Calling it “a good market that just needs some work,” Robbie Nichols is ready to perform his baseball magic in Niagara Falls.
Nichols, owner of Can-USA Sports along with his wife, Nellie, (photo above) confirmed today that his organization has purchased the Niagara Falls Americans’ franchise of the Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League and has signed on to manage Sal Maglie Stadium, the team’s home ballpark.
Can-USA Sports also owns the Elmira Pioneers and the Batavia Muckdogs, both members of the PGCBL. Nichols, General Manager Marc Witt and their staff have been credited for rejuvenating baseball in Batavia.
“Niagara Falls, I believe, is a good market that just needs some work,” Nichols said. “The gentleman that owned the team last year wasn’t returning and I think our league needs a team there.”
Last year, the team was called the Niagara Power and competed in the PGCBL’s West Division along with Batavia, Elmira, Jamestown, Auburn, Newark and Geneva.
Nichols said Niagara Falls’ leaders have committed more than $2 million for repairs of Sal Maglie Stadium.
“They put in a new turf field. It will be a very good-looking ballpark,” he noted, adding that Michael Gabriele, a former Niagara University baseball player, will be the club’s manager. He said the team already is signing players for the 2024 season.
City and state politicians reportedly are enthusiastic about the team’s prospects with Can-USA Sports on board.
“We are really excited to introduce them to the city of Niagara Falls and the Sal Maglie Stadium,” Mayor Rob Restaino told WIVB-TV.
State Sen. Rob Ortt echoed his sentiments, telling the television station that the Nichols team “chose Niagara Falls because of the stadium, because of the history, because they believe in Niagara Falls.”
“And hopefully that will inspire and tell a lot of other people here that we too should believe in Niagara Falls.”
Nichols announced that Niagara County Community College and D’Youville University baseball teams will play their home games at Sal Maglie Stadium next year. He said he plans to book many other events there, just as he does with Dwyer Stadium in Batavia.
When asked if he was stretching himself too thin – having to juggle the activities of three franchises, Nichols said he will continue to be “stationed” in Batavia once the season starts but will rotate among the three.
“I’ll probably be at 65 baseball games, working, so it will be a busy summer,” he said. “Nellie and I are excited about the new opportunity. It’s a market that needs work, but we’re not afraid of a little work.”
Nichols admitted he’s taking a financial risk as the Niagara Falls team did not attract many fans last year,
“Definitely, it’s a risk because it’s no Batavia. They weren’t drawing the crowds that we were drawing last year,” he said. “Everything’s a risk, but our staff – and how hard we work – I’m confident that we can turn Niagara Falls around.”
File photo: Robbie and Nellie Nichols by Jim Burns.
Chris Bailey of Batavia rolled a flurry of strikes in Genesee Region USBC league action this week, posting a 785 series in the Brighton Securities Tuesday Triples League at Mancuso Bowling Center.
The 42-year-old right-hander recorded games of 239, 279 and 267 on lanes 1-2 for his personal best series ever. He had 11 strikes in the second game and nine more in the third game to raise his average to 210.
Left-hander Nick Johnson popped a 269 game en route to a 740 series on lanes 3-4, raising his average to 224.
Other high scores for the week:
-- Geoff Harloff of Batavia rolled 745 and 758 on consecutive nights in the Toyota of Batavia 4-Man and the County Line Stone Friday Trios leagues at Mancuso's. Batavian Scott Shields led the way on Friday with a 767 series, while Haley Luce of Oakfield posted a 235 game and 649 series in that league.
-- At Rose Garden Bowl in Bergen, Kevin Gray Sr. spun 278--740 and Kevin Gray Jr. had 277--717 in the Thursday Owls League.
GRUSBC YOUTH DOUBLES WINNERS
Teams from Perry Bowling Center and StrikeForce Lanes in Oakfield placed first in the Genesee Region USBC Youth Doubles Tournament on Dec. 9-10 at StrikeForce Lanes.
In Division A (250 combined average and above), Mason Herman and Hunter Clark of Perry led the list of 11 teams with a 1,414 total with handicap. The boys each will earn $100 scholarships and a trophy.
In Division B (249 and under), Jameson Liles and Lukas Leddick of Oakfield led the way with 1,264 with handicap. They, too, will earn $100 scholarships and trophies. Eight teams competed in that division.
Le Roy entered the second quarter in their Friday night Boys Basketball matchup against Dansville down 12-10 and then Aaric Luce got hot, Le Roy took the lead and never looked back.
Luce scored 11 points in the second quarter, hitting a trio of three-pointers to give the Knights a 30-21 halftime lead.
Le Roy went on to win 61-43.
Luce finished with 11 points. Merrit Holly scored 28 points and had 11 rebounds. Matthew Hockey scored nine points and had three assists.
Avery Watterson moving downcourt. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Oakfield lost by two points in closing seconds to Kendall on Friday in a Genesee Regional matchup at the Hornet's Nest, Oakfield.
Kendall stunned the squad opening up the quarter, scoring ten straight to lead 16-11 after the opening quarter.
The Hornets battled back halfway through the second to come within four. Oakfield's Kyler Harkness scored a bucket and got fouled to give momentum and maintain a four-point lead at the half, 29-25.
Both teams exchanged game leads in the third, and then Brent Mancuso scored a buzzer-beater to end the third, 48-45 Hornets.
In the fourth quarter, the lead increased by eight to 58-50, and the Hornets were looking to get away with the game but got into foul trouble. Kendall chipped away with two plays that positioned them with a two-point lead with 18 seconds left in game regulation.
Notre Dame picked upa 61-19 win over Wheatland-Chili in Girls Basketball on Thursday.
The Irish are now 2-1 on the season.
Sofia Falleti led the scoring with a game-high 21 points and eight rebounds.
Luci Zambito scored 12 points, while Emma Sisson and Lucia Fiorentino contributed nine each.
“Tonight was a complete team effort as everyone contributed and got a balanced amount of play time for the win,” Coach Vinny Falleti said. “They executed well tonight and played like a team.”
Jamin MacDonald led the Lady Devils in points and rebounds to victory. Photo by Steve Ognibene
Batavia picked up its fourth win of the season with a 51-19 victory over Franklin/Northeast on Thursday.
Stats for the game:
Karizma Wescott, six points, four rebounds, six steals;
Julia Clark, two points, four rebounds;
Anna Varland, eight points, three rebounds, two assists;
Violet Lopez, five points and six rebounds;
Jaimin Macdonald, 18 points, 16 rebounds, two assists, four steals;
Julia Preston, four points and six rebounds;
Isabella Walsh, seven points, nine rebounds, four assists, four steals;
"We were able to jump out to an early lead by changing up our presses and controlling the tempo," said coach John McCulley. "This team has learned from every game so far. We learned we need to hit the glass better, and they did that tonight."
Many teams have already played four or five games in the 2023/24 season, but the Pembroke Dragons didn't hit the hardwood for the first time until Wednesday night to take on an undefeated Byron-Bergen team led by early season hot shot Braedyn Chambry.
Chambry set a school record in a game this season by scoring 41 points. A couple of times, he's topped 20 points.
On Wednesday, the Dragons held him to nine points, sending the Bees (4-1) to their first defeat, 61-50.
For Pembroke, Tyson Totten scored 31 points, and Sean Pustulka scored nine.
Colin Martin led Byron-Bergen with 16 points. Noah Clare scored nine, and Brody Baubie scored eight.
"I was pleased with how we played defensively tonight, meeting our defensive goal 3/4 quarters," said Pembroke coach Matthew Shay. "I was also pleased with Jayden Bridge and Sam Pfeiffer and how they battled tonight defending Chambry along with our team defense limiting his touches. Roxanne always does a nice job with her squad, and I feel fortunate to come out of there with the win. Obviously, Tyson played really tough and controlled the game for us."
Notre Dame beat Alexander in Girls Basketball on Wednesday, 48-39.
The Irish trailed until the fourth quarter, when they pushed ahead and held on for the win.
Freshman Sofia Falleti led the scoring with 21 points, seven rebounds, and four steals. Senior Emma Sisson dominated with a double-double 17 points, 12 rebounds, three assists and two steals.
“Tonight was a phenomenal win for the Lady Irish over a talented, veteran team, Alexander," said Head Coach Vinny Falleti. ”Our team did not take the lead until the fourth quarter and never gave up. I am so proud of how well they played.”
On the road against Albion, Elba picked up another win in Girls Basketball, 77-33.
Sydney Reilly came on strong again, scoring 29 points. Lydia Ross scored 21 points, and Mariah Ognibene had 10 points with 6 rebounds.
"The team is really playing solid team defense," said coach Charlie Pangrazio. "We got 27 steals tonight as a team. Ross had 12, and Ava Buczek had five."
Five players for the Lancers hit double-figures scoring. Sydney Reily and Lydia Ross each scored 18 points. Mariah Ognibene and Maddie Hall each scored 12. Brea Smith scored 11.
"The team is really playing hard for each other," said Coach Charlie Pangrazio. "Our team defense is improving and will get better every game."
Photo of Stranger Things courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Dominance by a pair of horsemen was center stage on Saturday’s (Dec. 9) closing night card at Batavia Downs as driver Kevin Cummings and trainer Sam Smith put forth a pair of relentless efforts that yielded some very lofty numbers.
Coming into the final night of the meet, Smith was tied with fellow trainer Shawn McDonough for the dash title of the summer and fall stanza and it didn’t take long to see that Smith was ready to serve notice. Smith sent five consecutive stablemembers to the winner’s enclosure to start the night and later added one more to grab a six-pack and claim the training title and the hardware.
Photo of Sam Smith courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Smith trainees won races one through five and included Pepin Coolie (1:57.1, $8.70), Ys Lotus (1:54.1, $3.10), Poets N Pirates (1:58.3, $5.00), Just Don’t Wait (1:56.3, $13.20) and Blogmaster (1:56, $3.50). He then later won with Johnny Boy, who captured the co-featured $15,000 Open I Handicap trot to get to six.
Johnny Boy left from post five and led every step of the race. After setting fractions of :28, :58.1 and 1:27 with no one close enough to challenge him, Johnny Boy turned for home and bolted to a 2-½ length win in 1:56.
It was the 10th win of the year for Johnny Boy ($4.50) who is owned by Mike Torcello, and who also owns Smith’s other five winners.
Smith also had one second from his nine starters to post a stellar .728 UTR for his work on Saturday.
Kevin Cummings drove three of Smith’s winners but also added five others to finish the night with a total of eight wins, which is just one shy of the track record of nine set by Jim Morrill Jr. only three weeks ago.
Besides the aforementioned Pepin Coolie, Poets N Pirates and Johnny Boy, Cummings also won with Remember The Beach (1:55.4, $35.20), Special Prosecutor (1:58, $6.80), McBardle (1:55.2, $2.60), Life Master (1:55, $3.90) and Stranger Things, who won the co-featured $15,000 Open I pace on the night he was named Pacer of the Meet for the second consecutive year.
Stranger Things got away fifth as Virgil N (Drew Monti) led to the half in :56.2. As they passed that station, Alta Engine A (Jim Morrill Jr.) pulled first-over and Stranger Things followed in stride. Virgil N succumbed to the pace at three-quarters allowing Alta Engine A to take the lead heading into the last turn. Stranger Things continued to pace alongside the leader and began to accelerate when they hit the stretch. Stranger Things gained ground with every stride and passed Alta Engine N by a length at the line in 1:53.
It was the third straight win and 10th of the year for Stranger Things ($4.60) who is owned by Kathy Schoeffel, Virginia Schoeffel, and James Reuther and trained by Angelo Nappo.
Cummings also had two seconds among his 15 starts to realize a stout .622 UDR for the night.
The management and staff of Batavia Downs would like to wish all their patrons a very happy holiday season and look forward to welcoming everybody back on Thursday (Jan. 4) when the 2024 winter meet kicks off its 16-date run through Monday (Feb. 26) pending New York State Gaming Commission date approval. Post time for every race day will be 3 p.m.
The Upstate New York Chapter of the United States Harness Writers Association and Batavia Downs have announced the top driver, trainers, and horses from the summer and fall live racing meet who will be honored for their efforts during the Night of Distinction awards presentation that will be held on closing night at Batavia Downs on Saturday (Dec. 9). Post time for the first race is 6 p.m.
Photo of Jim Morrill Jr. courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Jim Morrill Jr. will receive the Driver of the Year Award after he notched his fifth driving title at Batavia Downs. This meet, Morrill had 429 starts with 138 wins, 81 seconds, and 58 thirds that produced earnings of $1,217,071 and a UDR. of .472. Those earnings set a new all-time track record for purses collected in a single meet at Batavia, breaking the mark he set just last year ($1,115,951). Morrill is also only one of two drivers (Kevin Cummings) to ever earn in excess of $1 million at Batavia Downs in a single meet and now both have done it in consecutive years.
Overall in 2023, Morrill has started 1,020 times with 295 wins, 184 seconds and 148 thirds with $2,567,305 in earnings and a UDR of .438. That UDR rating has him sitting in first place among all drivers in North America for percentage performance.
Photo of Sam Smith courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
The Trainer of the Year has yet to be decided as Sam Smith and Shawn McDonough are currently tied after Wednesday’s card with Smith showing 43 wins and McDonough posting 43 wins as well.
To this point in the meet, Smith has 242 starts with 43 wins, 42 seconds, and 35 thirds with earnings of $401,222 and a UTR of .322. For the year he has 648 starts with 109 wins, 94 seconds, and 91 thirds with earnings of $988,750 and a UTR of .296. All these numbers are career highs for Smith.
Photo of Shawn McDonough courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
seconds and 29-thirds that banked $346,692 and provided him a UTR of .275. His totals for all of 2023 showed 598 starts with 96 wins, 83 seconds and 76 thirds, earnings of $764,240 and a UTR of .280.
The top trainer will be named Saturday night as Smith will start 10 horses and McDonough will start eight and it could come down to the 15th race on the card before it’s decided.
Driver Kyle Swift, who was named the track's Rising Star for 2023 earlier this week, will also be presented his award on Saturday.
The top equine athletes will also be lauded and here is the list of award recipients for this meet.
Photo of Stranger Things courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Pacer of the Meet - Stranger Things (Western Terror-Southwind Prairie)
Kathy Schoeffel, Virginia Schoeffel and James Ruether, owners - Angelo Nappo, trainer.
Stranger Things had 17 starts with 6 wins, 1 second and 3 thirds that earned him $52,000 in purses, which was the most won by any pacer competing at the Downs this meet. Stranger Things competed against some of the best pacers on the grounds all season and could be counted on to show up week in and week out. For the entire year, Stranger Things won nine races and $71,590 in purses. Stranger Things will be on hand to close out his meet on Saturday night in the featured 9th race.
Photo of Lougazi courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Trotter of the Meet - Lougazi (Lou’s Legacy-Winning Blade)
Mary Warriner, owner - Ryan Swift, trainer.
Lougazi is a multiple winner of this award and rightfully so, as this 9-year-old war horse has been battling the best at Batavia for six years. In 2023, Lougazi had 16 starts that yielded him four wins, four seconds and four thirds with $54,600 in purses that made him not only the richest trotter of the meet, but the richest horse of either gait overall as of this writing. Overall in 2023 Lougazi had eight wins and $91,295 in earnings.
Photo of Louie The Lilac courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Mare of the Meet - Louie The Lilac (Sweet Lou-Pineapple Hanover)
Michael L. Torcello, owner - Sam Smith, trainer.
Louie The Lilac started the meet in the non-winners classes and worked her way up to the Open I where she found success twice. She has faced some very tough competition from top flight ship-in mares in her 16 starts this year, yet came out on top seven times during the meet while earning $49,105 in purses. For the entire year, Louie The Lilac has won a total of nine races while putting $69,968 in the bank.
Photo of A Black Diamond courtesy of Wendy J. Lowery.
Claimer of the Meet - A Black Diamond (Betterthancheddar-Tricky)
LAV Racing Stable, owner - Russell Bratt, trainer.
Although winning her first race at Batavia in a conditioned event, A Black Diamond made her living in the claiming ranks all year after that and totaled eight wins for the meet, making her the winningest horse of either gait or gender at Batavia Downs this year. And she ended the year stronger than ever, winning five out of her last six starts including four straight in that stretch, earning $48,620 this meet. For all of 2023 A Black Diamond won 13 races and $82,852 in purses.
These awards will be presented trackside in the winner's circle between the races throughout the night.
