basketball

The Batavia girls basketball team played a near-perfect game Thursday night, downing visiting Albion 65-38 on senior night.

The night started with seniors Brittany Mazurkiewicz and Jaycee Shirk being honored, and then the Blue Devils got down to business on the court and took care of the Purple Eagles.

It could have been a sign that Batavia was going to win easily as Brittany Wormley drained a wide open 3-pointer to start the game. The Blue Devils never trailed.

Albion briefly tied things up at 5, but Wornley hit another trifecta to start a Batavia run. The Blue Devils had an 8-0 run late in the first quarter, with Michelle Jordan, Shirk, Mazurkiewicz and Tori Doward each scoring points.

The lead was 18-11 after the opening eight minutes.

With Kristen Klein hitting a free throw and Jordan hitting a 3-pointer, the score was doubled up at 22-11.

The Purple Eagles had a chance to get back in the game in the second quarter but missed five straight foul shots. Batavia led 31-17 at halftime.

Wormley, Mazurkiewicz, Klein and Shun-Della Williams had four points each in the third quarter to give the Blue Devils a 50-28 lead after three quarters of play.

Shirk and Klein had four points each in the fourth quarter.

Shirk had a tremendous game with 14 points, nine rebounds, eight blocks and two assists and Mazurkiewcz added six points and five dimes.

Jordan and Wormley had 10 points each, with Wormley grabbing four rebounds and making two steals. Klein had nine points and four boards and Williams finished with six points and eight rebounds.

Rebecca Deegan had 12 points to lead Albion (14-4).

Batavia (14-4) will be playing at Pittsford Sutherland in the opening round of the Monroe County League tournament on Tuesday.

Le Roy won its second game of the season Wednesday night, dropping visiting Letchworth 43-31.

Allison Macomber scored 14 points with Rachel Hayward adding 10 points. Megan Lowe pitched in seven points while grabbing 10 rebounds.

Kelly Proper scored 14 points to lead the Indians (6-13).

Le Roy is now 2-17.

Notre Dame jumped out to a 27-6 lead in the first quarter at home Wednesday night. That meant that the Fighting Irish simply had to fend off the Elba boys basketball team to get a 77-43 win.

Kevin Francis is still scoring like crazy as he lead all scorers with 27 points to help ND improve to 14-3.

Tommy Rapone had 10 points and six rebounds with Gianni Zambito, Greg Barr and Nick Bochicchio getting seven points apiece.

Matt Thompson and Nick Wetherwax had six points each.

Elba was led by Sonny Giuliano's 13 points, with Phil Ostroski scoring12 points and Dan Ramsey pitching in 11.

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Byron-Bergen hasn't done a lot of winning this year, but improved to 4-13 with a 55-52 victory over visiting Holley

David Garnish was the star for the Bees, getting his first carrier double-double with 14 points and 10 boards. Tyler Sass had a team-high 15 points with Trevor Laurie pitching in seven points.

Brian Mitchell had 18 points and Chad Barhydt added 17 for the Hawks (4-17).

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Wheatland-Chili's Rick Agosto scored 20 points with 10 boards in a 61-54 win over Lyndonville.

Andy Lund had 18 points with seven boards and Garhett Varin pitched in seven points.

Erik Van Wycke had 12 points and eight rebounds for Lyndonville (1-16).

Wheatland-Chili is now 4-13.

 The Oakfield-Alabama and Batavia boys basketball teams both moved up in the newest New York State Public High School Athletic Association state rankings.

Batavia took a major drop a few weeks back after its second loss of the season to Pittsford Sutherland, but moved up a little last week and moved up two spots in Class A this week, from No. 23 to No. 21.

The Blue Devils are 14-2.

Oakfield-Alabama (14-2) has lingered around the same area in Class C and moved up this week, going from No. 13 to No. 11.

Notre Dame did not change position in Class D. The Fighting Irish (13-3) are the ninth ranked team in the state.

 The Buffalo News today reported a story in which reporter Maki Becker gives us some more detail on the New York State Public High School Athletic Association cuts as he interviewed executive director Nina Van Erk.

There wasn't a whole lot of information than what we have previously reported, but there are a couple of interesting items in the piece.

Van Erk says that it is expected that the cuts will save schools in the state up to $10 million, with nearly $6 million of that going to officiating fees.

The other thing that comes from this story is that the cuts are expected to be for two years.

The changes, which were approved by a slim majority late last month, would begin in the next school year and would remain in effect for two years, Van Erk told the paper.

This opens up some more questions.

Did Van Erk and the rest of the NYSPHSAA directors make these cuts for two years because it is a quick fix to help schools and families get through these difficult economic times?

Was it announced that the cuts are for two years because that is the original plan or because of all the backlash the NYSPHSAA has received from coaches and athletic directors?

And what happens after two years? Will these policies just continue or will they be reviewed again at that time, with the number of games being returned to the schedule?

Buffalo Public Schools athletic director David Thomas summed up what a lot of people are thinking when they hear this with his quote late in the story.

“I don’t think we should be worried about funding school budgets on the backs of the kids playing sports,” said Thomas told the paper.

Cutting the number of games might help school districts in the more remote areas of Western New York that require longer traveling distances, Thomas said, “but it doesn’t save it up here [in Buffalo], where we are trying to keep the kids off the streets and busy with school and athletics.”

The current schedule allows Buffalo athletes the opportunity to play in suburban areas and “to travel to some nice tournaments,” Thomas said. “Now we have to pull back on that.”

Thomas also questioned whether the cuts were really temporary. “When they take things away,” he said, “they don’t often come back.”

Another game and another double-double for Noah Seward.

The Oakfield-Alabama senior scored 19 points and had 11 rebounds as the Hornets downed host Attica 59-34 Monday. The O-A defense never allowed the Blue Devils to score more than nine points in a quarter.

Tim Smith had a well-rounded day with 11 points, five assists and four steals with Chris Bucceri adding eight points.

Tate Westermeier led Attica with 13 points.

Oakfield-Alabama is now 15-2.

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Dan Ramsey led Elba with 14 points as the Lancers thumped visiting Lyndonville 54-29.

Ramsey scored 10 of those points in the second quarter while the Lancers were on an 18-5 run. Sonny Giuliano had 10 points with Phil Ostroski and Cody Torpey finishing with six apiece for Elba (10-7).

Erik VanWycke had 10 points to lead the Tigers.

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Ken Babcock scored 19 points to lead the way for Pembroke in a 62-39 win over Holley.

The difference was the second quarter as the Dragons expanded an 8-7 lead into a 28-12 advantage at halftime.

Andrew Wright scored 15 points and Steve Moser added 11 as Pembroke improves to 11-6.

Brian Mitchell had 11 points to lead the Hawks (4-14).

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Livonia outscored Le Roy 15-10 in the fourth quarter to escape with a 50-44 win.

Ryan Metz led the Bulldogs (13-5) with 21 points and nine boards.

Mike Humphrey had a big game for Le Roy with 19 points, four rebounds and three assists with his younger brother Quentin adding eight points and three dimes.

Eric Stella also had eight points for the Oatkan Knights (9-9).

 Basketball is a great spectator sport, especially at the high school level.

In Genesee County we have the classic small-school basketball atmosphere as most teams are Class C or D, with Batavia and Attica being the larger schools.

Kids and parents will get to the game and generally share positive cheers. And local students take pride in their cheering sections, which at times mimic college sections. Oakfield-Alabama has the "O-A Crazies", Notre Dame has the "Leprechaun Lair", Elba has the "Sherwood Shakers" and last year Attica had a great cheering section called the "Wolf Pack". These sections, along with those from the other area schools generally share positive cheers.

But there are always the times when a teacher or athletic director will have to tell them to watch what they are saying. Sometimes kids will get on the officials, the other team's cheering section or single out a player on the floor. But you rarely see something that crosses a line.

The most negative of cheers or taunts coming from the crowd generally comes from the rare parent that holds a grudge or wants to draw attention to him/her self.

But there is always that potential and Section 9 is dealing with fan problems this season. Kevin Gleason of Varsity 845 writes about some of the problems.

Nick Iannuzzi was so mad he considered going into the stands after the hecklers. The Minisink Valley guard had grown accustomed to hearing it from fans. But these rips from Monroe-Woodbury students dug deeply. Too deeply.

"FUMBLE!'' they shouted every time Iannuzzi touched the basketball. As Minisink Valley's quarterback in 2007, he had a costly fumble weeks earlier in the team's loss to Monroe-Woodbury for the Section 9 Class AA title. Iannuzzi grew more frustrated and the chants grew louder as he continued to struggle. "FUMBLE!'' He was eventually benched after drawing a technical foul for arguing with an official.

"Yeah,'' Iannuzzi says of going into the crowd, "that crossed my mind. My parents were sitting right in front of them, and that (ticked) me off more.''

I don't think many would say that there is a problem with negative cheering in this area, but the potential is always there. 

When Chelsea Turcer noticed that nobody was bothering to guard her and her, she figured that it was time to put the nail in the coffin.

Alexander had already overcome a nearly double-figure deficit in the third quarter to take the lead and she wanted to put the game away.

She did just that as she chucked up and made a 3-pointer to wrap up the Trojans 53-48 win over Pembroke in a great Genesee Region League game Friday.

 A lot of things happened before Turcer drained the trey that most will remember from this game.

Alexander was up 10-5 early on before Danielle Smith scored and hit a pair of foul shots to cut the lead to 10-9 at the end of the first quarter.

Alexander's Anni Lehtola opened the second quarter with a 3-pointer and had another bucket early on as the Trojans kept the lead around two points.

But the tide changed in the final minute of the half.

Jackie DuBois scored two consecutive baskets to give Pembroke a 26-25 lead - their first of the night - with 37 seconds left in the half.

That burst of momentum took a little bit in the third quarter as the Trojans regained the lead on a free throw by Lehtola, but by the midpoint the lead had grown to nine points.

Kelsey Lewis hit a long jumper, Nicole Sharick dropped in a basket and then a 3-pointer to give Pembroke a 36-29 advantage.

Katie Hackett extended the lead with a basket and then added another score with about a second left in the third quarter to give Pembroke a 42-35 lead going into the final frame.

Alexander has had issues in the third quarter this season, but always seems to right things in the fourth.

Again, the Trojans stepped up to the challenge.

Nicki Laird and Rachael Pettys had baskets before Lehtola hit a 3-pointer to get within two points.

Sarah Herman tied the game with a basket and Alexander wound up taking a 48-46 lead when Pettys scored. Katie Kochmanski added another basket to make it a four point game.

The Dragons did score with 40 seconds left, but Turcer's 3-pointer with seconds left ended the game.

Lehtola had 15 points to lead the Trojans, with Pettys adding eight points, 15 rebounds, four steals and two blocked shots. Anna Dominick had 13 points with three boards and four steals as Alexander improves to 11-4.

Sharick led the Dragons (9-7) with 11 points, but Lewis chipped in nine points and Pettys had eight.

The Section 5 Tournament  starting in about three weeks, now is a good time to see where our local boys basketball teams are ranked with just a few games remaining on their schedules.

Notre Dame (13-3) is the only local team currently seeded No. 1 in their bracket. They are well ahead of Alfred Almond (13-4) in seeding points and should deliver coach Mike Rapone yet another top seed to go with the school's 27th GR title, which was wrapped up last night.

Elba (9-7) is currently the third seed in the classification.

Batavia (13-2) is a second-seed in Class A2, behind Aquinas (14-2). A good showing against the larger schools in the Monroe County League Tournament would help the Blue Devils have a shot at that prestigious top seed.

Oakfield-Alabama is 14-2, but just a third seed in Class C1, which is loaded. Pembroke is a 10-seed at 10-6 and all of the top 10 teams have over 10 wins. Byron-Bergen (3-12) is currently the 15th-seed.

The Hornets are behind 15-0 Avon and East Rochester (14-2).

Attica (8-8) is a sixth seed in Class B1, which means that the team is going to have to get some wins down the stretch in order to get a first-round home game. The top seed will get a bye and Hornell (7-9) is the fifth seed.

Le Roy (9-7) overcame some early season issues and currently has the third seed in Class B2. They will probably stay there because Bishop Kearney (13-2) and Wellsville 15-3) are well ahead of the Oatkan Knights and nobody else in the division has more than seven wins.

There are three Genesee Region League teams in Class C2 and only one of them is going to host a home game.

Kendall (9-6) is currently a fourth seed while Alexander (6-9) is at No. 12 and Lyndonville is 1-16 and last in the classification.

 The Democrat & Chronicle released its newest polls today and several of our local teams are listed.

The Batavia boys basketball team is ranked ninth in the large school poll while Oakfield-Alabama is ranked No. 10 in the small school version.

The Elba girls basketball team received a spot at No. 9 in the small school poll with Notre Dame also getting votes, but not making the list. Jasper-Troupsburg is one spot ahead of the Lancers, even though Elba is currently the No. 1 ranked team in Class DD with J-T coming in second.

Attica is tied with Letchworth at No. 4 in the small school wrestling poll, with Batavia coming in at six and Holley coming in at eight.

Batavia's hockey team did not crack the top 10, but did receive votes in this week's poll.

Early in the season, there were issues with the Pembroke boys basketball team.

The roster only had seven players, there was some infighting with the players, they had no true point guard and the wins weren't coming. But the Dragons have now blown out four straight teams because of a 75-37 win over visiting Alexander Thursday.

Part of that problem was solved when Steve Moser showed up very early in the season as a transfer from St. Joe's in Buffalo, and the rest of the problem was solved with time.

Now, Pembroke is ready to wrap up the season with some wins, take on the first Genesee Region/Niagara-Orleans Tournament and then sectionals.

The Dragons improve to 10-6 and did it by thumping a team that isn't bad and did it in big-time fashion.

The game was never a question as Pembroke jumped out to a 19-7 lead in the first quarter with Ken Babcock dominating inside the paint. He owned the boards and scored two baskets, and got help from Andrew Gabbey, who dropped in two 3-pointers in the opening frame.

The Trojans went blow-for-blow in the second quarter, with both teams scoring 14 points., but it was still 33-21 Pembroke at the half.

Babcock had six points in the third quarter and Andrew Wright started taking over the game. Wright had just four points in the frame, but was big on the boards and was getting steals. The Dragons had a 20-7 advantage in the third.

Wright scored seven points in the fourth quarter and Pembroke had a 22-9 advantage in the fourth quarter for the huge victory.

This is a team that got off to a really ugly start and is now playing some solid basketball. Oakfield-Alabama wrapped up the Genesee Region League Division II title with a win tonight, so Pembroke is now focusing on the sectional playoffs.

The addition of  Moser was huge. Wright was out of position and had to bring the ball up the floor. That took his inside presence out of the mix.

Moser is a solid point guard, scoring nine points with six assists in the game.

Wright scored a game-high 19 points with 11 rebounds and seven steals and Babcock pitched in 13 points and 10 boards.

Eric Leffel also had nine points for Pembroke.

Alexander (6-9) was led by Zach Burke, who scored 10 points.

 Last time we updated the University of Rochester men's basketball team and Batavia graduate Mike Chmielowiec, they took third in the Chase tournament and Chmielowiec had injured his ankle in the previous game.

Now the senior is back at 100-percent.

But even that wasn't enough as the Yellowjackets gave up 57 points in the second half and lost to Emory College 83-74. Chmielowiec hit a key 3-pointer in the game that got Rochester back within three points at 70-67, but that was the closest the Yellowjackets got in the game.

Chmielowiec finished with 20 points.

Rochester is 13-5 and Chmielowiec leads the team in scoring with 19.9 points per game.  He also has 20 assists and and 18 steals to go with his 4.9 rebounds per contest.

 The new state rankings were just released and Oakfield-Alabama is back in the top 15 for Class C.

The Hornets (13-2) were in the top 15, but dropped out last week. They are back in the state rankings at No. 13 this week.

Batavia had dipped down into a tie for 25th last week but move up to No. 23 this week in Class A.

Notre Dame did not move up or down, remaining at No. 9 in Class D.

 Red Jacket sophomore captain Ryan Jennings did just what he was told to do, a very common thing in close games.

His team was trailing DeSales by two points after Jennings had dropped a 3-pointer with seconds left to play when coach Matt Nolan told his team to foul.

Jennings fouled the player receiving the inbounds pass but took a shot to his head with an elbow, knocking him out.

"Every time he sat up he kept passing back out, his father Todd told Alex Bauer of the Messsanger Post. 

Jennings was taken to the hospital where he received a CAT scan that showed he had a brain aneurysm. Without the elbow to the head, Jennings would not have known about the problem and would not be getting treatment for it.

Andrew Hoy had a huge week and earned Player of the Week for Monroe County Division III.

He was the leading scorer in both Batavia games last week. Hoy dropped in 24 points in a 75-69 win over Pittsford Mendon, then had 26 in a 67-62 victory over Penfield on Saturday.

Andrew Wright of Pembroke won the award for Genesee Region League Division I. He scored 18 points and had seven rebounds in a win Wheatland-Chili and had 18 points, with eight rebounds and two assists in a victory over Eden. 

Elba's Sonny Giuliano is the Player of the Week for GR Division II because of his performance in a win over Holley. Giuliano had a triple-double with 14 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in the game.

Oakfield-Alabama's Lindsay Chatt had a career-high 18 points and four steals in a victory over Lyndonville this week to earn the girls honor for Genesee Region League Division I.

Kendall's Samanthat D'Agostino hit three points and scored 15 points against Attica and then scored six points in overtime, for a total of 16, to beat Byron-Bergen. She earned the honor for GR Division II.