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Locals doing well at Keuka

By Brian Hillabush

 

Batavia grad Missy Thurston is having a huge year for Keuka College.

She was the only player from the Storm in double figures with 11 points in a 71-47 loss to the University of Rochester in the opening round on Tuesday.

 The 5-foot-5 junior guard has started all eight game for the women's team. She is second on the team in scoring at 8.8 points per game and is actually grabbing 5 rebounds per game.

Thurston also has 18 assists for Keuka (2-6).

Attica grad Rob Crowley is a junior and had a key basket that kept Keuka close, but the Storm ended up losing to No. 1 seed Rochester 65-54 in the opening round on Wednesday.

Crowley is averaging 5 points per game in four games of action, while hitting 5-of-9 3-point attempts.

Ian Woodworth from Elba - who has a famous YouTube video from last year's sectionals - is just a freshman and has only played in three games, but is averaging .7 points per games.

The Storm is currently 3-5.

 

 

HS girls highlights for Wednesday

By Brian Hillabush

Brynn Perfitt dropped in 19 points and Hillary Bates added 16 as Oakfield-Alabama dropped host Wheatland-Chili 51-42 in a GR girls game.

Lindsay Chatt added seven points for the Hornets, who are now 6-5.

Lauren Drago had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wildcats (3-5). Lindsey Hall added 20 points. 

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Nicole Sharick dropped in 13 points and Jackie Dubois pitched in 11 as Pembroke toppled Kendall 38-33.

Kelsey Lewis also had six points for the Dragons, who are now 6-5.

Meghan Fahy had 17 points and 12 boards for Kendall, which falls to 3-6.

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Nichole Hart had 16 points to lead the way as Notre Dame destroyed Holley 59-28.

Liz Geandreau, Jill Marshall and Trisha Pike each had eight points, with Geandreau adding seven boards.

Jessica Bower and Jenny Lesch had nine points each for Holley.

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Samantha Skryp had a huge game, scoring a game-high 22 points to lead Lyndonville to a 40-33 win over Byron-Bergen.

Mary Cocking had eight points to lead the Bees.

Lyndonville is 6-6.

A tale of two halves: Batavia overcomes low scoring start to beat Greece

By Brian Hillabush

 The Batavia boys basketball team couldn't hit a shot in the first half, then the pressure defense led to offense in the second half as the Blue Devils wound up thumping visiting Greece Odyssey 56-38.

The defense was there, but there was a lid on the basket for Batavia in the first half. Andrew Hoy had some good looks, that didn't fall. And most of the supporting cast didn't have much to add offensively.

Dakota Irvin managed eight of his 10 points and Josh Budlong had an inspired six points, all in the first half as the score wound up being tied at 24.

But coach Buddy Brasky must have had one of his famous halftime speeches because the Blue Devils dominated the third quarter.

Irvin started things off with a basket and Marcus Hoy had five of his points. He also had six assists and four rebounds.

Andrew Hoy also hit a 3-pointer as Batavia scored 12 straight points before Ray Diaz drained a 3-pointer with less than 10 seconds left. It was 36-27 after three periods of play.

Batavia continued to own the fourth quarter, owning a 20-11 advantage.

Andrew Hoy scored six of his points with seven steals for the game in the final frame. The other big thing to take from the fourth quarter was the minutes and play of Donovan Rolle, who scored two points but looked like he can provide another rebounder for the Blue Devils.

Tim Aledsio led Odyssey with 13 points.

Batavia improves to 9-1 and is at Mendon on Friday before next week's showdown with Pittsford Sutherland.

 

Winter In The Alabama Swamp

By JIM NIGRO

West Jackson Corners is a small village built by members of East Shelby Community Bible Church.  A namesake of the original settlement, it comes complete with a town hall, general store, water wheel, black smith shop, open hearth and much more.

            In the north east corner of West Jackson Corners sits an oversized tepee. Hanging above the tepee entrance is a sign reading “Swamp Stories.” The tepee was built by Charlie Ralph and during church festivities like “Old Tyme Days held in July or December’s “Christmas at West Jackson Corners,” Charlie can be found inside the tepee, probably warming his hands over a fire and more than willing to share local swamp lore with those who enter.

            Charlie grew up in the Alabama swamp, his homestead was in the area now occupied by the Swallow Hollow foot trail on the Iroquois National Wildlife Refuge. Charlie’ father also farmed a small parcel of their land, but only after clearing the standing timber. Charlie and his father began by cutting down large trees then using their team of Clydesdales to pull the stumps from the ground.

            In his youth Charlie and friends swam in the waters of Oak Orchard Creek just down the road from his home. On those outings they brought along a jar of salt – for the removal of leeches.   

            Generating income was tough in swamp country, so when a city fellow offered to pay Charlie and his friends for any water snakes they caught, they were happy to oblige.  Charlie never did find out what the man did with the snakes, only that he was willing to pay for them.

            In his early years Charlie traipsed around the swamp with a fellow he knew as “Trapper Jim.” Originally a cook on a Great Lakes tug boat, Trapper Jim took Charlie under his wing while he made the rounds along his trap line and also while acting as caretaker for a group of duck hunters from Buffalo who at the time owned a large tract of the vast wetland.

A mantle of ice lines a stretch of Oak Orchard Creek. This is the same stretch where Charlie Ralph used to swim in his youth. It is still a popular embarking point to access the swamp’s interior.

 

 

  

 

Several weeks from now, when thousands of waterfowl descend on the swamp, this empty nesting box will house a clutch of ducklings.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

One of the many species of fur bearers inhabiting the swamp, this fox emerges from cover.

The swamp has become popular with outdoor enthusiasts over the years. Birdwatchers, canoeists, kayakers, hunters, fishermen, hikers and nature photographers frequent the area. Come winter, the area takes on a different look. While somewhat desolate at this time of year, the swamp is perhaps more picturesque, and on calm, windless days, certainly quieter. But a couple months from now, in late winter or early spring, the spring peepers will make their presence known by celebrating the spring rain. Dormant for months, their nighttime chorus will herald the change of seasons. Soon afterward the swamp will once again be bustling with activity. 

 

Babcock and Laureano are POWs

By Brian Hillabush

 Pembroke's Ken Babcock earned Genesee Region League Division I Player of the Week for this past week.

The senior center had 22 points with six blocks against Byron-Bergen and 13 points, four blocks and 10 rebounds against Elba.

Josh Laureano earned the honor for Division II after scoring 24 points with five dimes and nine rebounds against Lyndonville and 27 points, 10 assists and nine boards in a win over Alexander.

Laureano had 15 points, five assists and eight rebounds in a loss against Wheatland-Chili.

The two squads played each other last night, with Kendall winning 59-56.

No girls players were nominated from the Genesee Region League.

Don't like the officiating? Stop yelling at them

By Brian Hillabush

For the past few years, I've heard how the officiating keeps getting worse; and it doesn't matter which sport it is.

According to the National Association of Sports Officials, the amount of high school officials is dropping at a rapid pace. This means there are many inexperienced officials doing games. Consider half of the varsity basketball team quitting and half the jayvee team being called up to replace them. 

The reason more than 3/4 of the NASO lists for the decline in officials is "poor sportsmanship by spectators".

John Moriello of the NYSSWA writes about an incident at a game between Schuylerville and Mohonasen in late December.

At a basketball game between Schuylerville and Mohonasen on Dec. 26, spectators became so unruly that the gym had to be cleared. It was a girls game . . . a JV girls game.

   "Parents have invested their whole freaking past, present and future in little Johnny going to Syracuse on a scholarship and, oh gosh, the ref made a bad call," Will Keim, co-author of "Fan Etiquette: How did the burning desire to win become the desire to burn?" said. "This ref is keeping their kid out of the NBA."

The basic lesson here is that if you are not liking what you see on the field or court, leave the officials alone and let them do their job. The more that quit, the less experienced officials we are going to get.

 

HS boys highlights for Tuesday

By Brian Hillabush

 Pembroke had the home court advantage, and Kendall is a team looking for respect.

This game had great one written all over it.

Colt Tooley scored a game-high 31 points - including six 3-pointers - and led the visiting Eagles to a 59-56 victory over the Dragons. This means Kendall improves to 6-3 while Pembroke falls to 5-5.

The Eagles won the game i the second half with a 34-27 advantage. Josh Laureano had 13 points and Phil Kludt pitched in eight.

Andrew Wright led Pembroke with 20 points, with Ken Babcock scoring 14 and Andy Gabbey adding 12. Steve Moser was also in double figures with 10 points.

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Kevin Francis had another huge game for Notre Dame, scoring 20 points with 12 rebounds, seven assists and four steals as the Fighting Irish beat Holley 68-42.

Matt Thompson had 11 points with Vinny Zambito adding eight points for ND (8-1).

Brian Mitchell recorded a double-double with 12 points and 10 boards for the Hawks, who fall to 3-8.

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While Phil Ostroski and Sonny Giuliano get most of the attention for the Elba basketball team, it was senior forward Max Torrey that had the big game in leading the Lancers to a 48-37 win over Attica.

Torrey scored eight of his 12 points in the fourth quarter as the Lancers (4-5) had a 14-10 advantage.

Ostroski did have 12 points for Elba.

Tate Westermeier and Brad Clark had 12 points apiece for the Blue Devils (5-4).

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Tim Smith dropped in 19 points as the Oakfield-Alabama basketball team thumped Wheatland-Chili 73-40. Noah Seward had a double-double with 13 points, 11 boards and four assists.

A.J. Kehlenbeck had six points with 10 rebounds and four dimes, with Brad Riner dishing out eight assists.

Rick Agosto had 10 points for the Wildcats (2-6).

O-A is now 8-1.

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Will Mulcahy popped in a pair of goals and assisted on another to lead Batavia to a 6-3 win over Bishop Kearney/Eastridge in a Monroe County League hockey game.

Tilar Clark had his first varsity goal and a pair of helpers to help out Batavia, which improves to 8-5-1.

Andrew Maxwell, Pat and Tim Finnell each added a goal.

Major changes for Batavia High athletics

By Brian Hillabush

Batavia High School has been one of the smallest schools in the Monroe County League for a long time.

It has hindered the chances some programs have had to win.

But those things are about to change as realignment has given Batavia a chance to remain part of a league, yet be competitive in sports it normally struggled to compete in.

"With our school and our size, Monroe County recognized that our school and Greece Odyssey were a little different," Batavia athletic director Mike Bromley said. "You have to give them credit for that because they give us a league affiliation and will allow us to be competitive."

The Blue Devils will be playing in Monroe County League Division III, but will be essentially playing a half-league schedule.

Geography is a big consideration for Monroe County as teams were realigned. Division I and II teams are matched up as much by travel distance as school size. Division III is mostly about size.

Batavia will play each team in Division III once in both boys and girls basketball, boys and girls soccer, baseball, softball and volleyball. That means the Blue Devils will get to play seven league games, which is also happening with Odyssey.

While Batavia will no longer be eligible for league championships, it will give teams chances to schedule non-league games with teams that they can compete with.

A prime example is the boys soccer team, which experimented with the schedule least year. Batavia went 7-10, going 7-1 outside of Monroe County and 0-8 in the league.

"We gave up the opportunity to win a league championship because we don't play everybody twice," Bromley said. "But to be able to go out and get schools that are closer to our size and be more competitive makes more sense than trying to win league titles."

Kids will still have  a chance to be recognized as all-county and there will be no changes for track & field or cross country. 

This sets up some potential great local rivalries, especially as Batavia drops down to Class B. Imagine home and home series' with Attica or Albion. Those could be great local rivalries for Batavia.

Once you get past not being able to compete for a league championship, there are still goals for Batavia teams. 

There will also be changes in the modified programs at Batavia, as the drop in numbers will no longer support a seventh and eighth grade team. The two grades will be combined for modified and will play a schedule based on geography.

 

Here is the new alignment for the Monroe County League:

Division I: Canandaigua, Irondequoit, Fairport, Penfield, Rush-Henrietta, Webster Schroeder, Webster Thomas.

Division II: Brockport, Churchville-Chili, Gates Chili, Greece Arcadia, Greece Athena, Greece Olympia, Hilton, Spencerport.

Division III: Batavia, Brighton, Greece Odyssey, East Irondequoit Eastridge, Honeoye Falls-Lima, Pittsford Mendon, Pittsford Sutherland, Victor.

Batavia youth wrestling clinic

By Brian Hillabush

It's time to sign up for the Batavia Youth Wrestling Clinic.

The Blue Devils are having an amazing season and the program is on the verge of becoming a powerhouse program. Now is the time for the kids to get involved and start learning.

The sign-ups are on Thursday from 5-7:30 p.m. at Batavia High School, and is for kids ages 5-11 in the Batavia public schools. 

The cost is just $10 and includes a t-shirt and an entree into the tournament.

Practices are on Sunday from 2-4 p.m. and Thursday from 7-8:30 p.m. in the auxillary gym. 

Kids will receive direct instruction from head coach Rick Stewart as well as assistants Ken Darch, Vinny Romanatto, Kelly Boyle and Rich Lovria.

For questions or concerns, please contact coach Rick Stewart at 409-1742.

hs highlights for Monday

By Brian Hillabush

The Batavia girls basketball team is now 10-1 after escaping Brighton 52-50.

Michelle Jordan came off the bench to drop in 16 points with Brittany Mazurkiewiecz adding 12 points. Jaycee Shirk added nine points and seven rebounds and Shaundella Williams pulled down nine rebounds.

Breanna Bauer had 24 points for Brighton (2-7).

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Anni Lehtola dropped in a pair of 3-pointers and scored 21 points as Alexander beat Oakfield-Alabama 58-40.

Rachel Pettys had eight points, eight assists and eight rebounds and Anna Dominick added seven points. The Trojans are now 7-1.

Brynn Perfitt had 11 points, six boards and four dimes for the Hornets (5-5).

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The Attica girls won for the first time this season, beating Holley 41-31 as Christina West led the way with 11 points.

Margaret LaFleur had 10 points and seven boards as the Blue Devils improve to 1-10.

Jessica Bower and Alyssa Lesch had eight points each for the Hawks (2-7).

Inspired performance from Hudson Valley area

By Brian Hillabush

 John Moriello's latest blog has a great story in it. It isn't local, but is one of those touching stories that I feel the need to share.

I've been a fan of Moriello's work for a long time and he is the president of the New York State Sportswriters Association.

He writes:

 

 Luke Houston's 13-point performance Thursday in Pearl River's overtime victory was about much more than basketball. The sophomore guard, the son of a legendary player, drained his first three shots -- two of them from beyond the arc -- while making his first varsity start mere hours after the burial of his mother, Liz, who died last weekend at the age of 44 from complications of scleroderma, a chronic autoimmune illness.

   Luke's dad, Kevin -- an NCAA Division I scoring champion in 1987 while at West Point -- and uncle, Jerry Jr., played for Pearl River, and Jerry Jr. is now the varsity coach (assisted by his father). Liz cheered there in her younger days and witnessed dozens if not hundreds of games in the Pearl River gym.

   With one game already having been postponed last week, Pearl River turned down an offer from Hastings coach Dennis Hurley to reschedule Thursday's game. It turned out to be a great decision for reasons beyond the 69-66 final score.

 

You can get a full recap of the amazing story on LoHud.com, where Bob Baird tells the whole story.

Zinni starting as a freshman

By Brian Hillabush

Batavia's Mary Zinni is just a freshman, but might very well be the best player on the Hilbert College basketball team.

The team is 0-12, but Zinni has started all 12 contests and is averaging a team-leading 8.7 points per game and 32 minutes per game. She is also pulling down 4.7 rebounds per game.

The most recent loss was a 68-29 defeat at the hands of Mount Aloysius College.

 

Loney still playing well

By Brian Hillabush

 Byron-Bergen grad Pete Loney is still a major part of the Daemen basketball team, which now has an 11-2 record.

Loney - a senior forward - is averaging 7.2 and 1.5 rebounds per game. He has started 3 of 13 games and is averaging 15.6 minutes per contest.

Daemen has moved up to No. 14 in the NCAA Division III poll and will be hosting Houghton Tuesday night.

Houghton is 4-8 overall. 

Notre Dame cheerleaders take top prize - Updated with photo and video

By Philip Anselmo

Thanks to Lindsay Warner for submitting the following info on the Genesee Region League Cheerleading Tournament. We would love to have some color to go with this recap, so if you've got photos or video of this event, please post it to the site or contact me by e-mail so we can get it posted.

This weekend the JV and varsity cheerleading squads of the Genesee Region League gathered for their annual tournament. The competition travels to a different host school every few years and this year was the first for Elba High School and Michelle Merrill, their head coach.

The competition is run much like Winter Cheerleading Sectionals in that each team performs twice on the mat- once in a cheer only round and than again using the tradition cheer/dance routine. Grand Champion is determined by the squad who carries the highest total score. Since the inception of this competition that score belonged to the Holley Hawks- that is until this weekend.

Notre Dame has competed in this tournament for years and since Coach Lindsay (Rapone) Warner began coaching, grand champion was set as the ultimate goal. Holley High School, who is class B2 with nearly twice as many squad members, doesn’t make for much of a fair fight. This year Notre Dame has 14 members, 6 of which are new additions to the varsity team from last year. Nevertheless, Notre Dame was able to top Holley’s squad of 27 by 6 points in Round One which was very exciting for the squad as a last second decision was made to throw out the original cheer and learn a completely new one less than a week before the day’s performance. Overall the Irish stole grand champion by 4 points.

“My team was aware that the odds were against us in our goal to get grand champ. Holley is a great competitor and is well known for their themed routines, which this year, was Legally Blonde,” coach Lindsay Warner. The squad worked very hard to prepare for this competition, including two full practices before each of their games this week. The girls wanted it and their efforts certainly paid off. Assistant coach, Sheri Girvin, who is an alumni of Holley High School and former recipient of Grand Champion as a Hawk joined the Irish last year and was thrilled to receive Grand Champion again, now as a Notre Dame coach.

Squad captains are Stacy Squire, Kristen Francis, and Lauren DiFante, two of which are seniors and are very hopeful that this is just the start of a very successful final season for them at Notre Dame.



Scores:

JV CHEER DI- Holley 177, Attica 173, Alexander 170; DII- Kendall 137
JV CHEER/DANCE DI- Holley 179,Attica 169, Alexander 156; DII Kendall 150
Varsity CHEER DI-Holley 184, Attica 179, Alexander 174, Oakfield 109; DII Notre Dame 190, Elba 173, Kendall 157, Lyndonville 150
Varsity CHEER/DANCE DII- Notre Dame 185, Kendall 166, Elba 164, Lyndonville 146

Lancers top Alexander 3-1 to win Medina Tournament

By Chad Flint

The Genesee Lancers (Chilano) took hom the Medina U19 tournament title with a 3-1 win over Alexander in the final game.  The Lancers scored seconds into the final to take a 1-0 lead.  Alexander scored a few minutes after that to knot the score at one a piece.  The Lancers would score just before the midway mark to make the score 2-1.  Just after the mdiway mark the Lancers scored a 3rd goal to go ahead 3-1 which was the final score.  It was a very competitive final game with some great soccer to watch.  Both teams moved the ball well and had some great chances on goal.

During the earlier games of the tournament Alexander clinched the top seed with a 3-0 record with a 1-0 win over the Lancers (Hein), a 3-1 win over the YMCA/ND team and a 1-0 win over Gananda.  The Lancers (Chilano) earned the #2 seed with wins over GVBBSC and Attica and a loss to Albion.  Albion was the #3 seed with a win over the Lancers (Chilano), a tie against Attica, and a loss to GVBBSC.  The Lancers (Hein) earned the 4th seed with a loss to Alexander, a tie against Gananda, and a win over the YMCA/ND team.  Gananda had a solid day as well with a tie against the Lancers (Hein), a win over YMCA/ND, and a loss to Alexander.  The Lancers (Hein) earned the 4th seed thanks to a slight tiebreaker advantage over Gananda.

In the 1st round of the playoffs the Lancers (Chilano) avenged their loss to Albion with a 3-0 win in the 1st semi-final game.  Alexander knocked off the Lancers (Hein) 2-0 to earn their spot in the final.

Alexander's roster included sophomores goal keeper Hannah Wilson, sophomore defenders Savannah VanSon, Summer Bliss, and Claire Hartl, sophomore midfielders Tessa Bigelow and Autumn Atkinson, sophomore forwards Kylie Bank, Amber Finan, and Ashley Szymanski, and 8th grade defender Gabby Kwiatek.

S.C. Genesee Lancers United take Medina YMCA U19 Girls tourney!

By Chris Chilano


The S.C. Genesee Lancers United ladies u19 team went to Medina and took first place in the Medina YMCA U19G tourney on January 11.

The ladies got off to a slow start dropping a 1-0 decision to a very good Albion team. But the Lancers would bounce right back with a dominating 4-0 win over Attica. Emilie Rath (Medina H.S.) scored twice, while Emily Starowitz (FLCC/Bergen HS) and Lindsay Wellspeak (FLCC/Alexander HS) each had a goal. Julia Medwid (SUNY Fredonia/Alexander HS) chipped in with 2 assists, and Starowitz and Brittany Luckey (Leroy HS) each had one. Leslie George (GCC/Alexander HS) had the first of 3 shutouts on the day on goal.

Game three saw the Lancers defeat York 2-0 behind goals by Luckey (unassisted) and Jessie Jaszko (GCC/Batavia HS), and some fine saves by George in goal to preserve the shutout. Wellspeak assisted on Jaszko's goal.

In the semifinals, the Lancers got their rematch with Albion and defeated them 2-0 as Wellspeak  scored off a great pass by Jaszko, and Luckey would take a great pass by Wellspeak to score and lead the way.

In the championship game, the Lancers defeated Alexander 3-1. Jaszko got the Lancers quickly on the board off a Wellspeak assist. A very well organized Alexander team would tie the game up, but Wellspeak would notch 2 goals to ice the win and the title. Jenna Ferrando (GCC/Leroy HS) and Audrey Rath (Alfred State/Medina HS) led a great defense all day - Great job ladies!!!

Attica wrestling wins Bradshaw

By Brian Hillabush

 The Attica wrestling program is definitely one of the tops in the area, and they flexed their muscles yesterday at the 34th annual Robert Bradshaw Memorial Invitational Saturday.

The tournament didn't wrap up until 10 p.m. last night, but Attica wound up on top of the team standings, finishing ahead of many of the biggest and best schools from in and out of Section 5.

Bradshaw Top 20

Attica, 187
Rush-Henrietta, 174
Northport, 165.5 
Queensbury, 145
Batavia, 140.5
Guilderland, 130
Canandaigua, 129
Churchville-Chili, 119
Brockport, 117.5
Greene, 108
Newark, 95
Gates Chili, 78
Geneva, 71
Irondequoit, 68
Byron-Bergen, 67
Webster Schroeder, 67
Bishop Kearney, 66.5
Palmyra-Macedon, 66
Waterloo, 62
Livonia, 56

 

“We were hoping to pick up a top five,” head coach Eric Romesser told the Daily Messanger, “but I didn’t expect to win. I’m happy to squeak it out.”

Lance Compton surprised everybody and won the 125-pound weight class and sectional contender Luke Pariso surprised nobody with a 171-pound title, beating Byron-Bergen's Zack Green 9-0 in the finals. Vinnie Napierski and Doug Beitz had second place finishes.

Batavia also had a champion in Ryan Darch, who beat his teammate Troy Ireland 6-1 in the finals.

You can see the complete results here. 

Blue Devils top Fighting Irish in hockey

By Brian Hillabush

Batavia came away with the win in the local hockey rivalry.

The Blue Devils beat Notre Dame 4-2 and improve to 7-6.

Erik Pokornowski and Corey Kocent had two goals each, with Pokornowski scoring the final goal with just over two minutes left in regulation.

Patt Finnell dished out three assists and Brandon Polito had two helpers.

Dylan Versage and Jordan DiFilipo had the goals for Notre Dame, which were both assisted by Tyler Kessler.

Attica football is moving down to Class C

By Brian Hillabush

 With the amount of students dropping at local schools, I have a thought that within the next few years we might start seeing more schools combine their programs.

The current BEDS numbers are an indication that our area schools are getting smaller and smaller. Most of our schools are Class C or D as it is right now, and there has been a rumor flying around that Attica is dropping from a B to a C next year. 

I just confirmed that the Blue Devils will be playing in Class C next season, but just for football. It will probably be for all sports the year after next.

"I think it's good and it gives us an opportunity to see some different teams," Attica coach Jeff Cusmano said. "I don't think Class C is any easier (for sectionals). You still have your teams like Le Roy, Pembroke and Letchworth, but from a physical standpoint it may help us out."

This year's graduating class at Attica is 147 and Cusmano's son is in third grade, where there are only 100 kids in the class. So enrollment is going to keep dropping in Attica.

Playing in Class C is no cake-walk as Cusmano said, but will give the Blue Devils a better chance to compete. Attica has only won two sectional games in its history, playing in Class B. They knocked off East Rochester/Gananda for the second this year, but then were destroyed by Bath.

"When we go into a Class B playoff game, you have to be able to match up and we couldn't do that with Bath," Cusmano said. "You have teams like Geneva and Hornell that are (larger schools) and pretty tough. We will be able to better match up in sectionals."

With the amount of Class D schools we are going to have in the Genesee Region League and Livingston Conference, is it possible that teams are going to have to merge sports so that there are enough Class C schools to compete.

This past year we saw Elba and Byron-Bergen combine their football program, and it is likely that more athletic teams will be hooking up from those two schools.

Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke were Class C this year, but both are expected to be Class D very soon.

Section 5 has the most amount of Class D schools in the state, and I'm just wondering if we are going to see more merging. As it is right now, Class D plays one less regular season game because they have to be divided into two classes, and have a playoff after sectionals to see which team moves on to states.

There is currently talk of making the Class D sectionals just a four team competition and allowing schools to play a full seven week regular season. While other classes have eight schools in the playoffs, Class D would only get four teams.

Will Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke combine programs so that they can compete in Class C or even be a small B school? Caledonia-Mumford has been moved down to Class D and enrollment keeps dropping, so are they going to join up with another school so they can play in an eight team playoff?

This may or may not happen, but with Class D becoming so overloaded, I think we are going to see some major changes in Section 5 football in the near future.

HS highlights for Friday

By Brian Hillabush

Peanut butter and jelly - words you hear together a lot. Add Andrew Hoy and box-and-one to that mix.

Teams are figuring out his ability to score and are trying to take him out of games. Other players stepped up and Batavia beat host Eastridge 55-43 Friday.

"Other guys need to step up," said coach Buddy Brasky. "More teams are going to focus on Andrew. It took some time, but kids stepped up."

Andrew still scored a game-high 15 points, but brother Marcus was the star as he helped the Blue Devils turn a 34-31 halftime lead into a big win.

Marcus scored all 14 of his points in the second half and also had seven assists and five rebounds.

"They were taking away Andrew and Robert (Hoy) so Marcus started going to the basket and scoring. He got some and-1s and some threes. He came up big," Brasky said.

 Batavia improves to 8-1.

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Kevin Francis went off for Notre Dame as the Fighting Irish whooped Byron-Bergen 75-46.

The senior had 24 points with 10 dimes and eight steals as ND improves to 7-1.

Greg Barr added 17 points with Vinny Zambito chipping in 10.

Bryan White reached double figures with 12 points for the Bees.

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A tight game turned into a blowout as Andrew Wright scored 12 of his 16 points in the second half to lead Pembroke to a 57-41 victory over Elba.

Ken Babcock had 13 points, Steve Moser had 12 and Kyle Stocking had nine for the Dragons (5-4).

Phil Ostroski and Sonny Giuliano had 10 each for the Lancers.

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Tate Westermeier led the way with 14 points as Attica beat Lyndonville 43-31. Bryan Thompson had 13 and Shawn Dupuis added eight. Matt Sheffield had 11 rebounds.

Nobody reached double figures for the Tigers.

Attica is now 5-3.

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Notre Dame thumped Byron-Bergen 59-39 in girls action as Jill Marshall scored 20 points with 14 rebounds and five dimes. Brittany Morelli added 10 points for the Fighting Irish.

Krista Lougheed had 11 points for the Bees.

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Elba rebounded from a tough loss to Geneseo with a 53-42 win over Pembroke.

Rachael Cook had a double-double with 12 points and 11 boards and Sarah Schwartzmeyer added 11 points. Julie Marshall had eight points for the Lancers (8-2).

Kelsey Lewis had 12 points for the Dragons (5-4).

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