In the Class C2 softball final played at GCC, Oakfield-Alabama lost 9-1 yesterday to Caledonia-Mumford.
The No.1 seed Red Raiders were led by tournament MVP Emily MacDonald, who pitched a four-hitter and K'd 10 Hornets.
Le Roy beat Wellsville yesterday, 3-1, to become the Section V Class B2 champion in softball.
Ally Uberty gave up just three hits and fanned 16 and was named tournament MVP.
Erin Cappotelli and Taylor Sherman each had two hits and an RBI for the Oatkan Knights.
Le Roy hadn't won a softball title since 1988.
Photos submitted by Tim McArdle.
Submitted photo and press release:
On May 15, the Genesee Valley Pride eighth-grade Girls Basketball Team won the championship game at the North Country Rumble at the Boarder Shootout Tournament in Canton. The win qualified them to participate in the Girls National Championship at ESPN Wide World of Sports in Orlando, Fla., in July.
This is a significant accomplishment and honor to achieve such success at a young age. The team is looking to the community to help support their fundraising goal to head to this National Championship.
If you would like to donate or sponsor the team to assist with tournament fees and travel expenses please contact the team at gvpride@ymail.com.
By Tim Bojarski, for Batavia Downs
Peter Arrigenna, a longtime horseman who also serves as a trustee of the Agriculture and New York State Horse Breeding Development Fund and as a director of the Horse Harness Breeders of New York State, has been named the new track superintendent at Batavia Downs.
Arrigenna will replace Ralph Horton, who has retired after working at the Downs for 14 years.
Besides running a successful stable that produced 2012 Yonkers Trot champion, Archangel (Credit Winner-Michelle’s Angel 1:50 $1,140,972), Arrigenna also runs his own construction company. And it’s the combined experience from both fields that has provided him the insight and knowledge to design, construct and maintain very fast race tracks.
Arrigenna has built many farm tracks from scratch, but he also resurfaced Buffalo Raceway in 2014 to the rave reviews of the horsemen and was hired this year as a consultant at Harrah’s Philadelphia.
Although the meet doesn’t begin for another two months, Arrigenna’s duties will start immediately as his first order of business will be to rebuild the track.
“We will be leveling and filling the existing track to the grade indicated from a survey done in 2009. It will entail filling the ditches where it washed out, banking the turns better and putting it back to the original grade,” Arrigenna said. “Once that is complete, we will be putting a new surface on top of that which should make it much better for the horses competing there.”
This will be the first time the track at Batavia has been resurfaced since 2010 and the $125,000 project will see the turns banked up to 8 percent and over 5,000 tons of new material (a mixture of washed screenings and washed crushed stone) added to the surface.
The project is scheduled to begin on Monday (June 6) and be completed by Friday (July 1), well in advance of opening night of live racing, which is Monday (July 25).
“I look forward to starting at Batavia because it’s close to home and it’s a project I like to do,” said Arrigenna.
Todd Haight is the director/general manager of live racing at the Downs and he has high praise for Arrigenna’s abilities.
“We’re thrilled to have Peter as our track superintendent,” Haight said. “He knows what it takes to make a race track fair, but also safe, because he is a horseman as well as a contractor. His knowledge and experience will serve him well in his new position.”
“I would also like to thank Ralph Horton for his many years of service to the track and wish him the best in his retirement,” added Haight.
Jake Wozniaka struck out four over six innings, but errors proved costly for Alexander on Tuesday at Dwyer Stadium in the Section V Class C1 semi-final.
Avon scored two unearned runs to beat the Trojans, 2-1.
In other baseball action yesterday:
Oakfield-Alabama will advance to the Section V, Class C2 championship game after beating Geneseo on Monday at GCC, 4-2.
Hannah LaGrou tripled home her sister Madi for the go-ahead run. Hannah later scored on a wild pitch.
O-A faces Cal-Mum at 5 p.m., Wednesday, at GCC in the final.
Notre Dame beat Honeoye 3-2 yesterday at Dwyer Stadium to advance to the semifinals of the Class D1 Section V playoff.
The Fighting Irish will play Lyndonville on Tuesday at GCC at 4:30 p.m.
Also, Friday, Oakfield beat Keshegua, 6-2, and will play Geneseo at 7 p.m., Tuesday, at Dwyer Stadium in a Class C2 playoff.
Alexander beat Williamson 7-5 will play Avon at 4:30 p.m., Tuesday, at Dwyer in the Class C1 semifinal.
Le Roy lost to Holley, 4-3 and Pembroke lost to Avon, 11-5.
In girls softball, Batavia plays Aquinas at 5 p.m., Tuesday, in Brockport. Le Roy plays Wayland-Cohocton at 4 p.m., Monday, in Canandaigua. Oakfield-Alabama plays Geneseo at 5 p.m., Monday, at GCC.
The top seed in Class A2, the Batavia Blue Devils, bested 8 seed Geneva Panthers at Dwyer Stadium for the section V quarterfinal matchup Friday afternoon.
Greg Mruczek pitched the first couple innings. Geneva made some key hits and took control early after two innings leading 2-1.
Trevor Sherwood pitched the next three innings as the game remained the same. Senior Alex Canty hit a triple in the third inning to get within scoring range. Geneva held strong and Batavia could not get a break.
Batavia pitcher Alex Jones came in the last two innings to hold off Geneva from scoring. The score was set at 2-1 score until the bottom of the seventh inning, senior Steven Stefaniak got a base hit to lead off senior Tyler Hale, who was up next and hit a triple to bring Stefaniak in for Batavia to tie the game 2-2.
Geneva was in trouble with one out, took a timeout to plan their strategy with two heavy hitters, Senior Alex Canty and Junior Jerry Reinhart up next. Geneva intentionally walked them both Alex to 2nd base, Jerry to 1st, bases loaded.
Batavia called timeout, Tyler’s twin brother Senior Jake Hale was at the plate.
"I have been playing baseball my whole life and told my brother to get the ball to the left side and knew he would come through," Tyler said. "It may not have been a hard hit ball but it got in play and scored the run."
Jake Hale hit a grounder to the left of home plate, dug in the dirt bounced in the air. Tyler made a run to home plate, the pitcher came in grabbed the ball, bobbled it, lost his grip and went in the air. He slid into home plate and Batavia won 3-2.
Jake Hales thoughts before taking the plate: "I went up there just to play baseball, waiting for my pitch to hit and swung and missed at one, took one that was low in the dirt. I found the one but barely got a piece of it and then ended up bringing Tyler in. I ran to first as fast as I could hoping I would not get out, but then when I heard the cheers I knew my brother made the run and we won the game, then excitement took over."
Batavia plays 4 seed Wayne at Hilton High School, Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.
For more photos go to: Steve Ognibene Photography
Press release:
Current summer baseball players ages 9 thru 14 can extend their season through the fall with Team New Era Fall Elite Travel Teams.
Teams will participate in league and tournament play in September and October.
Tryouts will be held at our Depew training facility, 3950 Broadway as follows: Current summer players ages 9 thru 11: Monday June 6th at 6 p.m. and Wednesday July 13th at 6 p.m.
Current summer players ages 12 thru 14: Monday June 6th at 7:30 p.m. and Wednesday July 13th at 7:30 p.m.
Players need only attend one tryout.
For more information see www.teamnewerabaseball.comor contact Rich Wozniak at 716-681-3001.
Press release:
Single-game tickets for all 2016 Muckdogs’ home games go on sale Monday, May 23rd beginning at 9 a.m. at the Dwyer Stadium Box Office, over the phone by calling (585) 343-5454 or online at muckdogs.com.
Normal box office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Friday.
The same great, affordable ticket prices are back again in 2016. Tickets range from $8 for box seats to just $7 for adult General Admission tickets and $6 for kids and senior General Admission tickets.
During the season, the ticket office opens on game days at 9 a.m. Monday-Friday and closes at the end of fifth inning. On Saturday and Sunday, the ticket office will open at 10 a.m. and close after the fifth inning.
Season tickets, coupon books, ticket packages, and group tickets are on sale now. For more information, visit Muckdogs.com or call (585)343-5454 and press zero Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
The Muckdogs open their 2016 home schedule on Wednesday, June 22nd vs. the State College Spikes at 7:05 p.m. In addition to their Pinckney Division rivals, the Muckdogs will welcome the Baltimore Orioles (Aberdeen), New York Mets (Brooklyn), New York Yankees (Staten Island) and the Tampa Bay Rays (Hudson Valley) farm teams to Dwyer Stadium in 2016.
Want to join a flag football league this summer? Join Batavia Varsity Football Head Coach Brennan Briggs in the "Rising Stars" Flag Football League on Sunday afternoons at 4:30 beginning June 5th.
The league is for current fifth-, sixth- and seventh-grade student-athletes from any district.
If you're interested contact Coach Briggs at 585-409-5557. Deadline for registration is Friday, May 27th so don't wait!
Press release:
“Since the Red Wings took over operation of the Batavia Muckdogs in 2008 after the Muckdogs had endured several years of financial hardship, there have been several serious out-of-town suitors, none which met our, or the Genesee County Baseball Club’s, criteria for selling.
"While we have made no secret of the fact that the team is for sale, we are not in a position to comment on the current status except to say that baseball will go on as expected in 2016. The Red Wings are very proud of the way we have operated the Batavia franchise and continue to enjoy extending our reach to Genesee County. We are looking forward to opening day in Batavia on June 22nd.”
Press release:
The City of Batavia Youth Bureau sponsored a citywide 3 on 3 Basketball Tournament on Friday, May 13. Ten teams competed in the double elimination tournament. Teams represented were Youth, Batavia Police, Batavia City Hall and Genesee County Dept. of Social Services.
The Batavia Youth Bureau is planning another tournament later this summer to continue this community event that creates interaction between youth and public servants.
Below are photos (submitted, IDs from left) of the first-, second- and third-place teams and the Youth Team playing the Batavia Police/City Hall Team.
First Place: Malachi Chenault, Trenton MaGraw, Dakota Irvin and Jordan Thomas.
Second Place: Luqman Baity, Ally Luckenbach and Alex Nesbeth.
Third Place: Anthony Garcia, Juan Claudio, Nashiem Harris (not pictured -- Jeff Redband).
(Names not provided.)
Press release:
Let’s go fishing! To celebrate National Fishing and Boating Week, Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge is hosting its 25th Annual Youth Fishing Derby, on Saturday, June 4.
The event will be held at Ringneck Overlook, on Oak Orchard Ridge Road. On site registration begins at 7:30 a.m. There is no preregistration or reservations required. Fishing is from 8 to 11a.m.
The event is free and open to youths 17 years old and under, with no experience necessary. If this is your first time, some fishing gear will be available to borrow. Certificates will be awarded for the 1st, 2nd and 3rd place participants in three age categories: 7 years and under, 8-12 and 13-17 years. Derby rules are available on our Web site: http://www.fws.gov/refuge/iroquois or by calling 585/948-5445. Participants and helpers must comply with New York State license requirements.
This event is one of the many ways the Refuge offers to connect people with nature. Connecting People with Nature: Ensuring the Future of Conservation is a national priority of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service with the mission of “working to ensure that all Americans have enjoyable and meaningful experiences in the out-of-doors and develop strong life-long connections with the natural world.”
The Youth Fishing Derby is sponsored by the Friends of Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge, Inc., a nonprofit organization whose sole purpose is to support the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge.
Iroquois NWR is located midway between Buffalo and Rochester and is managed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service.
Individuals with disabilities and any other person who may need special assistance to participate in this program should contact the Refuge at 585/948-5445 or at the Federal Relay No. 1-800-877-8339.
Press release:
For the first time in the program's history, the Genesee Community College Men's Lacrosse Team captured the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) National Championship after defeating Onondaga CC 13-12 in overtime on Sunday afternoon.
The fourth-seeded Cougars snapped a seven-year streak in which OCC won the title, becoming just the third different team to be crowned national champions since 2006.
Genesee trailed 1-0 early in the first but tied it at the 11:37 mark when Pat Van Bortle scored off of an assist from Alex Henry. Jacob Bomberry followed with his first of three goals in the game just 20 seconds later and gave GCC a 2-1 lead.
OCC, the No. 2 seed, ended the opening quarter with three straight goals and took a 6-2 lead five minutes into the second to build what would be its largest lead of the afternoon.
Genesee capitalized on a man-up opportunity and ended its scoreless stretch when Van Bortle recorded his second goal with 9:14 to play in the half. Davis Prince cut the deficit to two with an unassisted goal at 6:24 and just over a minute later the Cougars were within one after Jonah Mohawk found the back of the net to make it 6-5.
The Lazers went into the half scoring back-to-back goals, including one with just six seconds left, and led 8-5 at the break.
Another man-up goal for GCC started the scoring in the second half when Van Bortle set Up Sherman Williams for his first of the game halfway through the third to cut the OCC lead down to two. The Lazers responded less than a minute later to extend their lead back to three before Williams struck again on a man-up opportunity to make it a 9-7 game.
Both teams exchanged goals to end the third as Bomberry got his second of the game for GCC and he scored again early in the fourth to get the Cougars to within one at 10-9. Williams then scored back-to-back goals at 11:24 and 10:40 and GCC held its first lead since the first quarter at 11-10.
OCC got the equalizer even strength and then scored a man-up goal with just over six minutes to play to regain the lead at 12-11. But Van Bortle wasn't done and tied it at 12 with 3:43 left in regulation and after a scoreless duration of the fourth, the game went into overtime.
Both teams held a possession early in the extra session but could not cash in, until with just 1:14 left in overtime, Van Bortle found an opportunity in front of the OCC net and scored his fourth goal of the afternoon to send GCC to its first national title.
Van Bortle, named the tournament's offensive MVP, finished with six points in the game adding a pair of assists to his four goals. Williams also tallied four goals and Bomberry finished with six points, scoring three goals and assisting on three.
Darin Eakins was named the tournament' defensive MVP and made 14 saves in net. Reed Hnidy led the GCC defense with six ground balls and caused five turnovers and Kyle Dalrymple and Mike Caternolo each collected four ground balls. Caternolo was also 10 for 27 on face-offs.
Genesee's national championship season ends with a 15-4 overall record. It is the College's second national title in school history and first since 1971 (bowling).
Darien Lake hosted its fourth annual Color Me Rad 5K fun run today, with proceeds this year benefiting substance abuse and rehabilitation programs.
Press release:
A bill to further protect sportsmen’s personal information has passed the New York State Senate by a vote of 54 to 4. The bill, S.2951, would prevent information submitted on hunting, fishing and trapping licenses and permit applications from being disclosed or released outside of the Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC).
State Senator Michael H. Ranzenhofer sponsors the bill in the State Senate.
“At a time of growing concern for identity theft, it is important to strengthen the rights of hunters and trappers to maintain their personal privacy and security. This bill will ensure that DEC may continue to protect sporting license applicants’ just expectation that personal information will be kept private,” Ranzenhofer said.
Existing law does not contain restrictions on the release of information for holders of licenses and permits. The bill would also require the DEC to establish procedures to ensure information is protected from disclosure.
DEC recently installed a new database system to maintain information on sporting licenses and permits. Among the personal details entered into the database include: individual’s first and last name, date of birth, height, eye color, driver’s license number, mailing address, telephone number, and whether the licensee is permanent 40-percent military disabled.
“Clearly, this information contains intimate details related to personal matters, such as medical conditions and physical attributes. The release of any of these details would be an unwarranted intrusion into an individual’s privacy. This bill would diminish the potential for identity theft by enacting further protections for sportsmen,” Ranzenhofer said.
The bill has been sent to the New York State Assembly. Assemblywoman Aileen M. Gunther has introduced the bill in the State Assembly. If enacted, the bill would take effect immediately.
If you like traditional shooting with black powder firearms, or know someone who does, then you might be interested in the public Spring Shoot planned by the Alabama Hunt Club later this month.
According to Bob Smith, who is on the board of directors of the hunt club, there will be target matches for all black powder muzzle loaders, including flintlock, percussion, in-line and bench guns. The shooting range is from 25 to 200 yards.
The Spring Shoot will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Satruday, May 21, and from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday, May 22, at the club, located at 1857 Lewiston Road in Basom (near Oakfield, ZIP is 14013).
The club is trying to preserve the traditional shooting of black powder firearms and it also supports the conservation of wildlife. In fact, it has a section of land set up for that purpose.
For more information call John at (716) 714-5514 or Sam at (585) 297-7747.
Press release:
April 10th the Genesee Amateur Hockey Association held its Annual Awards Banquet at Batavia Downs. The event was attended by 330 players, family members and honored guests. Jen Bower, president of GAHA served as the Master of Ceremony for the event.
The Sponsors were recognized as GAHA is extremely grateful for their support of youth hockey in the Batavia area. The 2015-16 team sponsors were: Alex’s Place, Baltz Concrete, Castilone Chrysler Doge Jeep, Clark~Patterson~Lee, Collin Crane Memorial, Falleti Motors, Garland Enterprises, Graham Manufacturing, Michael Napoleone Memorial Foundation, Reed Eye Associates, T.F. Brown's, Toyota/Scion of Batavia and Turnbull Heating and Air.
Other sponsors at the Red, White and Blue level were: Bed & Bones Pet Lodge, Chesley’s Automotive, Falleti.com, Ken Barrett, Valle Jewelers, Viele Construction, Lambert’s Design Jewelers, Tomaszewski Funeral Home and T-Shirt’s Etc.
The Beginner Program is sponsored by Tim Horton’s.
Erik Triftshauser presented the individual teams and recognized their accomplishments throughout the season. Overall GAHA had a great hockey season and four teams participated in the State finals. The 2015-16 season was made up of 14 teams including a girls team which excelled. GAHA also had a Session I and II Beginners Program, which included 50 players many of whom will move up to team play next season.
Three local companies/foundations also contributed not only as sponsors but additional financial contributions toward GAHA’s cross ice boards for our Mite Program – these young teams play cross ice to better their skating and hockey skills and these boards will be used to divide the ice. Those contributors are the David McCarthy Memorial Committee, Alex’s Place and Viele Development and Construction.
The 2015-16 Genesee Amateur Hockey Associations awards were given to:
Jack Porter Coach of the Year for the Empire Division was presented to Kevin Snieszko, and for the WNY Division to Michael Webb.
WNY Division Manager of the year to Chaunda Hertel and for the Empire Manager of the Year to Sarah Lemley.
Zac Johnson Memorial Award to a GAHA player who shows dedication and love for the game of hockey was presented to Hagan Triftshauser.
Jon Wiseman Sportsmanship Award presented to an Empire Player who exhibits outstanding sportsmanship was awarded to Jimmy Reardon.
Pam Borden Memorial Award presented to a GAHA player who best exemplifies strength, determination and perseverance while dealing with adversity awarded to Nick Baumler.
Tom Scott Volunteer of the Year Award to Kathy Antinore.
Matthew Mondi Award to be presented to a Mite (4-8 yrs.) player and this year awarded to Samuel Pies.
Sharon Valyear Dedication Award was presented to two female players that showed hard work and commitment to the sport of hockey and was awarded to Katie Smith and Katie Carmichael.
Herbert Heschke Memorial Award is presented to a Squirt Empire (9-10 yrs) player who has shown the greatest improvement this season is awarded to Alex Bartz.
Press release:
Tonawanda Valley Federal Credit Union is hosting its inaugural 5K/10K on Saturday, June 11th, to benefit the TVFCU Jr. Banking Scholarship. TVFCU will be awarding deserving high school seniors scholarships to put toward furthering their post-secondary education.
Local runners, walkers, and those who love to be involved in 5K/10Kraces please contact the credit union. It is looking for race participants and those who want to volunteer to work on the day of the race.
All participants can visit this Web site: www.tvfcubatavia.com click on the 5K/10L logo on the left hand side and then follow the instructions on the landing page to register to participate.
Both runs begin at 9 a.m. at the credit union. The routes are available to view on the TVFCU Web site.
Race fee is $25 from now until May 25th and a race T-shirt is guaranteed. After May 25th, race fee is $30 and a T-shirt is not guaranteed.
Tonawanda Valley Federal Credit Union
10 Jefferson Square
Batavia, NY 14020
Kristine B. Duran, CEO
kduran@tvfcubatavia.com
Phone (585) 343-5627
Fax (585) 344-2383
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