Monday Roundup: Bulldogs launch 10 three-pointers in fourth straight game to roll past Friendship; B-R boys overcome slow start, rebound with 58-36 victory over Andover

FRIENDSHIP — The Belfast Bulldogs have been on a tear as of late. Winners of four straight entering the final week of the regular season, their main goal was to remain hot. With a Monday night road trip on the horizon, they had a chance to keep fueling their fire.

They would do just that, as they used a quick start in the first quarter to set up bigger and better things as the game went on, accounting for their best showing of offense right before the first half came to a close, as they rolled their way past the host Friendship Golden Eagles with a 62-31 victory to record their fifth straight decision in the win column.

On top of Belfast’s (7-1) offensive success, their three-point game has been electric, as they recorded double digits in that department for a fourth consecutive game, netting 10 more with Devin Harriger and Nick Ellison leading the way with four each. Both Bulldogs were two of four scorers that eclipsed double digits in the contest, with Harriger leading the way with a game-high 18 points. Ellison’s four threes would total 12 points, while Tony Logue and Stephen Struckmann helped the cause with 11, and 10 points respectively.

Belfast used a 15-6 first quarter run to put their wheels in motion to begin, kicking it into high gear in the second quarter with a 21-spot on Friendship (0-8) to end the first half with a strong 36-18 lead.

The Golden Eagles were led by Dekota Stewart, who netted four of the team’s six three-pointers on his way to a team-high 16 points. Taylor Moore had the remaining two threes, for six points. Jacob Golden had four points for Friendship, who will play host to Whitesville in a quick turnaround tonight at 6 p.m.

Belfast will now look for their sixth straight win back home tonight in a quick turnaround themselves, as they prepare to host a 6 p.m. contest with the Hinsdale Bobcats.

Belfast 15 21 11 15 – 62

Friendship 6 12 11 4 – 31

BELFAST: Jason Drozdowski 1 0-0 2, Nick Ellison 4 0-0 12, Tony Logue 3 3-6 11, Devin Harriger 7 0-0 18, Matt Weaver 3 1-2 7, Connor Stork 1 0-0 2, Stephen Struckmann 5 0-2 10. Totals: 24 4-10 62.
FRIENDSHIP: Taylor Moore 2 0-0 6, Jacob Golden 2 0-1 4, Dekota Stewart 6 0-0 16, John Outman 1 0-0 2, Ian Romero 0 3-4 3. Totals: 11 3-5 31.
3-point goals: Belfast 10 (Ellison 4, Harriger 4, Logue 2), Friendship 6 (Stewart 4, Moore 2).
Total Fouls: Belfast 8, Friendship 11. Fouled out: None.

Bolivar-Richburg 58, Andover 36

BOLIVAR — A slow start had to be overcome right in the first quarter, but it was one that the Bolivar-Richburg Wolverines were able to accomplish, as they hop over the .500 mark for the first time this season, taking control of a lead at halftime and building upon it in the next to declare victory by a 58-36 count at home over visiting Andover, Monday night.

“If we just fixed up that first quarter, we would have had a perfect game. They came right out guns blazing, every one of their starters scored in the first quarter,” said Wolverines coach Jeff Margeson. “They got out to that lead, so we had to regroup a little bit and talk about raising the bar on defense. With the teams that John (Dougherty) coaches, they never back down. But we had a really big game from our sophomore Evan (Pinney), and he broke through with his performance. Landon (Danaher) is a workhorse as always, he put up 30 for a third straight game. I was impressed with our defense when we improved it.”

Bolivar-Richburg (5-4) ran the table beginning in the second quarter after falling behind quickly by a 16-12 count in the first quarter, as the defense buckled down to hold Andover to single digits the rest of the way, accounting for their largest outscoring in the final eight minutes of play, securing the victory with an 18-7 run of the Panthers to lock things up.

Landon Danaher continues to have a tremendous junior season for the Wolverines, as he recorded 30 points for a third straight game, finishing with a game-high 31 points. Wyatt Karnuth added in with 12 points, while Evan Pinney provided 11 for the hosts in white and red.

The Panthers (5-3) were led by Spencer Cook, who tallied a team-high 13 points. Chris Walker chipped in with nine points himself, while Greg Reilly added eight points of his own.

Bolivar-Richburg will now aim for their first winning season under Margeson’s tenure when they return to action on the road, Thursday night, as they pay a visit to the Wighthouse in a 7:30 p.m. contest against the Cuba-Rushford Rebels. As for Andover, they head back out on the road tonight with a 6 p.m. contest in Scio.

Andover 16 6 7 7 – 36

Bolivar-Richburg 12 14 14 18 – 58

ANDOVER: Spencer Cook 5 2-7 13, Greg Reilly 4 0-0 8, Chris Walker 4 1-2 9, Cormac Brown 1 0-0 3, Kohler Niedermaier 1 0-0 3. Totals: 15 3-9 36.
BOLIVAR-RICHBURG: Landon Danaher 13 4-6 31, Wyatt Karnuth 6 0-0 12, Matt Mitchell 2 0-0 4, Evan Pinney 5 0-0 11. Totals: 26 4-6 58.

3-point goals: Andover 3 (Cook, Brown, Niedermaier), B-R 2 (Danaher, Pinney).
Total Fouls: Andover 4, B-R 8. Fouled out: None.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Wellsville 41, Andover 23

ANDOVER — Riding high since the start of the season, the Wellsville Lady Lions have been no stranger to finding the win column. On Monday, behind yet another balanced effort from the team, Wellsville did it again, as they scored their fourth straight win and seventh of their last eight, as they built momentum across all 32 minutes to stay one step ahead of Andover the entire game, racing to a 41-23 road victory against the Lady Panthers.

Marley Adams led the way again for the Lady Lions (7-2) offense with a game-high 11 points. Emily Robbins netted a pair of three-pointers on her way toward a nine-point game. Emily Costello provided eight points, while Jaylynn Mess had five for Wellsville, who managed to pull away from Andover after 32-21 lead entering the fourth, recording a 9-2 fourth quarter run to stay ahead for good.

Andover (3-7) saw Kelsie Niedermaier and Livia Simon lead the way on offense, combining to make up 17 of the team’s 23 points, with Niedermaier netting nine team-high points. Simon added eight points, while Olivia Hanks, Katie Calladine and Brynne Hunt had a two-point basket each to chip in.

Both teams are back on the hardwood Wednesday night, as the Lady Lions return home for a 7:30 p.m. battle with the Fillmore Lady Eagles, while Andover looks to get back on track back on their home floor with the Scio Lady Tigers in town for a 6 p.m. contest.

Wellsville 12 8 12 9 – 41

Andover 7 5 9 2 – 23

WELLSVILLE: Marley Adams 4 2-4 11, Jaylynn Mess 2 0-0 5, Emily Costello 3 1-1 8, Jaelyn Knapp 1 0-0 2, Brooklyn Stisser 1 2-4 4, Emily Robbins 3 1-2 9, Kaylee Coleman 1 0-0 2. Totals: 15 6-11 41.
ANDOVER: Olivia Hanks 1 0-0 2, Katie Calladine 1 0-0 2, Livia Simon 2 3-4 8, Kelsie Niedermaier 3 3-5 9, Brynne Hunt 1 0-0 2. Totals: 8 6-9 23.
3-point goals: Wellsville 5 (Robbins 2, Adams, Mess, Costello), Andover 1 (Simon).
Total Fouls: Wellsville 7, Andover 7. Fouled out: None.

Fillmore 55, Cuba-Rushford 24

FILLMORE — The Lady Eagles defense was apparent all night, but the offense kicked into a new gear Monday night, as they powered up a 28-5 first half run that put the hammer down on Fillmore’s bounce back victory from their game with Bolivar-Richburg on Saturday, as they coasted past visiting Cuba-Rushford with a 55-24 victory.

“We’ve been waiting for the light bulb to come on, on offense,” said Lady Eagles coach Tom Parks. “Our defense has been strong, but we really have not been consistent enough on offense. Tonight, that switch finally turned on. Nine different scorers scored tonight, and their confidence grew along with it. They were able to let their athletic ability shine through the entire game, and they did not overthink anything while doing that.”

Emma Cole led the way for the Lady Eagles (5-3), garnering all 17 of her game-high points down low. Morgan Byer took her talents to the outside, netting two of the team’s three triples to put toward her 10-point effort. Shelby Beardsley finished with five points for Fillmore, who started the first eight minutes with a 13-1 run of Cuba-Rushford.

The Lady Rebels (1-7) saw Taylor Searle take command of the offense with a team-high 13 points, including three of Cuba-Rushford’s four three-pointers. Tara Duvall added in four points, while Elysa Tylor had the remaining three-point basket to chip in for the visitors in blue and white, who will now get set to host Bolivar-Richburg in a 7:30 p.m. contest on Wednesday.

Fillmore will also jump back onto the court Wednesday night, as they hit the road themselves to visit the Wellsville Lady Lions in a 7:30 p.m. contest of their own.

“Wellsville has been our toughest opponent this year,” Parks said. “It’s going to take a high effort from us, and we’re going to go in and see where we stack up against one of the best teams in the area. We played with them in stretches last time, but we couldn’t find a way to hang around. Hopefully better things will come this time.”

Cuba-Rushford 1 4 11 8 – 24

Fillmore 13 15 17 10 – 55

CUBA-RUSHFORD: Lillian Forward 1 0-0 2, Macie Demick 0 2-2 2, Taylor Searle 4 2-2 13, Elysa Tylor 1 0-0 3, Tara Duvall 0 4-8 4. Totals: 6 8-12 24.
FILLMORE: Shelby Beardsley 2 0-0 5, Grace Russell 1 0-0 2, Emma Cole 8 1-4 17, Rachel Hatch 2 0-0 4, Jadyn Mucher 2 0-2 4, Raylynn Ryan 1 0-0 3, Morgan Byer 4 0-0 10, Emma Beardsley 1 0-0 2, Preslee Miller 3 2-2 8. Totals: 23 3-8 55.

3-point goals: C-R 4 (Searle 3, Tylor), Fillmore 3 (Byer 2, Ryan).
Total Fouls: C-R 8, Fillmore 13. Fouled out: None.

Belfast 49, Genesee Valley 16

BELFAST — While the Bulldogs boys squad are having a wail of a season on one side, the Lady Bulldogs of Belfast are putting together a fantastic season of their own on the other. It would continue Monday night back home, as they recorded their fifth win in their last six games with a 49-16 triumph over visiting Genesee Valley.

Mary Hamer and Alicia Borden had big nights on the offensive for the Lady Bulldogs (7-2), as they used two crucial runs in the first half to take the lead over the Lady Jaguars heading into the break. They would wrap up shop on the strongest note possible with a scoreless 18-0 jaunt to lock up the win.

Hamer led the scoring with a game-high 18 points for Belfast, with Borden providing 16 additional points along the way. Kaitlin Sadler chipped in with six more points. On the other side, Lizzy Bentley led the scoring for the Lady Jaguars (2-7) with eight team-high points. Emera Aquila and Sierra Burrows each rounded off the scoring with four points respectively.

Both teams are back in action Wednesday night, with Belfast hitting the road to face off against undefeated Whitesville in a 7:30 p.m. contest, while Genesee Valley looks to get back on track back home with a visit from Friendship at 6 p.m.

Genesee Valley 5 8 3 0 – 16

Belfast 10 12 9 18 – 49

GENESEE VALLEY: Emera Aquila 2 0-2 4, Lizzy Bentley 3 2-4 8, Sierra Burrows 1 1-2 4, Ashley Burrows 0 0-2 0. Totals: 6 3-10 16.
BELFAST: Abby Sullivan 1 0-0 2, Alicia Borden 8 0-0 16, Anna Drozdowski 2 0-0 4, Mary Hamer 9 0-1 18, Kaitlin Sadler 3 0-2 6, Emma Sullivan 1 0-0 2, Cierra Wallace 0 1-2 1. Totals: 24 1-5 49.

3-point goals: GV 1 (S. Burrows).
Total Fouls: GV 13, Belfast 14. Fouled out: None.

Whitesville 63, Scio 21

SCIO — The Lady Jays of Whitesville continued to show no signs of slowing down, as they used a fast and furious first quarter to set the tone almost immediately behind another massive night from Vanessa Hall, who recorded a game-high 39 points in the team’s 63-21 road win over the host Scio Lady Tigers.

Finishing behind Hall in the Whitesville (8-0) scorebook was Kennedy Bledsoe, who added 10 more points of her own. Rachel Jackson and Serena Ainsworth each had three points to chip in for the visitors, who held Scio to five first half points in their pair of massive runs.

Scio (0-10) was led by Melana Davenport, who recorded a pair of three-pointers, for six team-high points. Kiara Grover and Celina Warboys recorded four points each.

Both teams are back on the floor Wednesday night, as Whitesville will look to remain undefeated back home with the Belfast Lady Bulldogs in for a 7:30 p.m. visit, while Scio hits the road to visit the Lady Panthers of Andover at 6 p.m.

Whitesville 16 15 17 15 – 63

Scio 2 3 9 7 – 21

WHITESVILLE: Kennedy Bledsoe 4 2-4 10, Rachel Jackson 1 0-2 3, Serena Ainsworth 1 1-4 3, Vanessa Hall 15 6-7 39, Gabbi Hall 1 0-0 2, Serina Button 0 2-2 2, Brynn Scholl 1 0-0 2, Alexys Palmatier 1 0-0 2. Totals: 24 11-19 63.
SCIO: Alexis Crossley 0 0-2 0, Camryn Wiech 1 1-2 3, Emily Stilson 1 0-2 2, Sophie Bolzan 1 0-0 2, Celina Warboys 2 0-0 4, Melana Davenport 2 0-0 6, Kiara Grover 2 0-0 4. Totals: 9 1-6 21.

3-point goals: Whitesville 4 (Hall 3, Jackson), Scio 2 (Davenport).
Total Fouls: Whitesville 11, Scio 14. Fouled out: None.