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Bath puts an end to Attica's run

By Brian Hillabush

 Attica's historic trip to the Section 5 Class B semifinals - the second ever for the school - came to a quick and crushing end Sunday night at PAETEC Park as powerhouse Bath controlled the game and won 42-0.

It has been decades since Attica has had a playoff run like this one and a great season ended in heartache, and in a blowout.

The Blue Devil turnovers were a problem, but not as much as the inability to stop the Rams rushing attack. Bath had 248 yards on the ground in the first half and 418 in the game.

Bath started the game off with a great drive deep into Attica territory, but coughed the ball up and Doug Beitz recovered the fumble, giving the Blue Devils a big shot early on.

After Andy Ruddock ripped off a 17-yard run, Attica was forced to punt.

This time, Bath capitalized on a big drive.

The Rams marched down the field and quarterback Jake Kuver scrambled for a 17-yard touchdown.

Attica went three-and-out and Andre McCloud had a 36-yard scamper for Bath, but it was only a 7-0 game after the opening 12 minutes of play. That Rams drive ended up with a turnover again as a fumble was recovered by Luke Pariso.

This time, Attica turned the ball over.

Brandon Rollins was pressured and tried to scramble. When he was hit the ball popped out and Bath recovered at the Attica 27-yard line.

An Attica facemask penalty set up an easy touchdown run for Kuver.

The Blue Devils fumbled the ball away on their first offensive play and Bath scooped it up, allowing Kuver to score his third rushing touchdown of the half from 21-yards out.

Trailing 21-0, the biggest blow came midway through the second quarter.

Ruddock, who carried the ball 37 times in last week's win over East Rochester/Gananda, twisted his knee on a rushing attempt and was knocked out of the game.

With him out, Attica failed to move the ball and had to punt it away.

The Blue Devil defense forced a punt, but then the offense fumbled the ball away yet again. This time, McCloud had a 17-yard touchdown run, making the score 28-0 at intermission.

Rollins was also injured late in the half and missed the second half of the game with a bad hand.

Fullback Cody Hutcheson had two touchdown runs in the second half for Bath and finished the day with 185 yards on 24 carries. McCloud had 119 yards on 17 carries and Kuver had 80 yards on 10 attempts.

Nate Berry wound up leading the Blue Devils (5-4) in rushing with 46 yards on 14 carries, with Ruddock gaining 38 on six attempts before going down.

Bath (8-1) will move on to play Geneva (8-1) in the Class B finals next weekend at PAETEC Park.

 

Barker beats Alexander in Pool Play

By Brian Hillabush

Barker avenged a regular season loss to Alexander, winning a Pool Play game 45-20 Saturday.

Greg Brown and Tyler Mason led the Raiders charge as Mason picked up 186 yards and a touchdown and Brown added 134 yards with two scores.

Mason also had three tackles and a pair of fumble recoveries.

Josh Dubois also caught three passes for 40 yards.

There was a blocked punt and two kickoffs returned for TDs for Trojans, who end up 4-5.

Barker is 3-6.

Athoe's interception puts Hornets in finals

By Brian Hillabush

 

Josh Athoe wasn't even supposed to be on the field Saturday afternoon.

The Oakfield-Alabama junior suffered a horrific broken leg at the start of last baseball season and was told he wasn't going to play baseball last year, or football this year.

But midway through the season, he got cleared from the doctor and has been seeing quality time for the Hornets as both a fullback and defensive back.

That alone makes for a great story.

Add in the fact that his interception was the biggest play of the game in O-A's 14-0 win over Pembroke in the Section 5 Class C semifinal game at Aquinas High School, and you've got a blockbuster.

The game was everything you would expect from the Pembroke/Oakfield-Alabama rivalry as both squad's defenses were stingy and scoring opportunities were few and far between.

The Dragons had one realistic chance to put points on the board in the first quarter, but turned the ball over on downs at the O-A 26-yard line.

The Hornets started marching early in the second quarter, but Andrew Wright intercepted an A.J. Kehlenbeck pass at the Pembroke 7.

There was some controversy soon after that as Chris Williams seemed to pull down Pembroke quarterback David Kleckler in the end zone, but officials said Kleckler got the ball away first and ruled it an incomplete pass.

After a short punt, O-A had great field position and set up a 33-yard field goal attempt by Jon Fisher, who set the Section 5 single game record for PATs in last week's 63-34 victory over Dansville. Fisher's kick missed its target and there was still no score.

After Kleckler ripped off a 22-yard run, the Dragons were in business with very little time left before the break. Kleckler tossed one up towards the end zone, but Tim Smith pulled it down for the Hornets with just five seconds left in the half.

Pembroke received the second half kickoff and immediately began moving the ball down the field as Kleckler and Wright hooked up on a 20-yard pass.

But that drive came to a quick stop and wound up giving Oakfield-Alabama its first score of the game.

Kleckler tossed up a pass for Ken Babcock that Athoe snagged and returned about 60 yards for the TD. The extra point failed and O-A led 6-0.

There were three straight possessions without a first down before the third quarter ended.

The Hornets started a drive near the end of the frame and carried a five minute long drive into the fourth quarter before being faced with a fourth down. Fisher had an amazing put that rolled out of bounds at the Pembroke 1-yard line, giving the Dragons nearly impossible field position.

Kleckler found Babcock on a 10-yard pass and then ran for 11 yards, but Smith broke up a pass intended for Babcock on a fourth-and-4 at the Pembroke 29, with about four minutes left.

The Hornets marched down the short field, taking time off the clock, and wound up drawing Pembroke offsides on a fourth-and-2 inside the 5. 

Smith scored on a 1-yard run a few plays later, then ran in the two-point conversion for the final tally.

Pembroke falls to 7-2, with both losses coming at the hands of rival Oakfield-Alabama.

The Hornets are a perfect 9-0 and will be playing top-seeded Le Roy (9-0) in the finals next Friday night at PAETEC Park. 

 

Notre Dame Comes Up Short In Class D Final

By JIM NIGRO

Notre Dame proved to be the sternest test of the year for the Dundee Scotsmen, and who knows what might have been if not for a controversial non-call which resulted in the game’s first score.  In the end, the Fighting Irish gave undefeated Dundee all they could handle before coming up short in overtime. 

  Hard hitting was the order of the day. For most of the first half, Dundee and Notre Dame jockeyed for field position by trading punts. With 5:56 to go in the second quarter, Dundee quarterback Justin Schenk fired a long pass downfield. Dustyn Thompson, the intended receiver, shoved the Notre Dame defensive back with both hands, knocking him off balance. With the defender out of the picture, Thompson caught the ball uncontested and raced to the end zone. No flag was thrown, the point after was good and the half ended 7 - 0.

            In the third quarter Notre Dame’s Justin Shenk (not to be confused with Dundee’s Justin Schenk) blocked a punt and Cam McDonald recovered. The opportunity was squandered by a combination of timely defense and penalties. 

 At the 4:19 mark of the quarter Mike Raplee caught a quick strike from Justin Schenk and turned it into a 51 yard touchdown. After the PAT the Scotsmen led 14 - 0 and at this point Notre Dame began playing inspired defense. At 11:56 Kevin Schildwaster scored on a five yard run. Point after made it 14 – 7. The Scotsmen were stopped yet again by the Fighting Irish and Bochicchio drove his team toward the goal line. This time it was Mike Pratt carrying the ball into the end zone at the 4:10 mark.

 With time running out Dundee moved the ball to the Notre Dame ten but time ran out. Steven Webb scored on the third play of overtime and the Scotsmen went for two. The conversion was good and Dundee was up 22 – 14.

On their final possession, the Fighting Irish made it close, but an illegal procedure penalty nullified a completion inside the five and the resulting first down.         

 Offensively for Notre Dame Mark Schildwaster carried seventeen times for 60 yards. Mike Pratt carried thirteen times, also for 60 yards. Nick Bochicchio was 7 of 12 passing for 46 yards.

 For Dundee Steven Webb carried 14 times for 94 yards and quarterback Dustin Thompson was 7 of 14 passing for 140 yards, 2 Td’s and an interception.

Defensively for Notre Dame, Kevin Francis had 7.5 tackles, 1.5 for a loss and 3 assists. Craig Houseknecht amassed 6.5 tackles and 7 assists. Cam McDonald added 6 tackles and 6 assists.  

 

Le Roy overcomes turnovers, moves on to finals

By Brian Hillabush

 The Le Roy football team turned the ball over five times, missed two field goals and nearly gave up a 21-0 lead, but managed to hold on and beat Letchworth 21-14 in the Section 5 Class C semifinals Saturday at Aquinas High School.

Andrew Alexander was a big reason why, rushing for 336 yards and two touchdowns on 32 carries.

The Oatkan Knights were dominant early with a high-powered rushing attack, but wound up seeing it turn into a game in the second half.

Le Roy marched right down the field and Andrew Alexander had his first touchdown of the game 3 minutes in on a 7-yard run.

After the Indians went three-and-out, Alexander broke off a 30-yard run and eventually scored on a 10-yard rush.

Le Roy had a 14-0 advantage after the opening period of play as Alexander picked up 139 on the ground in the first 12 minutes.

The game appeared to start becoming a blowout in the second quarter when Travis Fenstermaker scored on a 13-yard run. 

Alexander had an interception right before the half and the Oatkan Knights had a 21-0 lead.

The Oatkan Knights fumbled the ball away at the start of the second quarter, but Mike Humphrey saved a score when he picked off a pass.

Le Roy turned the ball over again when freshman Chris Nevinger caught a tipped pass and returned it 20 yards for a TD.
 

The Oatkan Knights coughed the ball up again, with the Indians recovering the ball. Quarterback Travis Tones scored a little bit later on a 1-yard TD run.

Le Roy had a shot to score early in the fourth quarter, but missed a second field goal attempt.

Letchworth failed to drive on its first series of the final frame, but forced Le Roy into a three-and-out.

Letchworth moved the ball into Le Roy territory and came up just short on a third down attempt, setting up a fourth-and-1. Nevinger took the handoff and was stopped inches short, allowing the Oatkan Knights to run out the clock and move on to the finals next week at PAETEC Park.

Tones finished with 103 yards rushing to lead the Indians.

Letchworth falls to 5-3 while Le Roy improves to 9-0.

 

Football fun day

By Brian Hillabush

 Today is the big day.

Notre Dame is playing Dundee at PAETEC Park at Noon in the Class D finals while Le Roy plays Letchworth and Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke do battle in Class C semifinal action at Aquinas High School.

Keep checking in to The Batavian today for results, photos and video from these games.

Pigskins & Whitetails

By JIM NIGRO

It was in the late forties when Walt & Dean Briggs were looking for a place to hunt deer. The brothers happened into a southern tier farmer who was looking to hunt pheasants and a deal was struck. Six decades later, I’m sitting in a tree stand, overlooking what was once the deer hunting realm of Walt and Dean.

               It’s the middle of the first week of bow season and on this day the woodland was damp and wet. It also made for silent footing. For that reason the doe was within twenty-five yards before I was aware of her presence. Trying not to make eye contact, I noticed her tongue was protruding from the side of her mouth. I also thought I heard her grunt. Then I heard a stick snap and the buck bounded from the foliage behind her. His antlers were unique, reaching upward rather than protruding around and outside the ears. I could see why the doe’s tongue was hanging out. Intent on breeding, he had obviously been dogging her for some time. She may have been approaching estrus but was neither ready nor willing at the time. The doe kept moving, the buck right on her tail. They exited the woods, entered a clover field and were soon out of sight.

            The next day was almost balmy by comparison, and the deer activity had slowed considerably. The whitetails may have been absent, but the woodland floor was alive with small rodents. Gray squirrels, red squirrels and chipmunks were running about gathering and stashing hickory nuts. Though they are in the squirrel family, a red squirrel’s behavior is sometimes akin to that of a weasel in that they are small and feisty. This day, on two separate instances, I watched a red squirrel in close pursuit of its larger cousin, the gray squirrel.

            In my fifty-eight years I had never seen so much squirrel activity in one location. It came as no surprise when I was told one of the locals keeps a pot of Brunswick stew simmering on the stove from October 1 to the end of deer season. 

            Nearly five hours after I first climbed into my stand, the coyotes began singing. I’ve heard coyotes before, but always at night. On this day they began their serenade before the sun touched the horizon - and it was in stereo. It sounded like there were at least three howling in unison, maybe more. And they weren’t far away.

             That evening an owl made its presence known. And unlike the coyotes, he was on schedule. With stars illuminating the nighttime sky, the hooter called out from a tree just the other side of the narrow stream which flows past the camp. The owl’s call was always the same, a single note, deep and sonorous. 

              On my first overnight to the cabin thirty-eight years ago, I remember the sound of flying squirrels scurrying across the tin roof at night. Walt, Dean and a few friends built that first cabin way back when, working with the materials available. Since that time the cabin has been enlarged, a deck has been added and a new roof put on. You don’t hear the flying squirrels on the roof any more. I’m sure they are still around and I’d be willing to bet the owl knows where to find them. 

             Walt & Dean have both passed on, but the tradition continues.

            The clearing where the cabin sits is now called Whitetail Hollow. As it was in Walt and Dean’s day it serves as a base camp and the numerous antlers and whitetail mounts adorning the cabins interior will attest to decades of memorable hunts.

            I’ve enjoyed the times spent at the Hollow, but not for the hunting alone. The football tradition here is storied as its deer hunting history.

             The five people who now own the property are also the core group of hunters at the Hollow. And they were, for me, the face of high school football in the sixties.

            The Briggs brothers, Jim and Tom, captained two of Danny Van Detta’s Blue Devil juggernauts. Tom in ’64 and Jimmy in ’68. 

              Buddy Houseknect, who won’t be in camp until mid-November, was recently elected to the Blue Devil Athletic Hall of Fame. Bud captained the ’67 Batavia grid squad.

            Playing our home games on Friday nights, we were able to watch Notre Dame High play on Saturday afternoons. On a Saturday afternoon in the autumn of ’66 I saw a halfback wearing number 23 sprint through defenders for a long touchdown. That is my earliest recollection of Jim “Gramps” Fanara. He captained the Little Irish the following year.

           Bayne Johnson was both quarterback and captain for the Little Irish in 1959. Bayne went on to quarterback the LeRoy town team of the early sixties. Like Jimmy Briggs, Bayne went on to become a highly successful football coach. Both were elected to the Section V Football Hall of Fame.

            Stepping back even further in time, Walt Briggs was no stranger to the grid iron. He too played for Danny Van Detta before going on to excel for the Batavia Essos, a local semi-pro team.

            I’ve barely scratched the surface here. But the next time I’m at the Hollow, We’ll throw another log in the wood burning stove, kick back and talk about one of our favorite topics - Pigskins & Whitetails. 

Class C, semifinals: Letchworth vs. Le Roy

By Brian Hillabush

 Letchworth (6-2) vs. Le Roy (8-0)

1 p.m. Saturday, at Aquinas

Back in 1970, long before anybody that will be on the field Saturday was even thought of, Letchworth and Le Roy played a football game against each other for the first time.

The Indians won that contest, knocking off one of the most storied programs in Section 5. But that was the last time a Letchworth squad beat the Oatkan Knights and here we are in the 2008 Class C semifinals and coach Tim McMullen's boys are looking to shock the world.

These two teams both play in Livingston Conference Division II and Le Roy has without a doubt been the class of the division. The Oatkan Knights won this year's regular season game 41-25 because of big games by quarterback Travis Fenstermaker and receiver Mike Humphrey.

That duo has been playing some amazing football this season.

Fenstermaker has completed 59-of-98 attempts for 970 yards with 18 touchdowns compared to just two interceptions, while Humphrey has caught 36 passes for 593 yards and 11 scores.

Fenstermaker - who is 19-1 as a starter in his career - is also a powerful rusher, gaining 348 yards with three touchdowns on 72 attempts.

But the running game is typically left in the hands of Andrew Alexander.

The senior has so far gained 1,035 yards with 11 touchdowns on 138 carries. Fullback Jon Casper has scored 10 touchdowns with 219 yards and Tyrone Wyckoff has pitched in 246 yards.

Le Roy has a high powered offense, but is a great defensive team as well, led by John Scheuing's 42 tackles. Jordan Casper has 35 and Humphrey has made 30 stops with five interceptions.

That defense will be keeping an eye on Letchworth quarterback Travis Tones, who is the top weapon for the Indians.

Tones is a veteran player that can throw the ball, but is most effective as a runner.

He had three rushing touchdown and one passing in Letchworth's 43-7 thumping of Marcus Whitman in the opening round last week.

Freshman running back Chris Nevinger keeps getting better every week as the Indians keep getting better as well. Letchworth has not lost since Caledonia-Mumford beat them in Week 4.

Le Roy is third in the state while the Indians get an honorable mention.

(pictures borrowed from www.leroyfootball.com)

 

Pool Play previews

By Brian Hillabush

 Barker (1-6) at Alexander (4-4)

2:30 p.m. Saturday

The Trojans are looking to end the year on a positive note. They lost to Canisteo-Greenwood in the opening round of the playoffs before beating Red Jacket 31-20 last weekend. Jay Schafer leads the squad with 779 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground. The Raiders are led by Greg Brown.

 

Bolivar-Richburg (3-5) at Elba/Byron-Bergen (3-4)

1:30 p.m. Saturday

The Lancers won for the second consecutive week, beating Warsaw 19-12 in a Pool Play game. Zach Green has been putting up big numbers all year and they've gotten insane in recent weeks. He ran for 205 yards with three touchdowns last week.

Class D, finals: Notre Dame vs. Dundee

By Brian Hillabush

 Notre Dame (6-2) vs. Dundee (8-0)

Noon, Saturday, at PAETEC Park

The Notre Dame football team has been on a roll, cruising through the opening two rounds of the playoffs by a combined score of 111-6.

The Fighting Irish blasted DeSales 55-6 in the first round and then thrashed Perry 56-0 last week. Everything is clicking.

The defense has only allowed a total of 142 yards rushing in two games and the Yellowjackets only had one serious chance to score in the semifinals.

Craig Houseknecht, Rick Lair and the rest of the defense is playing near-perfect football; and they are going to have to keep that up to avenge last year's 18-13 loss in the semifinals at the hands of Dundee.

The Scotsmen have put 385 points on the scoreboard this season and have crushed some teams, even giving Red Jacket an 89-6 beat-down in Week 5.

The offense is led by junior running back Steve Webb, who earned Offensive Player of the Week in a 53-14 win over Marcus Whitman, when he rushed for 190 yards and a pair of touchdowns.

Dundee will throw the ball a little and does have a few other options, but Webb is the go-to guy.

Notre Dame's offense has turned from good to great in recent weeks and will also face a stiff challenge because the Scotsmen have only given up 45 points this season. Marcus Whitman is the only team to score over 10 points in a game this season against them and Dundee is coming off a 49-0 blowout of Geneseo.

The Fighting Irish have a ton of team speed and last week it was Mike Pratt to take advantage of the East Rochester turf, picking up 109 yards with three touchdowns. He is now at 615 yards on the season.

Kevin Schildwaster is a speedster in the backfield and has 675 yards and 10 touchdowns.

The passing game will most likely be needed because of Dundee's stout defense, and Notre Dame has had little difficulties with that.

Nick Bochicchio threw two more touchdown passes last week, even though there was little need to throw the football. His top target is always going to be Kevin Francis.

Francis had a nice punt return last week but is the biggest threat on the turf. It is only a matter of time before he gets some space on a kick return, punt return or short reception and he's going to make a big play. There aren't many players as fast as Francis playing football in the smaller schools in Section 5.

Neither team lacks experience as Dundee has a bunch of players that return after going to the sectional finals last season and Notre Dame has plenty of talent that were sophomores on the 2006 sectional championship squad.

Dundee is sixth in the state in Class D and the Fighting Irish debut at No. 15 this week.

 

Class B, semifinals: Attica vs. Bath

By Brian Hillabush

 Attica (5-3) vs. Bath (7-1)

6 p.m. Sunday, at PAETEC Park

Not many people thought Attica stood a chance against East Rochester/Gananda last weekend in the opening round of the Class B playoffs.

After all, the Blue Devils have never had success in the playoffs.

But Jeff Cusmano and his coaching staff came up with the perfect plan to keep the ball out of Neil Dotterer's hands and shocked Section 5 with an 18-0 win over East Rochester/Gananda.

That game was the Andy Ruddock show as the senior pounded the ball 37 times for 164 yards and his Blue Devils easily won the time of possession battle.

Ruddock has carried the ball 141 times for 1,098 yards and 10 touchdowns this season and the GR all-star has defined the term featured back. He will get relief on occasion from Nate Berry, who has picked up 272 yards on 30 attempts. Luke Pariso (144 yards) and Dave Jennings (130) are both over 100 yards rushing as well.

The reason Ruddock had so many carries last week was because of the strategy to keep the ball away from the high-powered ER/Gananda passing offense.

The Blue Devils are facing a totally different type of squad this week.

Running back Andre McCloud has almost 4,000 career rushing yards and has so far gained 1,118 yards and scored 17 touchdowns this season. He gained 1,489 yards with an incredible 28 TDs as a junior.

A big-physical offensive line opens holes for a pair of other backs other than McCloud. Cody Hutcheson has 100 carries for 720 yards and nine scores with quarterback Jake Kuver adding 415 yards and three TDs.

Kuver is not a huge passer, but has hit on 31-of-64 attempts for 4-2 yards and three touchdowns. Two have gone to McCloud, who has seven receptions for 196 yards.

Oh yeah, and McCloud has also tossed a touchdown pass, going 1-for-1 passing for 62 yards. That halfback option play could be in the playbook.

Attica stresses defense first and has had two Defensive Players of the Week this season. Kevin Gallinger received the honor in Week 6 and Jennings won the award this past week. Gallinger has 54 tackles and Jennings has 48, with the squad being led by Pariso's 64 tackles and three fumble recoveries.

They will have their hands full this week.

Bath's defense is also pretty good as junior T.C. Carroll has 87 tackles and is second all-time in the school's history for career tackles.

That unit will obviously be looking to slow Ruddock so that quarterback Brandon Rollins is forced to beat them. Rollins has completed 57-of-89 attempts for 802 yards with 13 touchdowns and eight interceptions.

His main target is Shawn Dupuis, who has caught 28 balls for 553 yards and eight TDs.

Bath is ranked ninth in the state for Class B while Attica has not received any votes.

 

Class C, semifinals: Pembroke vs. Oakfield-Alabama

By Brian Hillabush

 Pembroke (7-1) vs. Oakfield-Alabama (8-0)

4 p.m. Saturday, at Aquinas

Here we go again.

Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke is the best Genesee Region League rivalry and the buildup for the regular season game was huge, the game was even better than could be imagined and now the two powerhouse squads are matching up in the Section 5 Class C semifinals.

Tim Smith scored a late touchdown and Brad Riner ran in a two-point conversion as the Hornets won the regular season contest 25-24 in Week 6, giving fans the best show in the rivalry game's history.

O-A went on to beat Holley in the final week of the regular season and won the league title outright, going undefeated for the first time since 1986. Pembroke beat Attica in the final week of the season and finished one point away from the title and a perfect season.

The Hornets thumped Dansville 63-34 in the opening round of the playoffs and the Dragons had a big second half to beat Bishop Kearney 32-12. Now the scene shifts to Rochester, as the game will be played on the turf at Aquinas High School.

Smith and Riner were the stars in the first game and will be the focal point of the O-A offense yet again as the two GR all-stars are having monster seasons.

Smith has 112 rushing attempts for 971 yards and 15 touchdowns while Riner has tallied 817 yards and 12 scores on 108 rushes. Joe Natalizia, Jason Stanley and Josh Athoe will also see the ball.

The Hornets didn't have to throw the ball much in the regular season game, but if Pembroke is successful in stuffing the run, look for A.J. Kehlenbeck to put the ball in the air. The quarterback has a great arm but has had not had to use it much this year because of O-A's run-first approach.

Kehlenbeck has thrown to seven different receivers while completing 18-of-41 attempts for 271 yards and six touchdowns.

Some people might give Pembroke's offense the advantage because of the playing surface with speedster Andrew Wright and cutting-runner Mike Dibble.

Wright can do it all and has excelled on special teams, running the ball and catching it. He is looking forward to running on turf and adding to his 896 rushing yards with 10 touchdowns and 340-plus receiving yards with three scores.

Dibble is over 800 yards rushing with 10 touchdowns.

Quarterback David Kleckler and tight end Ken Babcock are a great passing duo, with Kleckler completing 33-of-62 attempts for 733 yards and 11 scores.

The Dragons are dealing with some injury issues, most notably starting center Josh Hanel, who is out for the game. O-A has some minor injury issues, but comes in mostly healthy.

Oakfield-Alabama is ranked eighth in the state while Pembroke comes in at No. 17.

 

 

Attica girls edge Waterloo

By Brian Hillabush

You would expect a game between a fourth and fifth seeded team to be close. That was the case in the Section 5 Class B playoffs Wednesday.

Katie Boxler led No. 4 Attica to a 25-18, 23-25, 24-26, 25-22, 25-19 victory over No. 5 Waterloo in quarterfinals action.

Boxler had 19 kills, nine aces and 16 assists in the marathon game as the Blue Devils improve to 15-5.

Margret Lefleur pitched in 11 kills and eight digs.

Waterloo ends up 10-10. 

Le Roy and Byron-Bergen both cruised to easy three set victories while Batavia was knocked out of the Class BB playoffs by Aquinas 27-25, 22-25, 21-25, 25-16, 23-25.

You can see the results of all of today's sectional volleyball action here.

Former Muckdogs are world champions

By Brian Hillabush

Four former Batavia Muckdogs just earned World Series rings.

The Philadelphia Phillies just beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 to win the World Series 4 games to 1, claiming the first team title in 28 years.

Philadelphia used to be the parent club of the Muckdogs before St. Louis took over two years ago and some players on the team got their professional baseball start in Batavia.

First baseman Ryan Howard hit six homers in Batavia, playing 48 games in 2001. Second baseman Chase Utley batted .307 while playing 40 games in 2000.

Starting pitcher J.A. Happ went 1-2 in 11 starts for Batavia in 2004 and reliever Ryan Madson had a 5-5 record in 15 starts in 1999.

A sad loss for the Section 5 football family

By Brian Hillabush

If you follow football in Livingston County, or are paying attention to the Section 5 Class B playoffs, the name Dillen McCormick might have been one you would have seen.

The senior is on the Hornell roster where he is listed as a 5-foot-10, 180-pound tight end and linebacker. He wasn't a starting player, but he was a member of the Red Raiders.

McCormick registered two tackles as a junior, but had not played much this year as he was forced to miss time with a serious knee injury.

As his team prepares for its 3 p.m. Class B semifinal battle with Geneva this Sunday at PAETEC Park, it has been handed some of the most difficult news a team could ever expect.

The young man passed away Monday afternoon The reasons are unclear, and nothing has been announced to the press, but it is a sad time for the Hornell community, the football team and all of Section 5.

Here is the lone report coming out in the Hornell Tribune about the situation.

As fans settle in to watch the great semifinal and finals action this weekend on the field, many will be putting these games into proper perspective as the tragic death of a young athlete will cast a shadow over the Class B tournament.

Hornell coach Gene Mastin asked his team if they wanted to forfeit the game this week or play, and all of his players decided to keep going and honor his memory playing the game they played with McCormick since they were probably children.

The winner of the Hornell/Geneva game will be playing the winner of the Bath/Attica game (Sunday, 6 p.m. at PAETEC Park) the following weekend.

 

Genesee Region League boys soccer all-stars

By Brian Hillabush

The Wheatland-Chili boys soccer team dominated the Genesee Region League, going 9-1, and also finished 16-3 overall and captured the league title.

For that, the Wildcats were rewarded with the Coach of the Year, Player of the Year and three first-team Genesee Region League all-star selections.

Coach of the Year Mike Skivington's squad finished three games ahead of Byron-Bergen in the GR standings.

Senior Garhett Varin easily won the league scoring title with 24 goals, he was tied for tops in assists with 10 and had a combined 58 points. He was an easy choice for the all-star team and Player of the Year.

Keeper Tony Pipitone had a goals against average of just .744 and gave up just 14 goals in 1,525 minutes played

Defender Steve Abbey also is an all-star from Wheatland-Chili.

Byron-Bergen also had three all-stars, led by senior Jordan Kiessling. Kiessling had a goal and an assist as a midfielder.

Junior Casey Longhini led the Bees in scoring with 10 goals and seven helpers for 27 total points.

Junior Dakota Longhini was recognized after scoring twice and dishing out eight assists.

Senior Jason Gaylord had five goals with two assists, for 12 points to lead the contingent of three Kendall players on the all-star squad.

Sophomore Brandon Moore had an assist and makes the team as well as junior Paul Brightly, who scored three goals and dished out three assists.

Lyndonville junior Joe Ianni was fourth in the league in scoring with 12 goals, four assists and 28 points and leads the group of three Tiger all-stars.

Aaron O'Connor had five goals and three helpers with Tyler Silversmith handing out two assists as a defender.

Four Holley players are all-stars.

Sophomore Nick Troup is going to have a great career as he already finished third in the GR in scoring with 11 goals, nine helpers and 31 total points.

Fellow sophomore Brandon Comden had 12 goals, three assists and 27 points with seniors Colton Orbaker scoring four goals with four assists and defender Eric Spychalski scoring once while passing off for three assists.

Senior forward Andy Hagen wound up second in the league in scoring with 16 goals, seven assists and 39 points to lead a pair of Attica players on the squad.

Brandon Reiner - a junior - had eight goals and four assists and is the other Blue Devil.

The second-team selections are:

Lyndonville - Jesse Follman, Aaron O'Connor.

Attica - Joe Wolak, Brandon Storch.

Kendall - Colt Tooley, Joel Mendoza.

Wheatland-Chili - Vince Rubert, Schuyler Johnston, Alex Stryker.

Byron-Bergen - Kody Weinert, Justin Barrett, Tyler Sass, Kevin Rickard.

Holley - Greg Knapp, Eddie Bower, Tim Pratt, Caleb Orbaker.

 

Girls volleyball playoffs getting started

By Brian Hillabush

 The Genesee Region League is typically very strong in volleyball, with Byron-Bergen, Notre Dame and Attica as top squads almost every year.

Those teams, a couple of others in the GR as well as Le Roy and Batavia are all kicking off the playoffs on Wednesday.

Byron-Bergen is 19-1, has won six consecutive sectional championships and will get the top seed in Class C, hosting No. 8 Marion in the first round at 6:30 p.m. 

Le Roy earned the top seed in Class CC with a 9-7 record and will host No 8 Sodus at 5 p.m.

Pembroke is a seventh seed and will be playing Mynderse at Victor at 5.

Batavia is a fourth seed and hosting No. 5 Aquinas at 6 p.m. Wednesday in Class BB with No. 4 Attica will host No. 5 Waterloo at 7 in Class B.

Notre Dame is a third seed - earning a bye - in Class D and is hosting either Houghton or Romulus at 6 p.m. on Thursday.

Alexander was a ninth seed in Class DD and was at Perry Tuesday night, but got knocked out in the first round, 20-25, 25-19, 25-19, 26-16.

Chelsea Turcer had seven kills and seven aces for Alexander.

5 local teams still alive

By Brian Hillabush

 I'll be visiting the five teams that are still playing in the Section 5 playoffs this week, doing video previews as well as my written ones. They will all be on The Batavian on Thursday to help fans get ready for the games.

Notre Dame will be playing Dundee on Saturday at  noon at PAETEC Park in the Class D finals.

Le Roy will play Letchworth at 1 p.m. with Pembroke vs. Oakfield-Alabama to follow at Aquinas in the Class C semifinals on Saturday.

Then Attica will play Bath at 6 p.m. Sunday at PAETEC in a Class B semifinal game.

I attended two practices today and will visit the other three teams on Wednesday and Thursday. You will get the most in-depth previews for local teams as we go deeper into the playoffs here at The Batavian.

I will also be covering games this weekend as well as doing a radio preview and guest appearance during the game on WVIN for the Attica/Bath game on Sunday. You will be able to hear the broadcast locally at www.localsportsedge.com. 

WBTA will also be broadcasting local games this weekend. The Notre Dame/Dundee game can be heard on 1490 AM or at www.wbta1490.com, and then at the conclusion of that game, Le Roy/Letchworth will be picked up. WBTA will stay on the air to cover the Oakfield-Alabama/Pembroke contest.

You will be able to see video highlights, a game story and photos of each game as soon as possible on The Batavian as well.

 

GR gets four Players of the Week

By Brian Hillabush

 With four teams still alive in the Section 5 playoffs, the Genesee Region League is having a heck of a postseason.

That was shown this week as four league players earned Player of the Week honors.

Notre Dame thumped Perry 56-0 in the Class D semifinals and got both the offensive and defensive POY.

Running back Mike Pratt rushed the ball nine times for 109 yards and three touchdowns and gets the offensive honor. Pratt is a 5-foot-9, 180-pound sophomore that led the Fighting Irish as the team rushed for 259 yards in the contest.

6-foot-1, 225-pound senior linebacker Craig Houseknecht had a sack on the opening Perry possession and finished the game with six solo tackles, six assists, the sack, a forced fumble and 1 1/2 tackles for losses of 26 yards to earn the defensive honor.

Pembroke beat Bishop Kearney 32-12 and 6-foot-5, 220-pound defensive end Ken Babcock was named the defensive POY. He had eight solo tackles, seven assists and knocked down a pass in the victory. Babcock also caught a touchdown pass in the win.

Attica's Dave Jennings was key in a historic 18-0 victory over East Rochester/Gananda this past weekend.

The 5-foot-10, 205-pound linebacker had nine tackles, a sack and an interception in the victory as the Blue Devils won a sectional football game for the second time ever.

Attica will be playing Bath in a semifinal game on Sunday while Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke play each other in the semifinals on Saturday. Notre Dame gets to try to avenge last season's loss to Dundee in the finals on Saturday as well.

Snub alert: Oakfield-Alabama's Tim Smith rushed for 196 yards, had 331 all-purpose yards and scored six touchdowns in a 63-34 win over Dansville in a Class C game. How did he not get recognized?

 

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