Batavia HS

The first year that seniors at Batavia High School could paint personalized parking spaces was a big success, representatives of the Class of 2018 told school board members at Tuesday's meeting.

They recommended the board approve the same project for the class of 2019.

Not only were there no problems, the project raised $795 for the senior class.

“That’s probably one of the easiest fundraisers ever,” said Senior Mikey Lullo.

There were 35 spaces painted and 19 spots reserved by students.

Several faculty members wanted to get in on the act, offering as much as $200 to have their parking spaces painted by a student, but since that wasn't part of the agreement the senior class had with the board, the class declined to sell those services.

Mikey said that was one of several recommendations this year's class had for the Board of Education.

First, the biggest recommendation was that the Class of 2019 be allowed to move forward with the same program.

The students also recommended that seniors be given a whole week to get their spots painted. Two days isn't enough time when students have sports activities starting up that time of year, family vacations wrapping up, and jobs. Some students found it hard to fit in painting on just a Thursday and Friday. That meant some of them painted over the weekend, which technically was against the rules, but Lullo said the board should consider that there were no problems as a result and all of the students (many accompanied by parents) were respectful.

The few problems encountered by the students were minor, the students said. Lauren Leone said one time some garbage got left behind but other students took care of it right away. There was also an incident after the first snowfall where one student parked in another student's spot, but that was quickly resolved. Nobody purposefully caused a problem with another student over parking.

The project was also successful, Mickey said, because it helped raise senior class spirit.

"It was so great," she said. "Even though I didn’t paint a parking spot, I was just there helping other people, and it was so relaxing, just getting to paint and be with each other before senior year started."

Photo: Amand Patel, Lauren Leone, Mikey Lullo, and Kiara Cherry.

Press release:

Following on the heels of a successful art show at GO ART! last month, a few employees/moms at Batavia High School (who will be remaining anonymous) decided that they wanted to make sure that the rest of Eian Windham's artwork sold out.  

Eian has had a challenging couple of years and these moms felt that this show/sale, located in the BHS library, would bring exposure to his outstanding photography and would give him the happiness that he deserves.  

These BHS employees who refer to themselves as  Moms4Good only needed to ask the BHS administration once and they were supportive and completely on board!

The public is invited to stop into BHS  anytime during the next two weeks to purchase some really spectacular photography. All of it is mounted and some are framed but all is reasonably priced and would be a perfect holiday gift!  

This Thursday, Dec. 14th, the public is also invited to a double treat. The BHS Winter concert, starting at 7 p.m. will be followed by a reception and art sale.

"Most of the prints are under $20 and they are really gorgeous," says one of the organizers. 

The event will be held in the library all day on the 14th, but the reception will be after the concert at 8:30 p.m..  The concert begins at 7 p.m., but arrive early for the best parking and seating.

Tom Redband, an entrepreneurship teacher at the high school, has opened this opportunity up to his students and they have agreed to offer their services to set up, collect money and even order prints after they are sold out. 

"What a great way to start off this magical holiday season with some beautiful music and artwork to benefit a great young man," says an organizer.

Batavia High School's Drama Club performs "Sally Cotter and the Censored Stone," a parody by Dean O'Carroll, next weekend.

Showtimes are 7:30 p.m., Dec. 1 and 2, and 2 p.m. on Dec. 3.

Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for students and seniors. Tickets are available at the door.

The cast:

• Sally Cotter, Eryn Dunn
• Sally's Mother, Tanner Kolb
• Reubenon Ryebread, Cameron Bontrager
• 1st Censor, Madeline Keenan
• 2nd Censor, Alicia Scroger
• Dave, Pierce Corbelli
• Harmonica, Elise Hoerbelt
• Ursa Malaise, Parise Ricks
• Ed Molar, James Weatherbee
• Professor Athena McDonaldsa, Tanner Kolb
• Professor Shiftia Shape, Aubrey Towner
• Professor Albatross Underdrawers, Evan Bellavia
• Aaron A. Ardvarkovich, Gavin Tucker
• Shea'mon Canavan, AT Thatcher
• Navel Longfellow, Samuel Rigerman
• Polly Pixie, Emily Kilner
• Poppy Pixie, Riley MacDonough
• London Liverwurst, Lillian Whiting
• Val Crabby, Courtney Lougheed
• Gerry Boyle, Oliver Havens
• Freesia Chestnut, Jordyn Mott
• Kitty Ball, Macayla Burke
• Chloe Crane, Claire Griffith-Sarkis
• Patty Petronia, Laura Lepkowski
• Hedgerow the Owl, Phoebe Fryer

More than 500 music students from the eight-county region were at Batavia High School today for the NYSSMA Zone 2 Area All-State Music Festival.

NYSSMA is the New York State School Music Association.

There were performances by the orchestra, concert band, treble choir, and mixed choir.

Participating local students were:

Alexander: Nicholas Allen, Cayna Bliss, Carson Daley, Kathleen Nolan, Eric Stroud.

Batavia: Margaret Andersen, Cameron Bontrager, Eryn Dunn, Lydia Geiger, Elise Hoerbelt, Madison Hoerbelt, Karissa Kesler, Mary Murphy, Adeena Riedel.

Byron-Bergen: Stephanie Buell.

Le Roy: Margaux Carmel, Katie Dessert, Caleb McGee, Megan Privatera, Alex Wynn.

Notre Dame: Sam Bowman.

Oakfield-Alabama: Jules Hoepting, Justina Pruski, Lauren Reding.

Pembroke: Eli Fox.

Batavia High Schoold kicked off its monthly "Lunch with a Pro" series today, with the first career-minded guests coming from the Batavia PD.

Lunch with a Pro, organized by Anita Strollo, is a chance for high school students to learn firsthand from people in the community about different career opportunities.

Today, students who took time out during their lunch period, enjoyed pizza while touring the department's emergency response vehicle and talking with officers about what it takes to become a police officer and what it's like once you make it.

A student at Batavia High School has contracted viral meningitis, a contagious but not fatal virus, according to Chris Dailey, superintendent of Batavia City School District.

Dailey informed parents in the school district through a memo released today.

Here's Dailey's statement:

This is to inform you that a Batavia High School student has been diagnosed with viral meningitis. It is caused by a virus and is not fatal. It can be caused by any one of the common cold or intestinal viruses. The difference is, it affects the lining of your spinal cord and brain. It is spread by person-to-person contact, or a cough, just as the common cold virus is.

The symptoms of meningitis can be fever, stiff neck and tiredness, along with a sore throat, cough or intestinal symptoms.

If your child complains of any of these symptoms, he/she should follow-up with their own physician.

The best way to keep healthy is to wash your hands regularly and not share drinking bottles.

St. Mary’s football squad left Woodward Field a bit crushed on Friday the 13th after the Blue Devils steamrolled the visitors on their way to a school-record 69 points in a game.

Batavia won its final regular season match 69-20.

On the record-setting night, Batavia's kicker Alec Wagner also put his name in the books by going nine for 10 on extra point attempts and finishing the regular season with 30. The previous school record was 28.

The team's total point record stood for 55 years. 

Junior Ray Leach carried the ball 15 times for 106 yards for five touchdowns. He also scored on a 22-yard interception. Senior Chandler Baker was four for four passing, 75 total yards, and one touchdown. He scored a touchdown on a 45-yard punt return and 70-yard kickoff return.

Andrew Francis scored a touchdown on a 24-yard pass from Baker.

Batavia’s Defensive stats: John Kindig had six tackles, three for a loss, one sack, and one fumble recovery. Nick Neid made 11 tackles, two for a loss. Anthony Ray made four tackles, all for a loss. Josh Barber had seven tackles, three for a loss. Alex Rood made four tackles, one for a loss, two sacks and one interception.

St. Mary’s scoring summary: D’Jae Terry scored two touchdowns, one of them on an 85-yard kickoff return and a 75-yard run from the line of scrimmage. Quarterback J’Shawn Collins scored on a 57-yard run. St. Mary's scored only two points on three extra point attempts.

To view or purchase photos, click here: http://steveognibenephotography.zenfolio.com/p532489889

Seniors at Batavia High School participated in Make a Difference Day by volunteering at various agencies throughout the county this morning.

Among the 20 agencies where students volunteered were the Arc of Genesee Orleans, Batavia Business Improvement District (BID), Batavia Housing Authority, Batavia Peace Garden, Crossroads House, Habitat for Humanity, the VA, YMCA and YWCA.

Rain changed the nature of many activities and cut short outdoor activities.

Above, students who volunteered at the VA, instead of doing grounds cleanup, helped around the maintenance shop, including assisting in the repair of a snowplow blade. Pictured are Ray Mlodozeniec, John Lidiaga, Tapanga Wheaton, Madison Schady and J.T. Turnbull.

Below, photos of students picking up litter on Liberty Street as part of their volunteer effort for the BID.

Press release:

Batavia High School seniors will participate in the 19th annual Make a Difference Day community service project Oct. 11 in various nonprofit agencies throughout the community.

Participating agencies include: All Babies Cherished, Arc of Genesee Orleans, Batavia Agri-Business Child Development, Batavia Business Improvement District, Batavia Housing Authority, Batavia Peace Garden, City of Batavia Youth Bureau, Crossroads House, Genesee County Parks, Genesee County Youth Bureau, Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council, Habitat for Humanity, Holland Land Office Museum, NYS Veterans Home, Premier Genesee, Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation, United Memorial Medical Center, VA WNY Healthcare System of Batavia, YMCA, YWCA Children’s Center, YWCA of Genesee County.  

Batavia City Schools is dedicated to helping their more than 170 seniors learn and develop the importance of giving back to their own community while helping to foster civic responsibility. This is an integral part of their Batavia High School academic curriculum, and is a component of their graduation requirements.

When this year's seniors at Batavia High School are handed their diplomas this spring, they will see a familiar face, a face they've known since they were kindergarteners in the City School District -- Paul Kesler.

This winter, Kesler will end a 13-year run as the principal of John Kennedy School and become principal of Batavia High School. He was appointed to the new position tonight by the school board. He begins his new position Dec. 22, the first day of Winter Break.

His 16-year-old daughter, now a sophomore at BHS, but also once a student at JK, also approved of the move.

"I wasn't sure how she would react but she got a big smile on her face and she said, 'Dad, kids that went to John Kennedy, they still talk about John Kennedy. They really respect you.' So when your own daughter feels like it's a good thing, that's pretty confirming."

Kesler also got a ringing endorsement from Superintendent Chris Dailey during the board meeting. 

"You have a lot of people behind you," Dailey said. "You’re going to do great things. Your dedication to your community and your school is outstanding. We can only expect great results, so no pressure. But, hey, you do the great things you do here at John Kennedy at the high school, the high school will have the same kind of results we’ve seen here."

Kesler, originally from Utica, started his teaching career in Rochester. He was a kindergarten teacher, a second-grade teacher, a reading specialist and an instructional coach for three years before moving to Batavia.

He has a daughter who is a junior at Boston University, two children attending BHS, and a child who is a student at JK.

Two weeks ago, after setting aside all the prior principal applicants, the district hired Dennis Kenney as interim principal. His contract runs through Dec. 21.

Dailey said when the initial search for a new principal didn't turn up the perfect match, he thought about the criteria the district sought in a candidate and realized they already had the perfect candidate in the district with Kesler.

One hallmark of Kesler's oversight of JK is his promotion of STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math) and he's looking forward to continuing that effort at the high school level.

"I think you know we always have the instructional challenges of a small city district, especially in the performance of some economically disadvantaged students, particularly in the areas STEAM," Kesler said. "Those are some of the areas that are a challenge for any small city district. I'm excited about having that connection between what we do in the elementary school all the way up through high school."

There's really only one downside to moving to BHS, Kesler said -- leaving behind the staff and faculty at John Kennedy.

"I don't cry much but I was very close today as I told staff after school," Kesler said. These are just fantastic people. You know, they've been part of my family. My whole experience in 13 years in Batavia has been here. That's going to be the struggle, saying goodbye."

Thursday night was open house for Batavia High School, with teachers on hand to provide parents information on homework, assignments, chances for college credit, classroom expectations, and to answer questions and show off students' work.

Write up and photos submitted by Carolyn DellaPenna.

Last night the Batavia Varsity girls and boys senior recognition game was held at Van Detta Stadium against Greece-Odyssey.

After double overtime, the girls game ended in a 2-2 tie with goals made by #6 Ari Brown & #13 Bri Bromley. All players stepped up their game and goalkeeper Bri Janes made multiple saves to hold Greece-Odyssey to just two goals.

Seniors Recognized included:
   #2 Rachel DeNise
   #3 Claire Zickl
   #7 Alaina Bowman
   #9 Sophie Dinehart
  #11 Brigid McCormack
   #14 Bri Janes
   # 32 Kelsey Kasmarek

Last Varsity home games at Batavia High School are Monday, Oct. 2, against Wayland-Cohocton at 5 p.m. and Thursday, Oct. 5, against Honeoye Falls-Lima at 4:30 p.m.

The boys won 1-0 with a goal made by Andrés Mateos in the 18th minute of the game. Nathan Hamilton had four shots on goal. Due to a strong defense by seniors Brandon Bradley, Stephen Gilebarto, Kyler Preston, and Jake Stokes, Greece-Odyssey was held to no goals. This is the second shutout for goalkeeper Jake Stokes.

Seniors recognized included:
  #1 Jake Stokes
  #4 Nathan Hamilton
  #7 Brandon Bradley
  #8 Cameron Hardy
  #9 Gordie Montgomery
  #11 Peter Fallon
  #12 Andrew Freeman
  #13 Julio Vazquez
  #14 Charlie Beaver
  #17 Kyler Preston
  #20 Stephen Gilebarto

Last Varsity home game at Batavia High School is Friday, Oct. 13, against Pembroke at 4:30 p.m.

The 16th annual Batavia Blue Devil Athletic Hall of Fame Dinner is this Saturday at Terry Hills.

Social hour begins at 5 p.m. Dinner is at 6 p.m. Tickets are $30 per person.

A friend of the family of Lorne Brudz has set up a fundraising page to assist them following the death last week of the Batavia High School senior.

Ken Schady said his intention is "help the family with expenses, as no one plans to bury their own children and therefore have no funds put aside for such an event."

He set the fundraising page on Free Funder.

"I chose Free Funder because Go Fund Me takes 5 percent of the proceeds and I wanted to get as much money as possible to the family," he said.

The funds are designated for Lorne's mother, Colleen Brudz.

Lorne's funeral services are today.

To get to the fundraising page, click here.

Lorne R. Brudz, the 18-year-old Batavia High School student who died Tuesday, will be lain to rest Tuesday following a Mass of Christian Burial at St. Maximilian Kolbe Parish, 8656 Church St., East Pembroke.

His final resting place will be St. Vincent's Cemetery in Attica.

Funeral arrangements are being handled by Gilmartin Funeral Home and calling hours for family and friends is Monday from 2 to 4 p.m. and 7 to 9 p.m., 329-333 W. Main St., Batavia.

Lorne loved animals and was aspiring to become a Veterinarian Technician. He was an avid reader, loved art, sketching and drawing and enjoyed playing Xbox online with his friends.

His family said Lorne will be remembered for his big heart and his willingness to help anyone who needed it.

Full obituary.

As of this morning, Dennis Kenney is the new interim principal at Batavia High School.

Kenney fills the vacancy left when Scott Wilson accepted a position in Churchville.

The school district reviewed several candidates to replace Wilson on a permanent basis but has decided to extend the search.

Kenney will serve as principal until Dec. 22.  

The school board approved his contract in executive session at the start of last night's meeting.

A resident of Warsaw, Kenney has 40 years in education and recently retired as a principal at Iroquois Central Schools, where he worked for 12 years.

His first 18 years in education was with the New York State Division Youth, which is now Child and Family Services, working in residential facilities with kids who had serious emotional issues and learning disabilities.

He's also been a principal at Barker, an assistant in Albion and Canandaigua and served for two-and-a-half years as superintended in Perry.

He has three sons and was on vacation in Virginia Beach with eight of his grandchildren when he got the call from Superintendent Chris Dailey asking if he would be interested in interviewing for the interim position.

"They'll find me a very visible high school principal and very approachable," Kenney said. "I'd like the parents to know that my door is always open, and staff, to come and see me on anything. The students, too. I think we have a great school district here and the high school has a great faculty, good assistant principals, and we're going to work together and keep moving forward."

The Batavia City Schools community is mourning the loss of Lorne Brudz, a student at Batavia High School, who passed away this morning.

The death was announced today on the school district's homepage and Superintendent Chris Dailey sent a letter to parents.

"Our entire school community is mourning the loss of this wonderful young man," Dailey wrote in the letter.

Dailey informed parents that counselors, teachers and support staff are available to assist students, teachers, and parents. He suggested parents talk with their children about the death as it affects people in different ways.

The school district was not informed of the cause of death.

The Batavia Blue Devils moved to 2-1 on the season with a 28-13 victory over Cardinal-O'Hara at Cardinal-O'Hara this afternoon.

Ray Leach rushed for 179 yards on 21 carries and scored a TD.

Chandler Baker gained 91 yards on the ground, scoring once, on nine carries. He was 7-10 passing for 33 yards.

On defense, John Kindig had seven tackles and a fumble recovery. Josh Barber had seven tackles and two interceptions, including one on Cardinal-O'Hara's two-yard line that he returned for a touchdown to close out the game.

Anthony Ray had six tackles.

The Blue Devils will be a better team the rest of the season because of their 42-6 loss Aquinas Institute in Van Detta on Saturday, said Head Coach Brennan Briggs after the game.

"I schedule these guys week two, not to try to keep an undefeated season or anything," Briggs said. "That doesn't mean too much to these guys. We scheduled them week two because we knew that we've got a pretty good football team but I wanted to see how tough we were and they proved tonight that they aren't afraid to throw punches with the best of the best. They competed. They worked hard. They weren't afraid to go out there and play football against one of the best teams in the state and I'm proud of them for that."

Briggs doesn't think the score reflects how well his team played. They held the game close in the first half, mounted a drive and showed they could go toe-to-toe, but in the second half, the greater depth of the Little Irish allowed Aquinas to pull away.

"Obviously, you know they are a very, very athletic team and there are some big kids over there," Briggs said.

With Ray Leach, Chandler Baker and Anthony Ray, the Blue Devils have three top players who compare favorably to any athletes in Section V, but Aquinas, in Class AA, has talent at more positions and most of their players aren't playing both offense and defense because of a larger roster.

While the Little Irish had a 21-6 lead at the half, one of their three TDs came on a kickoff return when T.J. Jones just ran through a couple of tackles for a 90-yard return.  On offense and defense in the first two quarters Batavia played Aquinas tight.

"We have a lot of guys going two ways and they're huffing and puffing (in the second half)," Briggs said. "But you know what, they scratched and they clawed and they kept fighting and I'm proud of them. I think that we are a better football team tonight and tomorrow and the rest of the season because of what just happened."

Once again, Leach was impressive on offense, rushing 18 times for 111 yards and a TD.

"You know you go for over 100 yards against Aquinas, that's something," Briggs said. "You've got to be pretty darn good to do that and I'm proud of him. I'm proud of our offensive line."

Baker also put up good numbers against a tough team, completing 11 of 16 pass attempts for 121 yards.

This week will be the first time the Blue Devils have practiced in three years following a loss. Since the opening week loss against Livonia in 2014, Batavia hasn't lost a regular season game.

Briggs thinks his team is tough, dedicated and will come to practice Monday ready to work.

"I know it sounds weird but I think we just became a better football team because these guys are going to respond," Briggs said. "They're going to compete and they're going to be hungry for the rest of the year."

Top photo: Anthony Robinson scores a 30-yard rushing touchdown for Aquinas in the third quarter. Robinson had 19 carries for 164 yards.

To purchase prints of game photos, click here.

The Batavia Blue Devils rolled into Syracuse with the goal of shutting out Johnson City at the Carrier Dome to open the 2017 season. They rode out 37-0 victors.

"I felt really good about our defense," said lineman Anthony Ray. "Our defense is always good. We’ve just got kids who are physical and who can hit. One of our goals was to put up a giant goose egg, not let them have anything, have a shutout, so I think we completed that and that’s a good thing."

Batavia scored on the first play of its first possession when Ray Leach broke out for a 56-yard run to the goal line. The Mustangs then fumbled the kickoff giving Batavia good field position again. On Johnson's City's next possession, the snapper on a fourth-down punt attempt overshot his target resulting in a safety, extending Batavia's lead to 16-0.

That's how the day went for Johnson City. In the second half, when a Johnson City runner was about to cross the goal line, Taiyo Iburi-Bethel caught him from behind and punched the ball out of his hands, sending it out the back of the end zone for a touch back and giving Batavia the ball on the 20. After another long drive by the Mustangs, Chandler Baker snagged one of his two interceptions to deny Johnson City a score again.

"Coming in, we worked very hard in practice, just from the start, from the get-go," said Baker, who is also QB1. "We’ve been improving every single day, so coming in, I had confidence in my guys. I knew they were going to give 100 percent and that’s what they did and we came out with a win."

A win is a win, but Coach Branden Briggs, who expects his players to execute on every play, wasn't entirely satisfied.

"I'm hoping we’re not happy with a win here today, to be honest with you," Briggs said. "It’s good to get a win, but we’ve got a long way to go. We’ve got a lot of mistakes to clean up. I’m confident we can do that, but the kids must buy into that and we’ve got to get much, much better."

Both Baker and Ray said they see room for improvement.

"We did good, but we can always improve," Baker said. "Me personally, I've got to limit the interceptions. I can’t have that. Next week we’re going to have Aquinas and they’re going to be a battle. We’ve just got to work really hard in practice and we’ll be fine."

Ray said there are some tasks the defense needs to address, such as improving player discipline in staying in position and closing up holes up the middle.

The team was eager to play on the big stage of the Carrier Dome, said receiver Ethan Biscaro.

"We were very excited and we were ready," Biscaro said. "We put in enough preparation and practice and we knew if we came out and played like we do at practice that we could beat anyone."

Leach rushed for 256 yards on 19 carries and scored once. He said he was proud of the effort of his teammates.

"Our team did good," Leach said. "We all did our 1/11th and that’s all we needed to do to get the W. We knew we had to come out hard to stop them. Our goal coming into this year was get a shutout at the Carrier Dome. We put our heart into it."

Briggs said Leach also knows there are things he needs to work on to improve.

"He needs to hit that hole a little bit harder," Briggs said. "He can’t dance as much. He understands that. We’ve had that conversation."

These kinds of details will be important when the Blue Devils open their home season Friday against Aquinas, which may be their most daunting opponent of the season.

"It’s going to be a whole different animal next week," Briggs said. "The kids will understand that when they watch the film. Aquinas put up a great game against one of the great teams in AA football in section V. It’s going to be a true test of our character and a true test of where we really are as a benchmark."

Asked if the team came out a little flat in the second half, Briggs said, not flat, but dehydrated.

"They found out they need to get in better shape," Briggs said. "The need to get into conditioning a little more, get serious, take care of their bodies more outside of football."

Baker was 9-13 passing for 193 yards and two TDs.

Taiyo Iburi-Bethel had four receptions for 96 yards and a TD. Eric Davis had a single catch, but it was a big one -- a 30-yard TD.

Antwan Odom had eight tackles.

Photos by Steve Ognibene.

Top photo: Ray Leach on a run to score in opening seconds of the first drive to give Batavia an 8-0 lead.

Chandler Baker scores early in the game.