Bradyn Chambry scored nine points and snagged nine rebounds.
The Golden Gophers will play Warsaw in the consolation game today (Saturday) at 5:30 p.m. Byron-Bergen will face off against Fillmore in the finals at 7 p.m. at Warsaw High School.
For the second time this meet, Jim McNeight Jr. visited the winner’s enclosure five times during the Wednesday night (Nov. 29) card at Batavia Downs to further enhance what has been a career year for the 27-year-old reinsman. His first foray with five came on Oct. 6.
McNeight won with Mach Of Shame (1:59, $6.90), Fear Her Touch (1:57.2, $13.80), Chipper Daisey (1:57.1, $6.50), Ariyana Star (1:58, $118.00) and Red Hot Sun (1:59.1, $11.00). McNeight is currently the fourth leading driver of the Batavia meet with 57 wins, but his numbers for the year are what really stand out. He has 124 wins, $1.06 million in earnings, and a UDR of .241, all of which are career highs by a great margin.
The one race McNeight didn’t win on Wednesday was the $15,000 featured pace for fillies and mares where Ray Fisher Jr. steered Summer Slash to her first victory after a two-month layoff.
Summer Slash was third and eight lengths off the pace of Won Surreal Deal (Kyle Cummings) who skated through quarters of :27.2 and :57. Summer Slash made up the deficit by the five-eighths and Fisher pulled the mare heading up the backstretch. As the race moved past three-quarters, Summer Slash moved into second place and under a line drive by Fisher, ran down Won Surreal Deal in the stretch to win by 1-¼ lengths in 1:55.
It was the ninth win of the year for Summer Slash ($8.30) who is owned by Ilovemyharnesshorsesummer and trained by Ryan Swift.
In the $11,500 conditioned pace for fillies and mares, A Black Diamond (Dave McNeight III) won her 13th race of the year, eight of which came at Batavia Downs. After leaving from post one, A Black Diamond led every step of the mile and won by three-quarters of a length over the tripped-out Imprincessgemma A (Brett Beckwith) in 1:55.4. A Black Diamond ($2.40) is owned by Lav Racing Stable and trained by Russell Bratt.
Jim Rothfuss had two training wins to lead all conditioners on Wednesday.
Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Saturday (Dec. 2) at 6:00 p.m. and there will be a $519 carryover in the Jackpot Hi-5 pentafecta wager in race 13.
Free full past performance programs for every live card of racing at Batavia can always be downloaded at the Downs’ website (bataviadownsgaming.com) under the “Live Racing” tab and all the racing action can be viewed as it happens for free at the Batavia Downs Live Facebook page.
The annual Karl Marth Cup challenge match takes place this afternoon at Medina Lanes with the BBA South team hoping to avenge a narrow defeat last year and close the gap in the all-time series against the BBA North squad.
Dedicated to Karl Marth, a Batavia Bowling Association Hall of Famer who died in 2003, the event also keeps alive the memory of the former BBA, which listed bowling centers in Genesee and Orleans counties.
Competition takes place in Doubles, Singles, Baker Doubles and Baker Team. In Baker-style bowling, bowlers alternate frames.
In 2022, the North edged the South, 62-61, and now leads the series, 16-12.
Today’s match is scheduled for 1 p.m. and is open to the public.
Members of the North team are Hayden Allis (captain), Alex Allis, Scott Allis, Roger Allis, Scott Gibson, Garrett Gibson, Jim Foss, Brian Cline, Jason Mahnke, Jake Rosenbeck, Dean Cadieux Jr. and Ray Neuman.
Members of the South team are Ed Doody (captain), Fred Gravanda, Matt Balduf, Dave Montemarano Jr., Scott Shields, James Townsend, Geoff Harloff, Steve O’Dell, Mike Johnson, Paul Bacon, Rick Underhill and Scott Culp.
The Merry Mitemas Tournament is underway at the David M. McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena in Batavia.
The inaugural tournament features 18 teams. Four are from Batavia, with teams from as far away as Webster and Geneva, said Sharon Valyear-Gray, one of the tournament's organizers, along with her husband, Bob Gray, their daughter, Allyson Valyear, who is chair, and Tim Sprague, Mite program team coordinator.
"We wanted to give the little guys an experience that our older ones always get when they go to tournaments," Valyear-Gray said. "Several of the teams went to the Pittsburgh tournament on Veterans weekend. Most of them go to one or two (tournaments) in Rochester. We have three teams that are going to Lake Placid in March, which is really a neat experience for the kids. But the little ones just kind of get left behind."
Each team is guaranteed at least three games over the weekend.
The weekend will include a skate with Santa at noon on Sunday, followed by the championship game.
Photos by Howard Owens
Genesee Region Girls Basketball opened the 2023-24 season on Thursday with a matchup between Elba and Lydonville.
The Lancers beat the Tigers 55-36.
Sydney Reilly scored 17 points. Lydia Ross added 15 and Mariah Ognibene 10.
Photos by Debra Reilly.
The Alexander Trojans beat Geneseo 51-46 on Tuesday to open its 2023-24 campaign in Boys Basketball.
The win was the first as head coach for former Batavia High School basketball standout Jalen Smith.
Jayden Snyder notched a double-double for the Trojans, with 12 points and 12 rebounds. Kingston Woods also scored 12 points. He had seven rebounds. Trenton Woods added 10 points and grabbed seven rebounds. Dylan Pohl scored eight points.
Photos by Doug McFarland
Rob Gustke of Rochester gave himself an early birthday present on Saturday by winning the Genesee Region USBC Senior Masters Tournament at Mancuso Bowling Center in Batavia.
The high-revving right-hander, who turned 53 on Monday, was making his first appearance in the event for GRUSBC bowlers 50 years of age and older. He is a member of the Pizzaland Doubles League at Le Roy Legion Lanes.
Photo: From left, Brian Weber, Rob Gustke, Rob Manners.
Gustke defeated Rob Manners, also of Rochester, 194-181, in the title match, to claim the $300 first prize. He also earned a free entry into the GRUSBC Scratch Memorial Tournament in January and a championship plaque.
Manners won $200 for placing second while Brian Weber of Perry pocketed $150 for finishing in third place. Manners turned back Weber, 267-224, in the opening match of the three-bowler stepladder finals to move on to face the top-seeded Gustke.
Gustke was the second-high qualifier with a three-game total of 712 and then rolled 494 for two games to reach the top six. His 213 in the third round enabled him to secure the No. 1 seed for the finals.
The victory adds to his impressive list of titles, mostly compiled in the Rochester NY USBC.
“I think I'm up to seven or eight city titles now … and I won the Mount Morris Open in 2019,” said Gustke, a machinist by trade. “They were all scratch tournaments, and I bowl more for the titles than the money.”
Gustke said he used three bowling balls over his seven games – the Storm DNA, Storm IQ Nano Pearl and the 900 Global Ordnance C4.
The tournament drew 43 entries over two qualifying squads.
In qualifying, Jim Foss of Medina led the way with a 749 series, followed by Gustke (712), Scott Shields of Batavia 705, Weber 704, Mickey Hyde of Le Roy 698, Dean Cadieux Jr. of Oakfield 694, Manners 684, defending champion Roger Allis of Medina 670, Bill Neubert of Batavia 667, Scott Gibson of Oakfield 666, Mark Brown of Attica 661 and John Lowe of Le Roy 650.
Gustke (494 for two games), Manners (463), Brown (462), Allis (449), Weber (446) and Neubert (437) advanced through the second round, with Weber (225 for one game), Manners (224) and Gustke (213) reaching the stepladder finals.
Allis, Neubert and Brown each won $100 while the six other cashers earned $75 apiece. The GRUSBC added $200 to the prize fund and another $200 was added from a special Masters fund administered by tournament director Paul Spiotta.
The Alexandar Trojans played in the Red Jacket Toys for Tots Tournament at Red Jacket on Saturday, winning the championship 77-27.
Scoring:
Alyssa Kramer was the tournament MVP
Photos by Brennan Bezon
Once an outstanding youth bowler in the Oakfield junior program run by his father, Garrett Gibson is making his mark on the adult league and tournament bowling scene.
Gibson, now 30, posted his third United States Bowling Congress-certified 300 game yesterday morning while competing in the Sunday Rolloffs League at Medina Lanes -- a weekly singles competition that also includes his dad, Scott.
The right-hander fired games of 243-300-246 for a 789 series to lead all bowlers.
In April of this year, he recorded a perfect game at the New York State Open Championships at Bowl-A-Roll Lanes in Rochester. His first 300 game came in 2015 at Scopano's Lanes (now StrikeForce Lanes) in his hometown of Oakfield.
Garrett is employed as an electrical engineering technician at MGA Research Corp. in Akron.
In other league action around the Genesee Region USBC, Middleport left-hander Brian Cline continued his stellar bowling with a 280 game and 761 series in the Mancuso Real Estate Doubles League at Mancuso Bowling Center. Cline is averaging over 230 in the league.
For a list of high scores for the week, click on the Pin Points tab at the top of the home page.
After bouncing back from an untimely break last week and despite a jump in class for this start, Johnny Boy got back in the win column by taking the $15,000 Open I Handicap trotting feature at Batavia Downs on Saturday night (Nov. 25).
Kevin Cummings sent Johnny Boy to the front, grabbed the lead past the quarter and then controlled the race every step from there. After reaching the half in :58.4, Makadushin N Cheez (Jim McNeight Jr.) rolled up first-over on the rim and remained a player until three-quarters. His bid fell apart at that point, forcing Gracious Triumph (Jim Morrill Jr.) three-wide into the last turn. Meanwhile Johnny Boy had opened up a two length advantage before turning for home and was driven confidently to the wire on top by 1-¼ lengths in 1:57.2.
It was the ninth win of the year for Johnny Boy ($17.80) who is owned by Mike Torcello and trained by Sam Smith.
In the co-featured $15,000 Open I Handicap pace, Lanjo Lee (Kyle Cummings) was by far the best horse in the race and finished his mile with an exclamation mark. After leading the field by a gapped margin through quarters of :27.4, :57.4 and 1:25.1, Lanjo Lee extended his lead around the last turn and bolted home under wraps and on top by 3-¾ lengths in 1:53.3.
Lanjo Lee ($3.50) scored his seventh win of the year for owner Gordon Swift and trainer Jeff Sorenson.
After setting the track record for wins on a single card (9) last Saturday at Batavia, driver Jim Morrill Jr. was back at it again this week and posted five more wins during the program. He won with Mugshots Bro (1:58.1, $3.50), Stop Action (1:56, $4.50), Virgil N (1:54.2, $3.30), BJ’s Smitty (1:57.4, $8.90) and Mighty Santana N (1:54.2, $2.70). Morrill also finished second four times out of his 12 drives giving him a .602 UDR for the evening. Morrill is currently the leading percentage driver among all other drivers in North America with a .438 UDR for the entire year.
There was a big payout in the final race of the night when the Jackpot Hi-5 was hit. The single unique combination of 1-4-9-5-7 returned $4,671.30 for a 20-cent wager.
Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Wednesday (Nov. 29) at 6 p.m.
Free full past performance programs for every live card of racing at Batavia can always be downloaded at the Downs’ website (bataviadownsgaming.com) under the “Live Racing” tab and all the racing action can be viewed as it happens for free at the Batavia Downs Live Facebook page.
Copyright © 2008-2022 The Batavian. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service
