Sports

The saying is that defense wins championships, and if that’s true, Batavia could be raising another sectional trophy next Saturday.

The Blue Devils’ defense was in full lockdown as they defeated Honeoye Falls-Lima, 56-37 in Class A2 action.

Batavia got off to a fast start offensively and defensively, as Justice Fagan scored the first seven points of the game as part of a 14-0 run to open the game. In fact, the Blue Devils held HF-L without a point until Evan Quackenbush knocked down a free throw with 57 seconds left in the first quarter.

“We had almost ten days to prepare for them,” Batavia Head Coach Buddy Brasky said. “We stressed our man-to-man defense all week. We saw, scouted them well, and we were pretty familiar with some of their sets. I thought we played great defensively.”

Quackenbush would score five more quick points to cut the lead to eight to end the opening frame.
Batavia would get back to their stifling defense at the start of the second quarter though, holding the Cougars to just 11 points in the first half.

“We got off to that good start, but then we struggled scoring,” Brasky said. “But, I preach all year that when the shots aren’t falling, your defense keeps you in it.”

One player that did not struggle in the second quarter or throughout the game, was sophomore forward Malachi Chenault. He scored eight of his 18 points in the frame to propel the Blue Devils to a 24-11 halftime lead. He also would add nine rebounds for the game, as Batavia dominated the glass 34-16.

“Malachi had a monster game,” Brasky said. “We’ve been waiting for a game like that from Malachi. If he can play like that then we will be a tough team to beat.”

The third quarter saw a familiar face get hot, as Jeff Redband picked up the scoring load coming out of halftime. The junior forward scored eight of his game-high 20 points in the third quarter as Batavia extended their lead to 39-23 heading into the fourth.

Until the final quarter, the Blue Devils had not allowed a three-point field goal the entire night.

Finally, HF-L was able to break through, knocking down four from beyond the arc.
The lead was cut to nine with just 3:53 to play, but every time the Cougars made a push, Batavia had an answer.

Justice Fagan countered with his own three-pointer on one occasion and Redband knocked in another basket to extend the lead.

In fact, only three Blue Devils found the scoring column, but Redband (20), Fagan (18) and Chenault (18) accounted for 56 points.

“We’d like to have more, but all year long that’s kind of what the deal is,” Brasky said. “We’d like to have more, but we’ll do whatever it takes to win. We’re trying to play really good defense. We try to get the ball to our go-to scorers, have our role players play their roles, but as long as we win we’re fine with it.”

Redband also added 12 rebounds and three blocks, while Fagan pitched in five rebounds.
Quackenburg finished with 10 points and six rebounds for HF-L (7-12).

Batavia (13-5) will play second-seeded Newark (17-2) on Tuesday at the Blue Cross Arena. Tip-off will be at 7:15 p.m.

Much has been written about Notre Dame’s Tim McCulley this year, but Batavia has their own McCulley…Madison.

The sophomore has become one of the best girl’s basketball players in Section V, and she showed why as the Lady Blue Devils defeated Honeoye Falls-Lima, 59-39 in a Class A2 quarterfinal matchup.

McCulley connected on six three-pointers and finished with a game-high 23 points in the win.

Batavia got off to a sluggish start, making only one basket in the first quarter and HF-L led by two after the first quarter.

However, the start of the second quarter was all Batavia. The Blue Devils scored the first seven points of the frame and Essence Williams hit a three-pointer just as time expired to take a 23-18 lead into halftime.

“We’re kind of a second half team,” said Batavia Head Coach Marty Hein.

The first year head coach turned out to be right as his team used a 12-4 run to start the second half, behind nine-straight points by McCulley. HF-L continued to battle though, and they trailed by 11 at the end of the third quarter.

Batavia would come out fast once again, using a 12-2 run to finally pull away from the Cougars.

In total, McCulley scored 17 of her 23 points in the second half to give Hein his first sectional victory. Sam Cecere had another strong outing, scoring 14 points and pulling down 12 rebounds, while Tiara Filbert added 10 points, seven steals, four rebounds and four assists. Taylor Reed scored 15 points to lead HF-L (3-16).

Batavia will play the winner of Newark and Geneva on Monday night at Pittsford-Sutherland. Tip-off is slated for 6 p.m.

Press release:

The Genesee County Baseball Club will hold its annual Batavia Muckdogs Hot Stove Dinner and Auction on Saturday, March 22nd, from 4 to 8 p.m. at the Clarion Hotel at 8250 Park Road in Batavia. Tickets are $25 for adults and $15 for children 12 and under.

The evening will begin with a cocktail hour followed immediately by dinner. The Hot Stove Dinner is a time for good food, friendship and baseball talk. The night also features silent and live auctions of baseball-related memorabilia (including signed bats and balls), work by local artists, and gift certificates from a variety of local businesses. This year’s dinner will also benefit the Genesee County Sheriff’s Department K-9 Unit.

Tickets may be purchased in Batavia at Dwyer Stadium, Gerace’s Hair Care, the Williams Law Firm, and the office of Dr. Alan Barcomb.

Sectional play is under way and it is now win or go home for local area high school teams.

Alexander got off to a strong start, defeating Marion 59 to 27 in the first round of the Class C2 bracket.

The sixth-seeded Trojans overwhelmed 11th-seeded Marion, who only brought five players to the contest.

“We prepared for a few more players,” said Alexander Head Coach Josh Bender. “Before the game started we found out that they were shorthanded, but it was business as usual for us. We brought the right intensity from the start and it was a good overall team victory.”

The Black Knights kept things within striking distance until midway through the second quarter as Alexander was just too much and too deep.

They took a 33-14 lead into halftime and never looked back, extending that lead to 25 at the end of the third quarter before the starters exited for the final time.

Seniors Johnny George and Zach Laird had strong nights in the last home games of their careers, scoring 12 points apiece. Another senior, Zach Dunbar pitched in nine points.

Preston Crego scored a game-high 14 points for Marion (4-15).

Alexander (12-7) will travel to third-seeded Cuba-Rushford on Friday evening in hopes to advance to the Class C2 semifinals.

The Rebels are 15-2 on the season and boast two star guards.

Carl Holmes is averaging 24 points per game on the season, while Caleb Edwards is averaging 20 points per game and both are lethal beyond the three-point arc. In their last contest, Cuba-Rushford made 17 three-point field goals as a team.

“They’re a tough team,” Bender said. “They run and gun; they look to shoot the three. It should be a good battle. They’re a good offensive team and I consider us one of the best defensive teams in the G-R League. It should be a good matchup for us.”

Tip-off will be 7 p.m. Friday at Cuba-Rushford.

Both the boys and girls track teams from Batavia High School won Class C Section V championships in a meet at RIT last night.

Le Roy boys won the Class D title and the Le Roy girls came in second.

Batavia boys finished with 117.50, edging out Aquinas Institute, 74.50. The girls had 113 points and Wayland-Cohocton came in second with 110.

Le Roy boys beat UPrep Rochester 86-79, while the girls came in behind Marion, 71-60.

Individual event winners from Genesee County:

• Kimmy Lovett, Byron-Bergen, girls 600 meter run
• Batavia girls, 4x800 meter relay
• Kristyn Mott, Batavia, girls pole vault
• Julianna Lauricella, Le Roy, girls 600 meter run
• Becca Schwan, Le Roy, girls 1000 meter run
• Raelynn Moskal, Alexander, girls 1500 meter run
• Le Roy girls, 4x400 meter relay
• Le Roy girls, 4x800 meter relay
• Alex Egeli, Batavia, boys 55 meter dash
• Alex Egeli, Batavia, boys 55 meter hurdles
• Batavia boys, 4x200 meter relay
• Batavia boys, 4x400 meter relay
• Devon Koepp, Batavia, boys shot put
• Ryan McQuillen, Le Roy, boys 55 meter dash
• John Woordworth, Le Roy, boys 1000 meter run
• D.J. Ohlson, Alexander, boys 55 meter hurdles
• Le Roy boys, 4x800 meter relay
• D.J. Ohlson, Alexander, boys high jump
• Ryan McQuillen, Le Roy, boys long jump
• Ryan McQuillen, Le Roy, boys triple jump

Photos submitted by Nicholas Burk

The Notre Dame Boys Basketball Team was honored last night in Rochester at the Section V banquet. The award was for finishing the season as the #1 seed in Class D1. The Fighting Irish open their sectional play at home Saturday. Game time is 7 p.m. and ND will play the winner of a round one match between Elba and Finney.

Photo submitted by Shelley Falitico.

We were remiss earlier this week in not posting about Laurie Call of Notre Dame reaching a significant basketball career milestone -- her 400th steal. She's the first player in Notre Dame history -- boys or girls -- to reach 400 steals. Pictured with Laurie are her parents Tim and Dawn.

Photo submitted by Tim Call.

Le Roy almost pulled off an upset against archrival Cal-Mum on Wednesday night.

But there's no almost in basketball. And there are no moral victories.

"They played good," said Rick Rapone, Le Roy's first-year head coach. "But you've got to play 32 minutes. You can't play 31 minutes and 50 seconds. You've got to play it the whole way out."

With the score knotted at 57, the Red Raiders took possession of the ball with less than 20 seconds left on the game clock.

It only took a couple of passes to get the ball to a wide open Chris Wilson just beyond the arch. His three-point swoosh gave Cal-Mum the lead with only 4.8 seconds left.

Three points is a big deficit to erase with only a few ticks to go and the Oatkan Knights were forced to settle -- no matter how well the game was played for 31 minutes and 50 seconds -- with a 60-57 loss.

"I told the kids I'll feel good when we finish one of these games off," Rapone said. "We've got to play 32 minutes."

Le Roy finishes the regular season with a 7-11 record and will open sectional play Feb. 18 against Bath-Haverling (8-10).

An upset over the 17-1 Red Raiders would have given Rapone's program a nice boost, but he still feels good about his team heading into the championship rounds.

The Oatkan Knights under Rapone play a fast-paced offense and pressure defense that should give a lot of teams fits.

"You really don't want to play us," Rapone said.

"Our program is going in the right direction," Rapone said. "We have gotten better every single week since I started and we're hoping now this catapults us into the tournament."

The Knights certainly had Cal-Mum's Dan Dickens pulling at his collar in the second quarter and the Raider's fans on the visitors' side of the bleachers grumbling, "we're better than this."

With the Raiders down by a dozen points in the second period, Dickens called a time out, sat his starters down and gave them a good tongue lashing.

A Raider's fan told another, "they deserve it."

But it's hard to stop a hot hand and Knights certainly had that going for them in the first half, dropping six three-point shots (compared to none in the second half).

As the second quarter wound down, Cal-Mum cut Le Roy's lead to two points and the second half would be a battle with neither team gaining a clear advantage until those fateful closing seconds.

"We held them to 60 points," Rapone said. "I don't think they've been held to 60 points very many times this season."

Zack Moore led the Knights with 20 points, including two threes, and going four of six from the foul line. Nick Egling had 10 points, including a pair of threes in the first quarter. Mike McCullen was four of five from the foul line and finished with six points. Ethan Witkowski and Kody Lamkin had seven points each.

Kurtis Haut and Will Van Auken had 18 points each for Cal-Mum and Chris Wilson scored 13.

For Le Roy, Lamkin had eight rebounds and Moore had seven. Steve Cappotelli and Moore each had three assists.

For Cal-Mum, Van Auken was a monster on the boards with 13 rebounds. He also blocked four shots.

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Around Christmastime, things were looking bleak for the Notre Dame basketball team.

In a span of 10 days, the Fighting Irish had their 70-game Genesee Region League winning streak snapped by Wheatland-Chili, and then they were beaten by Batavia in the Lions Club Tournament final.

Chances of winning their eighth consecutive G-R League title looked to be slipping away. But since the new year, Notre Dame has gone 9-1 and a win on Senior Night against the very same Wildcat team that had pounded them earlier in the season would give them a share of the league championship.

Just like in the past 10 games, Notre Dame responded to adversity and defeated Wheatland-Chili to tie them for the league crown, 74-57.

“We are playing better now,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Mike Rapone of his team’s progress. “At that time we were still struggling as a team, but now I think we have found our identity.”

The first quarter was marred by fouls, as both teams struggled to find a rhythm offensively.

Wildcats star guard Rodney Roberts managed 11 points in the first quarter, nine of which came from the foul line, but it was Notre Dame who led 17-15.

The Fighting Irish came out hot to start the second quarter, scoring the first seven points of the frame.

Tim McCulley began to go to work at that time, scoring eight Notre Dame points in a row.

“He just takes what’s there,” said Rapone of McCulley. “If you give it to him he takes it, if not he gives it to somebody else. He just does so many things well.”

Wheatland-Chili managed stay close, using the three-point line to their advantage and knocking down four triples in the quarter to cut the deficit to five at halftime.

The third quarter started as a shoot-out between stars.

McCulley scored 13 of his game-high 36 points in the quarter, while Roberts matched him with 13 of his 30 points on the night.

Then toward the end of the quarter McCulley got some help from his friends.

The Fighting Irish finished the quarter on a 10-2 run to pull away. A big factor was senior Alec Covel, who scored eight of his 13 points in the second half to give the Irish a second scoring punch.

“Alec is real good ball player,” Rapone said. “In the last couple of games he’s really found himself. That’s what we need going forward.”

One factor in the early season win by Wheatland-Chili was the play of forward Andre’ Gulley, who dominated with 18 points and 24 rebounds.

Notre Dame also played without big man Caleb Nellis in that contest, and first-year senior Charlie Herbert had little experience at the time.

Two months seemed to do the trick, as Nellis scored nine points and grabbed seven rebounds, while Herbert added four points and nine rebounds.

Meanwhile, Gulley was held in check all evening, managing only four points and six rebounds before fouling out midway through the fourth quarter.

McCulley was also superb in every aspect of the game, adding 12 rebounds, four assists, three steals and three blocks to go with his 36 points as Notre Dame (15-3) appears to peaking as they head into sectionals.

“I told them before the game that starting tonight, it’s about winning,” Rapone said. “The rest of the time it’s about getting better, but now it’s about winning. We needed to win to win the league tonight. Now we need to win to keep playing.”

Roberts added six rebounds to go along with his 30 points, while cousin Tyler Roberts connected on four three-pointers and scored 16 points for Wheatland-Chili (15-3).

It’s a game every athlete dreams of.

It’s senior night on the road against your big rival, with sectional implications on the line.

That’s what Le Roy was facing against Cal-Mum…and Montana Vescovi responded by pouring in a career-high 37 points and leading the Oatkan Knights to a comeback victory, avenging an earlier defeat to the Lady Raiders, 62-45.

In their first contest this season, freshman Gillian Flint went off for 25 points in a 5-point Cal-Mum win, and the start of this game appeared as if she was picking up where she left off.

Flint, who has been averaging 20 points per game over her last four contests, scored 11 points in the first quarter as Cal-Mum raced out to a 9-point lead.

Every aspect of Le Roy’s game seemed to be sputtering, as Vescovi only attempted one field goal from the field (a miss) and went 5-of-12 from the foul line in the first frame.

The second quarter was a different story however, as the Knights scored the first nine points to tie the game at 17.

Vescovi also came alive, scoring 10 points in the period, including eight in a row at one point.

“It was a hostile crowd, I told them to just settle down and relax,” said Le Roy Head Coach Brian Herdlein. “I just told my girls that they were going to have a run and they needed to just keep doing what they were doing.”

The Knights clamped down on Flint, holding her scoreless in the quarter, but Cal-Mum junior Hannah Anderson took charge, scoring six points in a row, and Adrianna Molisani buried a three-pointer at the buzzer to take a 28-25 lead into halftime.

But, Vescovi came out firing in the third quarter, scoring 11 points in the frame.

“She’s an exceptional player,” Herdlein said of Vescovi. “She’s always been a scorer, but she’s added to her game. I tell her all the time that there aren’t a lot of people that can stop her. Mentally she came to play and she didn’t want to lose tonight.”

The Knights took a 39-37 lead with 2:39 remaining in the quarter and never relinquished it.

Le Roy held Cal-Mum just four points, and Vescovi scored 11 more points to vanquish their rivals eight miles up Route 5.

Even more impressive, Flint was held to just seven points after her monster first quarter.

“Flint came out on fire,” Herdlein said. “We really needed to have a girl stay on her the whole time and deny her the ball. I think we did a better job of that as the game went along.”

The Knights also got a strong game from senior Alicia Conte, who finished with 13 points, 12 rebounds and three steals.

Vescovi’s 37 points puts her just 32 shy of 1,000 for her career, but she was solid in every facet of this game, adding nine rebounds and three steals to her stat line.

This win was not just important because of the rivalry, but because the win guarantees Le Roy (9-8) the fourth seed in Class B2 and one more home game.

“This was huge for us,” Herdlein said. “Any time you can play in this kind of environment, it gets you ready for that sectional environment. It’s always rough, you have to play four quarters and that’s what we had to do tonight.”

Flint finished with 18 points and six rebounds for Cal-Mum (11-7), while Anderson added 14 points and nine rebounds.

The T.F. Brown's Squirt III Batavia Ramparts Hockey Team garnered silver medals at the Empire State Winter Games held Olympic Center in Lake Placid this weekend.

Batavia was the #1 seed going into the final rounds after winning their first three games. They lost the gold medal round to the Rye Rangers.

Pictured are Head Coach Jeff Bower, Assistant Coach Brian Frieday and players Drew Bower, Vincent DiRizio, Matthew Frieday, Levi Grimm, Zachary Howard, Austin Hunt, Collin Kratz, Chase Pangrazio, Dominic Peracciny, Connor Peterson, Eric Pfalzer, Sean Pies, Jace Rademacker, and Max Tenney.

Photo and information submitted by Robert Grimm.

Le Roy track and field standout Ruben Owens, front row center, signed a national letter of intent yesterday to attend the University of Arkansas on a full scholarship.

Owens has won Section V titles in the high jump, long jump and triple jump. In all, for both winter and spring seasons, Owens holds 11 Section V titles.

He holds the school records in the high, long and triple jump.

Information and photo submitted by Tim McArdle.

The T.F. Brown's Batavia Ramparts Squirt III Hockey Team is participating in the Empire State Winter Games, being held Feb. 6 through 9 in Lake Placid. The team posed for a picture prior to lining up for the opening ceremonies at the Olympic Center. They will play four games with a chance to win gold, silver or bronze medals. The Ramparts are the Western Region representative in this invitational tournament.

Information and photo submitted by Robert Grimm.

The Notre Dame girls are just one win away from clinching their 11th Genesee Region League title in school history after pounding Elba, 69-37.

The resounding victory also marks the first time that the Lady Irish have swept Elba in league play since the 2010-2011 season.

The Lady Lancers kept things close in the first quarter, but Notre Dame blew the game open in the second, led by Mel Taylor.

Taylor scored 12 of her game-high 24 points in the second quarter as the Irish increased their  seven-point lead after the first quarter to 23 at half time.

“It’s getting down near crunch time,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Dave Pero. “We’re trying to stress that you have to be more aggressive on whatever you do [well]. Mel is a scorer and we want her to try and score as much as possible.”

In the third quarter, junior Emma Francis picked up where Taylor left off, scoring 10 of her 15 points in the frame to put the contest out of reach.

“Emma’s got potential,” Pero said. “She’s starting to believe in herself and it’s a great time to believe. If we have Emma Francis at full-go come sectional time, we’ll be a tough team to beat.”

Taylor was not as terrific scoring the ball, but she had a splendid game overall, adding 11 rebounds, six steals and four assists.

Shea Norton also played strong underneath, scoring 13 points and 10 rebounds. Senior Laurie Call chipped in with seven steals, six assists and five rebounds for Notre Dame (15-1).

Kelsey Bezon had another solid game in defeat, scoring 14 points and grabbing four rebounds. Haley Brown chipped in with 10 points for Elba (12-4).

Photos by Howard Owens

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Only four players in the history of the Notre Dame basketball program have ever scored 1,000 points in their careers.

Make that five.

Tim McCulley added to his already impressive athletic resume by scoring his 1,000th career point Monday night in a victory over Alexander, 52-32.

“People don’t realize how hard it is to score 1,000 points in high school,” said Notre Dame Head Coach Mike Rapone. “To get 1,000 points shows that he’s been steady and consistent.”

McCulley joins his uncle, Tom McCulley, Mark Wadams, Jeff Weaver, and his father, Mike McCulley -- who is currently just one point ahead of his son -- in the 1,000-point club.

“It’s a great feeling to have a father and son both play for you and go over 1,000 points,” Rapone said. “There’s something in the McCulley genes that they can all shoot. I’m sure Mike is as proud as any father could be right now.”

The senior guard was just nine points shy of the 1,000 mark at the start of the contest, and he got within a point at the end of the first quarter.

Then just 20 seconds into the second quarter, McCulley caught a back-door alley-oop from Jason Hart to eclipse the hallowed accomplishment.

“It's a great accomplishment,” Tim McCulley said. “Only five players have scored 1,000 points at Notre Dame. I’m just glad to be a part of it. It’s a milestone I never thought I’d hit.”

It was not a superb shooting night as a team for the Fighting Irish, but McCulley still managed a strong outing, finishing with 24 points, 10 rebounds and three blocks.

“Alexander was physical and played hard,” Rapone said. “They got on the boards and gave us all we wanted.”

Caleb Nellis had a solid night for Notre Dame (12-3), scoring 13 points and grabbing eight rebounds.

Tyler Laird paced Alexander (7-7) with eight points and 15 rebounds.

No doubt, a good time was had by all in Le Roy last night as the Harlem Wizards came to town for a charity game (for the PTSO) against Le Roy Central Schools faculty and staff.

The final score? Does it matter? Especially with the Wizards stopping the Le Roy team 10 points here and there (hint: the Wizards won). 

Above, Timothy Stukes, a.k.a., Tomahawk jumps into a picture with some young fans.

Space Jam, Leon Sewell, does what he does best.

Athletic Director Brian Moran tackles the Oatkan Knights' mascot.

Space Jam hoists a young fan.

A-Train, Arnold Bernard, left, stopped the game and yelled, "hey, photographer, photographer, take our picture," and pulled Eric "Broadway" Jones to his side.

A fan gets her purse back for the price of a kiss on the cheek.

Brian Moran shooting a three-pointer. He was given three tries to make it, but later in the half, Moran sunk a shot at the buzzer from half court.

There were lots of Harlem Wizard souvenir basketballs in the crowd.

Brian Herdlein and Tomahawk battle for a loose ball.

Space Jam during a break in the game when all of the children were invited onto the floor to dance with the team.

Space Jam throwing out souvenirs.

A fan gets a Wizards ball autographed by Tomahawk.

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