Casper Stewart did something on Saturday that nobody else in Batavia High School history has ever done before -- win a state championship.
He was crowned the Division II 145-pound champ after beating Kieran Cullen (Greenville, Section II) 4-2 in the finals.
His path to victory included a preliminary win over Turner Sochia (Gouverneur, Section X), a quarterfinals win over Colton Havens (Canisteo-Greenwood, Section V), and a semifinal win over Riley Monica (South Jefferson, Section III).
He finishes the season with a 52-3 record and a career record of 279-20. He was a six-time state qualifier, finishing third in 2020, 4th in 2022, and third in 2023.
His 279 wins is fourth all-time in career wins in New York State, and his 202 career pins rank him first all-time in the state and #4 nationally.
He is committed to wresting at Army West Point, a Division I program.
The Byron-Bergen Bees advanced on Saturday in the Section V Class C2 tournament with a 69-37 quarterfinal win over Eugenio Maria de Houstos.
Braedyn Chambry scored 26 points for the Bees. Brendan Pimm scored 15, and Brody Baubie and Colin Martin scored nine each.
Byron-Bergen is the #1 seed in Class C2 and will face the #4 seed, York, on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at Cal-Mum.
Also in Boys Basketball:
Also in Class C2, Alexander beat Cuba-Rushford 71-44. Alexander is the #2 seed, led by first-year coach Jalen Smith. Alexander plays a semifinal game against Bolivar-Richburg at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Letchworth.
In Class C1, Pembroke beat Warsaw 69-52. Tyson Totten scored 40 points and had 10 rebounds. Pembroke Plays East Rochester in the semifinal on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at Pittsford Sutherland.
In Class C3, Notre Dame beat C.G. Finney 87-73. Notre Dame's semifinal is against Filmore at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday at Letchworth.
In Class D, Elba beat Jasper-Troupsburg 53-44. Elba plays Andover-Whitesville on Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. at Wayland-Cohocton.
In Class B2, Le Roy beat Attica, 64-49. Merritt Holly, 26 points and 17 rebounds, Matthew Hockey, 18 points, and Jake Higgins, 11 points. Le Roy, at #5, plays #1 seed Avon at 6 p.m. on Monday at Haverling.
Elba beat Notre Dame on Friday in the Class D Girls Basketball Quarterfinal, 55-47.
Sydney Reilly and Lydia Ross both scored 20 points for the Lancers.
Emma Sisson scored 20 points for Notre Dame, and she had 12 rebounds. Lucia Fiorentino contributed 12 points and 5 rebounds. Sofia Falleti had 7 points and 14 rebounds.
"We had a tremendous season with many accomplishments," said Notre Dame Coach Vinny Falleti. "With two seniors and underclassmen, this team came together and worked so hard this season. Even though it wasn’t the ending we had hoped for, I am so proud of this team. Irish Proud!”
Elba plays in the Class D semifinal on Wednesday at 6 p.m. at Mount Morris against Avoca-Pratssburgh.
Photo of Flyhawk El Fuerte courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
The finals of the Western New York Trackmaster Series for trotters were held at Batavia Downs on Thursday (Feb. 22) and in the main event, Flyhawk El Fuerte pulled off the upset in the $20,000 TM79 division.
P C Foreign Affair (Jim Morrill Jr.) grabbed the lead from post eight and maintained a gapped advantage through quarters of :28.4, :58.4 and 1:28.4 while Flyhawk El Fuerte (John Cummings Jr.) kept close in the pocket. With no serious threat coming from behind, the top two trotters traversed the last turn, where Cummings tipped Flyhawk El Fuerte and went on the attack. As they entered the stretch, Flyhawk El Fuerte had a full head of steam and blew past P C Foreign Affair to win by 2-½ lengths in a season's best 1:58.3.
Flyhawk El Fuerte ($12.20) is owned by Kathleen Pratt and Andrea Lehmann and is trained by Joe Skowyra, who sent two winners postward on Thursday.
There were also two division finals for the TM74 class.
The $15,000 group was bested by Classic Sunny (2:00.1, $3.70), who was one of two winning drives for Kevin Cummings. Classic Sunny is owned by Anthony Alessi and Fred Yellen and trained Scott Bompczyk.
The $8,000 split was won by Finnick Odair (2:01.4, $3.70) who was driven by Brett Beckwith for owner/trainer Rose Russo.
There was also a trio of Open events on Thursday’s card that highlighted the best horses on the grounds.
In the $15,000 Handicap for fillies and mares, Shecouldbegood N (Kyle Swift) made a first over move at three-quarters trying to reel in the frontrunning Ball Diamond (Keith Kash Jr.). Still trailing by 1-½ lengths at the head of the stretch, Shecouldbegood N paced furiously to the wire and won by one-quarter length in 1:56.3.
It was the 40th career win for Shecouldbegood N ($9.60) who is owned by Michael Milazzo and trained by Candace Bandstatter, who also had two winners on Thursday.
The $14,000 Handicap for male pacers went to Primo Uomo (Brett Beckwith) who led at every station before holding off a late-closing Optical Illusion N (Jim McNeight Jr.) to win by one-half length in 1:54.2, which was a new seasonal mark.
The heavily backed Primo Uomo ($2.60) is owned by Chris and Dale Lawton and trained by David Dewhurst.
Beckwith had a driving hat trick during the card.
Finally in the $15,000 Handicap trot, E Street (Jim Morrill Jr.) was never challenged as he led from gate to wire to score an easy 1-¼ length upset victory in 1:58, which was also a new seasonal mark.
It was the second straight win for E Street ($20.80) and owner Elite Harness Racing. Rachelle Mungillo trains the winner.
Morrill ended the day with two driving wins.
Driver Dave McNeight III tied Beckwith with three wins on the day, however all three of his provided huge payoffs. “Triple Sticks” won with Magical Mistress (1:55.4, $24.40), Mayweather Hanover (1:56.2, $37.40) and VJ Panderosa (1:56.4, $47.60).
There was also an instant jackpot in the day’s final event when the 1-2-9-3-4 pentafecta combination returned $5,524.10 for a 20-cent wager.
Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Monday (Feb. 26), which is the last day of live racing for the winter meet. Post time will be at 3 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.
From (left to right): Abigail Russel, Harrison McPhee, Charlotte Saraceni, Morgan Kidder, Devin Bubel Submitted photo.
Press Release:
Members of the Alexander Varsity Riflery Team, sponsored by the Glenn S. Loomis American Legion Post 332 Batavia, competed at the 2024 CMP 3PAR Championships held at the American Legion Post 787 in Cicero on Feb. 18.
The team was led by Devin Bubel, placing 21st overall with a score of 502, followed by Morgan Kidder (35th) with a score of 464.
8th graders, Morgan Kidder and Harrison McPhee were awarded medals in age group 3. McPhee placed 3rd in the kneeling position, while Kidder placed 2nd in prone, kneeling, and overall.
Rounding out the team were Charlotte Saraceni and Abigail Russel, placing 38th and 42nd, respectively.
While the American Legion season has ended, Bubel, Kidder, and Alexander teammate Katelyn Green will be competing in the NYS High School Championships being held in Orchard Park on March 2.
Photo of Harrison McPhee and Morgan Kidder Submitted photo.
Caitlin Ryan going to the hoop, Ryan scored 20 points in the Hornets win. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Oakfield-Alabama, coming in as the #3 seed, beat #14 seed Geneseo to open Class C1 sectional play on Tuesday 67-53.
Ryan Caitlin scored 20 points to lead the Hornets. Alea Groff scored 19, and Jess Sosnowski scored nine.
The Hornets jumped to a 22-11 lead in the first quarter and led at the half 38-22. Then Geneseo pulled to within five points in the third quarter but O-A held tight in the final quarter for the win.
Pembroke beat Red Creek, 56-40. Seneca Calderon scored 15 points and had five rebounds. Elle Peterson scored 11 points. Peyton Liss and Reagan Schneider each scored eight points.
Byron-Bergen beat Holley 50-27
Pavilion beat South Seneca 51-47
In Boys Basketball: Batavia lost to Geneva 55-40. Casey Mazur scored 13 points, and Carter Mullen scored nine points.
Photo of Long Train Runnin courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Batavia Downs hosted the $93,000 finals of the Western New York Trackmaster Series on Monday (Feb.19) and in the featured TM79 match-up for $20,000, Long Train Runnin ran his win streak to five to claim the winner’s share of the purse.
Proven Desire (John Cummings Jr.) led the field at the quarter, but then watched as stablemate Long Train Runnin (Billy Davis Jr.) breezed by in the second turn to take control of the mile. Once on top, Long Train Runnin backed off the half to a mere :59 before stepping to three-quarters in a slick :28.1. Dogfight (Jim Morrill Jr.) tried to mount a challenge during that third panel but it failed before they hit three-quarters. As they spiralled out of the last turn and headed into the stretch, Proven Desire vacated the pocket and dug in hard, trying to catch the leader. But despite a valiant effort, he came up a neck short as Long Train Runnin finished strong to win again in a season's best tying 1:55.3.
It was the fifth win in only six starts this year for Long Train Runnin and it pushed his 2024 bankroll to $30,250 for owners Paige Usiak and William Emmons. Jim Clouser Jr. trains the winner.
There were two consolations for the TM79 class. The $10,000 leg was won by Silverhill Blaze (1:56.1, $3.90) who was driven by Jim Morrill Jr. for trainer Andy Torre who co-owns with Kristen Torre and the $9,000 leg was won by Henrico (1:56.3, $31.00) who was driven by Billy Daivs Jr. for owner/trainer Courtney Wright.
The $17,000 TM75 final was won by Stonebridge Hypnos (Jim Morrill Jr.) who held pylon position as she sparred with Major Authority (Dan Yetman) through quarters of :27.3 and :56.4 while Thatmomentinlife (Billy Davis Jr.) tracked from the pocket. As the race approached three-quarters, Major Authority faded while Stonebridge Hypnos and Thatmoentinlife pulled away from the field around the final bend. As the pair paced to the wire, Thatmomentinlife pulled and did advance on the leader, but Stonebridge Hypnos was just too good and held on to a one-half length margin of victory in 1:56.2.
It was the third win in a row and fourth of the year for Stonebridge Hypnos ($3.00) who has now earned $23,300 this year for owner Mike Torcello and trainer Sam Smith.
The consolation for the $8,500 TM75 group was won by Harry Hoo N (1:56.3, $11.60) who was driven by Billy Davis Jr. for owner Harry Wortzman. Shawn McDonough trained the winner.
Then in the $14,000 TM71 final, Missplacedrock (Kyle Swift) followed Howmacs Hank (Billy Davis Jr.) to the half in :58.2 when Artistic Spirit (Drew Monti) joined the fray. Artistic Spirit pushed Howmacs Hank to three-quarters and they paced that piece in :28.4. The top two continued to match strides around the last turn while Swift drifted three-wide with Missplacedrock and started to drive him as they headed into the lane. Missplacedrock caught the pair in mid-stretch and eventually slid by to win by one-half length in 1:57.
It was the fourth win of the year for Missplacedrock ($6.10) who increased her 2024 bank to $19,340 for owner Rose Campbell. Greg Johnson was the winning trainer.
There were also two consolations for the TM71 group.
The $7,500 split was won by Beddanburg (1:56.3, $5.40) who was driven by Drew Monti for owner/trainer Chris Petrelli and the $6,500 division was won by Bettor Country (1:58.2, $2.60) who was driven by Billy Davis Jr. for owner Ben Ortiz and trainer Shawn McDonough.
Drivers Billy Davis Jr. and Jim Morrill Jr. both had Grand Slams during the day while trainers Shawn McDonough, Chris Petrelli and Rock Vinci all had two wins apiece.
Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Thursday (Feb. 22) at 3 p.m. and the card will feature the $43,000 finals of the Western New York Trackmaster Series for trotters. Also, there will be a $3,267 carryover in the Jackpot Super Hi-5 pentafecta in the 13th race.
There are only two days of live racing left in the 2024 winter meet at Batavia Downs. The final day of action is Monday (Feb. 26).
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.
Photo of Missplacedrock courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Photo of Stonebridge Hypnos courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Coach Nicholas Burk said Batavia's teams continue to excel because the athletes understand what it takes to be competitive in every meet.
"The kids need to commit," Burk said. "The kids need to recognize that this is a process, and you continue to improve. It gets more and more difficult for kids with all the distractions they have in life. So, kids have to commit; they have to enjoy this feeling of wanting to win again. I don't mean to necessarily sound overconfident, but we're going to be in the midst of it. Our kids are gonna give effort, and they're gonna work their tails off, so we're in a position where we're a top two, top three team, and we're gonna get after it, and you know, we're gonna build that confidence to try to win."
Mady Smith won the 55m hurdles. Smith also took 2nd place in her 4x200m relay team. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Campbell Riley won both the 1000 and 1500m race and also with her teammates in the 4x800m relay. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Sheldon Silverling took first place in both the shot put and weight throw. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Cole Grazioplene won the 600 m race. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Ella Shamp won the Long Jump and High Jump. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Batavia Girls 4x400 Relay team took first place, left to right pictured - Karizma Wescott, Kylee Brennan, Jadyn Boyce, Ava Anderson Photo by Steve Ognibene
Ava Wierda won the girls weight throw. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Batavia Girls celebrate their teams 18th sectional indoor track title over the last 22 years. Photo by Steve Ognibene
The Western New York Trackmaster Series finals and consolation races for pacers will be held at Batavia Downs on Monday afternoon (Feb. 19) and $93,000 in total purses will be in play for the participating horses.
The series is broken into three groups: TM 79, TM75 and TM71 and seeding for the finals and consolations were determined by money-earnings from the four preliminary legs.
The TM79 final goes for $20,000 and two undefeated starters will be facing off.
Long Train Runnin (Billy Davis Jr.) comes in on a four race winning streak, all of which came in the TM preliminaries. Proven Desire (John Cummings Jr.) has strung three victories together in this series despite a scratch three weeks ago due to injury. Both horses are from the Jim Clouser Jr. Barn and will go as an entry.
Another high performing duo starting in the final as a Sam Smith stable entry is Dogfight (Jim Morrill Jr.) and Mcdelicacy (Kevin Cummings). Dogfight has two wins and a second in three TM starts while Mcdelicacy has finished second four consecutive times, three of which were to Long Train Runnin. This should be a very competitive event.
There are also two TM79 consolations, one for $10,500 and one for $9,500.
In the $10,500 split, Silverhill Blaze (Jim Morrill Jr.) has been chasing Long Train Runnin and Proven Desire over the last three weeks, finishing second twice and third another time. But he won’t be facing either of them on Monday and looks to make his own mark. In the $9,500 group there is a formidable stable entry of Doyoukissfirstdate (Dave McNeight III) and Star Messenger (Kevin Cummings) from Davis Russo and Marc Shuttleworth’s Clayton’s Bettor N (Jim Morrill Jr.) who put in a huge mile last week before just getting beat at the line.
The $17,000 TM75 final features two more entries.
Sam Smith is starting Authentic Hanover (Drew Monti) and Stonebridge Hypnos (Jim Morrill Jr.), who registered three wins and a second in his four series outings. Shawn McDonough will be starting Thatmomentinlife (Billy Davis Jr.) and Weekend Atnannies (Kevin Cummings), who also has three wins in four series starts while finishing third in the fourth.
The $8,500 consolation for that class features a very wide open betting race as seven of the eight starters have not won a race this year. And the only horse that has notched one victory -- which came in this series -- is Jerry Nugent Jr.’s Dry Ridge Ace (Keith Kash Jr.) who is listed at 25-1 morning line.
Lastly, the TM71 $14,000 final has another dynamic duo from the Sam Smith stable who will line up as an entry as well.
Road Map (Jim Morrill Jr.) who has won three out of four series starts while being narrowly beaten in the fourth and Howmacs Hank (Billy Davis Jr.) who comes in on a two race win streak. But there will be strong opposition from Greg Johnson’s Misplaced Rock (Kyle Swift) and Chris Petrelli’s Artistic Spirit (Drew Monti), who are both two-time winners in the series and are currently at the top of their game.
The TM71 consolations have Shawn McDonough stable entries favored in both events. In the $7,500 leg, Surfers Paradise (Jim Morrill Jr.) and Traffic Citation (Billy Davis Jr.) lead the way while Bettor Country (Billy Davis Jr.) and Sapphire Love Chip (Jim Morrill Jr.) got the oddsmaker’s nod in the $6,500 split.
There are also a pair of carryovers associated with Monday’s card to make the wagering even more interesting.
The 50-cent Pick-5 that starts in race one and runs through race five has a $891 carryover while the 20-cent Jackpot Super Hi-5 in race 13 features a $2,669 carryover.
Post time for the first race on Monday is 3 p.m.
The WNY Trackmaster trotting finals will be held on Thursday (Feb. 22).
Photo of Long Train Runnin courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Photo of Proven Desire courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Tournament director Mark Brown, left, congratulates Tom Rohl, champion, and John Wolff, runner-up, following the "Super Bowl" handicap singles event at Mancuso Bowling Center. Submitted photo.
LeRoyan Tom Rohl defeated Batavian John Wolff, 210-203, in a battle of left-handers to win the “Super Bowl” handicap singles tournament at Mancuso Bowling Center in Batavia.
Rohl, 50, earned $500 while Wolff, 83 years young, took home $300 for their efforts in the event, which drew 43 entries last weekend.
Based on his 212 average, Rohl received three pins handicap and just managed to sneak past Wolff, who received 44 pins based on his 171 average.
Rohl downed Rich Wagner of Batavia, another lefty, while Wolff topped Rick Underhill of Batavia in the semifinals. Wagner and Underhill won $160 each.
Quarterfinalists were Brandon Luce of Oakfield (the high qualifier), Selena McJury of Batavia, Sam Oddo of Batavia and Austin Hawker of Geneseo. They won $120 apiece.
HEROLD HITS 290 AT LEGION LANES
In Genesee Region USBC league action last week, Le Roy Legion Lanes produced some high scores, with Shayne Herold's 290 game highlighting the American Legion Thursday Mens' League.
Gunner Pietrzykowski, Ethan Bradley, Nolan Radley, and Ben Stone Submitted Photo.
Submitted by Coach Matt Holman
On Tuesday, the Batavia Boys Alpine Ski team found a mixed bag of weather and conditions at Swain Resort.
The warmer temperatures over the weekend led to a sugary snow, easily pushed away by each skier leading to a hard service with large banks of soft light snow. The morning sun turned to afternoon clouds and light snow of giant picturesque snowflakes.
The boys came in sixth place out of 11 teams in the competition.
Freezing overnight conditions left the race course in great condition for the girls on Wednesday.
The soft snow from the day before was much more solid and the girl skiers did not have to worry about snow piles of any kind. The day was perfect for ski racing, with bluebird skies minimal cloud coverage, and the bright spring sun.
The girls, competing with an incomplete team, came in eighth place out of 11 teams.
Ivan Milovidov receives a pass from Jameson Motyka for a goal in the second period. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Batavia Notre Dame United opened sectional play on Thursday as the #1 seed in Class B and came away with the expected victory over Geneseo/Avon/Livonia.
United (19-2) won 6-1 at the David M. McCarthy Memorial Ice Arena.
United scored first on a pass by Jake Hutchins and Orion Lama to Ivan Milovidov.
Five goals in the second period gave United a 6-0 lead.
Three goals were scored by Ivan Milovidov, giving him more than 100 career points.
Brady Johnson and Jake Hutchins also scored.
Goaltender Rhys Tanner lost his shot at a shutout when Matt Mulvaney scored for Geneseo with four minutes left in the game.
United plays next Wednesday at home against #5 seed Canandaigua. The game time has not yet been announced.
Photo of Imprincessgemma A courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
After a lengthy respite, winter returned to western New York as persistent snow and wind kept things challenging for the Thursday afternoon (Feb. 15) card at Batavia Downs. The program featured the three top weekly classes and two big efforts from the meet’s leading drivers.
The $14,000 Open Handicap pace for fillies and mares was up first and Imprincessgemma A (Brett Beckwith) got her first victory of the year.
Leaving from post five, Imprincessgemma A cut fractions of :28.1, :58.3 and 1:28 while Ball Diamond (Keith Kash Jr.) followed close in the pocket. Ball Diamond pulled to advance at the top of the last turn and almost drew even as they entered the stretch. But Imprincessgemma A held sway and paced away to a 1-¼ length victory under a line drive in 1:57.3.
It was the 43rd career win for Imprincessgemma A ($3.90) and it pushed the 10-year-old’s lifetime earnings to $601,489. Imprincessgemma A is owned by Elite Harness Racing and is trained by Shawn McDonough.
Imprincessgemma A was also one of four driving wins on the card for Brett Beckwith who also won with Stars And Stones (2:00.3, $6.90), Angelo J Fra (1:58.1, $9.20) and Silver Buckeye (2:02, $8.00). Beckwith currently sits second in the driver standings.
Then in the $15,000 Open I Handicap for male pacers, Umberto (Dave McNeight III) got his second win in a row on the strength of an impressive effort.
Umberto also left from mid-pack, post five, and crossed over to the lead in the first turn. After setting up shop on the point, Umberto paced unchallenged through swift quarters of :27.3, :57.2, and 1:25.1. In the last turn, McNeight laid back for the ride home and Umberto strode to the line by 2-¼ lengths and won in 1:54.
Umberto ($7.40) is owned by El Dorado Stables and is trained by Dave McNeight Jr.
Finally in the $15,000 Open I Handicap trot, E Street (Jim Morrill Jr.) drew a rare inside post and tripped-out to an upset feature win.
Big Box Hanover (Larry Stalbaum) took the lead before the quarter as E Street sat behind him in the cozy pocket. After hitting the quarter in :29, positions remained unchanged to the half and up the backstretch. It was there that Special Prosecutor (Drew Monti) made a first-over push and joined the fray at three-quarters in 1:30 flat. Big Box Hanover responded to the challenge and pulled away by a length as they hit the straight. But at the same time, E Street dipped into the passing lane and within the length of three pylons, had the lead and bolted home by a length in 1:59.3.
E Street ($16,60) is owned by Elite Harness Racing and trained by Rachelle Mungillo.
E Street capped off a driving grand slam for Morrill as well after he had already won with P C Foreign Affair (2:02, $10.40), Just A Wrangler (1:55.4, $6.50) and Mayweather Hanover (1:59.1, $5.30).
Trainers Taylor Fritz and Andy Torre both had conditioning doubles on Thursday.
Live racing resumes at Batavia Downs on Monday (Feb. 15) at 3 p.m. and the card will feature the $100,000 finals of the Western New York Trackmaster Series for pacers. Also, there will be a $2,669 carryover in the Jackpot Super Hi-5 pentafecta in the 13th race.
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.
Left to right in black t-shirts are Julia Clark, Anna Varland, Isabella Walsh, and Julia Preston were honored on senior night. Photo by Steve Ognibene
On Senior night, one win-shy of a .500 season, Batavia came out strong against Geneva and came away with a 59-19 win.
The game began with a 6-4 early in the first quarter lead for the Blue Devils but trailed at the end of the quarter 11-8.
With a strong second half, Batavia turned out the light on Geneva, going into the half with a 33-12 lead, and the game was never close again.
After a couple of consecutive seasons where wins were hard to come by, Coach John McCulley sees progress in a 10-10 season and a group of young players developing winning habits and gaining experience.
"The season started out pretty good," McCulley said. "We had a light schedule. We started out with a bunch of girls that hadn't played at the varsity level. The senior girls that I had, that's what made it so special throughout the season. The senior girls I had were a huge help for me, as far as the right attitude, and teaching the young girls the right way to handle things. And so the season went pretty well. We had our ups and downs but as far as I'm concerned, from last year to this year, leaps and bounds. We've learned a lot, everything, every game, we progressively got better."
There are nine freshmen in the program, between varsity and JV and McCulley believes they have high ceilings.
"The freshmen are going to be phenomenal for me," McCulley said. "And I got Jamie (Macdonald) coming back another year that she just took leaps and bounds towards the end of the year. I think she's going to accept this role as a leader and just be a powerhouse next year."
Pembroke beat Oakfield-Alabama 58-50. Seneca Calderon scored 17 points, Peyton Liss, 12, with five rebounds, and Elle Peterson, seven points and five rebounds.
In Boys Basketball, Batavia beat Greece-Olympia 65-62. Estavan Lovette scored 16 points, Carter Mullen, 15, and Justin Smith, 12.
