Monday Roundup: Ricketts outlasts Potter to aid C-R in close 4-3 rebound over Fillmore; Ritter smashes go-ahead homer in big Lions win at Way-Co, Ark-Can holds off GV/Belfast in colossal Class D clash

CUBA — The Rebels of Cuba-Rushford knew exactly how important it was to provide a rebounding performance, especially after an early lead was negated by undefeated Section VI power Portville back on Saturday.

Now with Sectionals immediately around the corner, they were tasked with a big County League battle against the Eagles of Fillmore on Monday.

This was their chance.

Although it was not easy, the Rebels managed to jump ahead on the Eagles and remain in the same position in the driver’s seat all game long. Led by a stellar outing from Finn Ricketts on the mound, the Cuba-Rushford senior was able to outlast Fillmore’s Damon Potter in a pitcher’s duel that came down to the wire, as they hung on for dear life following a late Eagles comeback to spring back above .500 on the season with a 4-3 edge.

“We needed this win. I thought Finn was excellent again tonight, Potter as well for Fillmore,” said Rebels coach Pat Wight. “We took advantage of some fielding mistakes and some big base-running. I thought we did a good job putting the pressure on them and making them make plays. We were fortunate enough to play errorless baseball. I was really pleased with our effort, and it was something we were looking to get heading into Sectionals.”

The Rebels (9-8) were the first team to strike right from the get-go, as they accounted for a run in each of the first two innings of play — the first on an Adam Roe single up the gut and into center field, while the next run scored on a throwing error by the Fillmore defense following a Hayden Schappacher base hit into center field to record the RBI by sending Landen Schappacher home.

Entering the third inning, the Eagles (8-7) came right back and trimmed the deficit directly in half with James Hillman doing the honors on his two-out swing into center field, allowing Nolan Krzeminski to score untouched after speeding around second base following his double. It would remain 2-1 in favor of the home team leading into the fifth inning when the Rebels used another Fillmore error to provide another massive piece of insurance across the plate.

Fillmore would not go down without a fight in the last two innings of play, as they utilized a Damon Potter fielder’s choice and an RBI single off the bat of Jude Beardsley to put the pressure up against Cuba-Rushford with a one-run deficit. But on the very next at-bat, Braxton Clark ensured the Rebels were granted their victory, as he got the Eagles to ground out into the infield to solidify their hard-fought victory.

The Rebels posted all four of their runs off six hits, while Fillmore scored three runs on four hits themselves. On the mound, the win was credited to Finn Ricketts, who struck out three and walked two leading into the seventh inning for Clark’s one-strikeout, two-walk tenure of relief. At the plate, Tanner Lewis led the bats with a 2-for-3 outing. Landen Schappacher, Dean Frank and Hayden Schappacher each had a hit to chip in and further the cause.

For the Eagles, Damon Potter went all seven innings on the mound, striking out five and walking two. At the plate, Wade DeRock and Brayden Hennard each record an RBI, with Hennard driving in one off a seventh-inning single to close the gap to one run behind the Rebels at that point. Fillmore will close out their regular season at Houghton University tonight with a 7 p.m. visit from Bolivar-Richburg.

Cuba-Rushford will end their regular season campaign with a 7 p.m. contest against Genesee Valley/Belfast at the Rich Sullivan Complex in Belfast on Wednesday.

Fillmore 001 001 1 – 3 4 3

Cuba-Rushford 110 011 X – 4 6 0

FIL – Damon Potter (LP) (CG, 5K, 2BB) and Nolan Krzeminski.

C-R – Finn Ricketts (WP) (3K, 2BB), Braxton Clark (7) (K, BB) and Adam Shaffer.

Wellsville 3, Wayland-Cohocton 2

WAYLAND — The countdown to Sectionals was officially on, and for the Lions of Wellsville, they looked to use their last two games of the regular season to fully weld their possession of Class B’s top seed entering the big dance, beginning this upcoming weekend.

The road ahead will not get any easier, and that was proven on Monday during their road trip to visit Wayland-Cohocton. In what could be one of Class B’s potential Finals matchups in the near future, the Lions and the host Eagles gave everyone in attendance their money’s worth in what was a very close battle from start to finish.

After seeing their early advantage out of the gate falter away to the hands of Wellsville, some late momentum was built by the Eagles to help turn the tide in their favor to re-deadlock the game down the homestretch, applying all sorts of pressure to the Lions along the way. With the visitors in black and orange facing their final out square in the face, Matt Ritter stepped in and took command himself.

With one giant swing.

The Wellsville sophomore unleashed his fury on a drive to deep left field. With the Wayland-Cohocton outfielders giving chase to try and make a play on it, the ball continued to sail and sail through the sky until it cleared the wall, as he brought the thunder on his booming solo homer to propel the Lions ahead, ultimately for good to help seal up a magnificent and thrilling 3-2 victory over the Eagles.

“Matt had a couple of rough at-bats early in the game. He made a nice adjustment, got a pitch he could handle and he absolutely crushed it,” said Lions coach Tom Delahunt. “We had 12 hits, but we hit into a lot of double plays early on, along with a couple of nice throwdowns they had to some us in some innings. We had some chances, including the home run, but we couldn’t really find a way to get the runners across when we did. Tyler (Vogel) pitched extremely well and put us on his back in his outstanding outing. Way-Co is a great team, and they came into tonight at 14-4. We’re rolling ourselves, so it was going to be another one of those tough battles.”

Following Wayland-Cohocton’s first run of the game of some key special teams play around the bases, the Lions (17-1) took action themselves later on in the top of the third inning, as they built off of Ty Vogel’s 1-2-3 of the Eagles bats in the second and constructed a go-ahead two-run frame in the third. Vogel, along with Alex Green fueled the fire for the offense at the top of the order, each delivering an RBI to put the Lions up by one.

Wellsville would continue to keep the lead intact across the next two shutout innings, with Vogel maintaining his presence on the mound to keep the Eagles at a standstill. But in the bottom of the sixth, the hosts came together and established one last heroic effort to get back into the game, as they grabbed the game-tying run to do so.

But the final tie of the game would not last long entering the last inning of play, as Ritter came in through the clutch during Wellsville’s final out, blasting a solo homer to left field to give them the 3-2 lead back before using three outstanding plays in the field — a catch in left field by Gavin Haggerty, and two big stops from Aiden Cowburn at second, to lock up the victory.

A victory the team needed, according to Delahunt.

“I told the kids that this was good to have going into Sectionals. A one-run game throughout the entire night, where every play means something and there's a lot of stress and pressure involved as well. I'm happy we were able to take part in this, and I’m even happier to have come out with a win.” he said.

Wellsville totaled three runs off 12 hits at the plate, with Cowburn and his 3-for-4 outing leading the way. Vogel and Trenton Green each chipped in two hits. On the mound, Vogel went all seven innings while holding Wayland-Cohocton to four hits, fanning eight and walking three.

The Lions will close the book on their regular season coming up Wednesday night, hosting Arkport-Canaseraga in a 5 p.m. first pitch.

Wellsville 002 000 1 – 3 12 1

Way-Co 100 001 0 – 2 4 2

WLSV – Ty Vogel (WP) (CG, 8K, 3BB) and Alex Green.

W-C – Anthony Schirmer (LP) (CG, 3K, 3BB) and Ethan Loop.

Arkport-Canaseraga 6, Genesee Valley/Belfast 4

BELMONT — There was absolutely no wasting time for the Arkport-Canaseraga Wolves on Monday.

With Genesee Valley/Belfast fresh off career win No. 800 for head coach Dennis Miles over the weekend, the Wolves took it upon themselves to welcome them back home to the Jungle in Belmont in style by way of Micah Marvin and his first inning obliteration that gave them the lead, setting the tone for massive Class D clash ahead, as they avoided a late comeback in the endgame to secure a 6-4 win on the road.

All three of Arkport-Canaseraga’s runs came before the Genesee Valley/Belfast (15-4) defense could record an out in the field, as they put two runners on base and then brought them all home on a massive swing of the bat from Marvin, who left town with a three-run detonation off Matt Cater on the mound to provide a massive fissure into the ground with a 3-0 lead.

Between both teams, 10 hits were scoured by 10 different players, with the hosts holding a 6-4 edge over the Wolves. Genesee Valley/Belfast would go on to chip away at their deficit with their first run in the bottom of the second right before Arkport-Canaseraga was able to turn the tables on them again with two huge runs in the fourth to take a four-run advantage — the biggest lead of the game.

Genesee Valley/Belfast showed no quit however, as they staged one last comeback effort in the bottom of the seventh, getting within a pair of runs of the Wolves. But in the end, Marvin’s tenure of relief would end on a positive note, as he avoided further damage to finish the gargantuan victory.

Marvin would finish with seven strikeouts in relief of Caden Carey, who was awarded the win for Arkport-Canaseraga by striking out three and walking two. For Genesee Valley/Belfast, Matt Cater went into the seventh inning during his start, as he handed out seven chairs and walked just three.

On Wednesday, Genesee Valley/Belfast will close out their regular season with a 7 p.m. visit from Cuba-Rushford at the Rich Sullivan Complex in Belfast.

Arkport-Canaseraga 300 210 0 – 6 4 2

Genesee Valley/Belfast 010 100 2 – 4 6 2

A-C – Caden Carey (WP) (3K, 2BB), Micah Marvin (4) (7K) and Bryer Drake.

GVB – Matt Cater (LP) (7K, 3BB), Trent Hutchison (7) (2K, 2BB) and Evan Turybury.

Andover/Whitesville 7, Hammondsport 6 (F-8)

ANDOVER — It was Derek Perkins and his time to shine on Senior Night for Andover/Whitesville, as the senior was awarded the nod on the hill in their Monday night battle against Hammondsport. In his start that elongated into the seventh inning, Perkins was superb, holding off the visiting Hammondsport Lakers for as long as he could.

But in the top of the seventh, that pressure soon came to a rolling boil and then, spilled over with a game-tying frame late to ultimately force extra innings. Despite the Lakers forcing another session of baseball, Andover/Whitesville remained vigilant, as they used a clutch stand at the plate in the bottom of the eighth to set up a gigantic special teams play for Vinny Joyce, as he scored the game-winning run from third base to propel Andover/Whitesville past the Lakers with a 7-6 win in eight innings, in Andover.

“It was good to get a win, but we have to do a better job of making the lives of our pitchers easier,” said Andover/Whitesville co-coach Jake Bannerman. “Derek, our only senior, threw the ball well yet again. We just could not cash in with runners on early, and let Hammondsport stick around and battle back. We got the job done though, and we’re looking forward to another must win game tomorrow night.”

Andover/Whitesville (4-11) used a hot cycle of offense to get their engines roaring early, scratching across a pair of runs in each of the first two innings to lay claim to a 4-0 lead of the Lakers. It would be their largest lead they would take in the game, as the visitors worked their way back down the stretch to get back within reach, closing the gap to one on a pair of occasions — one of them surfacing in the top of the fifth inning behind a pair of runs.

Hammondsport would ultimately rip the lead away from Andover/Whitesville with two monster runs in the seventh inning before the defense held their bats at a standstill in the bottom half to force extra innings. With Vinny Joyce now serving time on the mound in relief, he would go on to hold the Lakers frozen while he cashed in the game’s winning run with the bases jammed, as he capitalized on a passed ball behind the plate to give Andover/Whitesville the thrilling win.

Andover/Whitesville posted seven runs off seven hits, with Rogan Perkins and James Miller-Young each leading the way with a 2-for-4 appearance at the plate, with Miller-Young driving in a pair. Joyce scored a hit and scratched across three of the team’s seven runs himself.

Tonight, Andover/Whitesville will look to close out their regular season with a 5 p.m. visit to Hinsdale.

Hammondsport 000 121 20 – 6 7 2

Andover/Whitesville 220 011 01 – 7 7 5

HAM – Alec Makitra (4K, 4BB), Ethan Beers (LP, 3) (4K, 5BB) and Silas Scofield.

A/W – Derek Perkins (6K, 3BB), Vinny Joyce (WP, 7) (4K) and Colton Calladine.

Bolivar-Richburg 27, Hinsdale 7 (F-5)

HINSDALE — All the Wolverines of Bolivar-Richburg needed was one more win to officially put a bow on another Allegany County League Championship.

On Monday, they went on to grab it and a whole lot more, as they scored a massive stand in the opening sequences on the road in Hinsdale to set the tone immediately to capture what was a 27-7 win in five innings to become this year’s County champion — their second outright, and fourth straight where they claimed at least a piece of the title.

Right in the opening stages of battle, the Wolverines (17-2) cemented their victory at an instant, posting 18 of their 27 runs right in the first two innings of play behind a massive 17-hit outburst. Amongst the hitters, three of them recorded at least a pair, with Brayden Zilker and his 3-for-3 evening leading the way, compiling three RBI and three runs scored. Kingston Loucks chipped in two hits, driving in a pair and scoring twice, while Charlie Militello had two hits with an RBI and three runs scored.

Furthering the offensive cause were both Trey Buchholz and Caden Allen, each posting a double. Reiss Gaines had a triple and three RBI, while Landon Barkley and Tavyn MacDonell had two RBI each. On the mound, the win was for Gaines to claim, as he fanned four and walked one in his two-inning start.

For Hinsdale (3-9), they capitalized on some offense later on in the heat of battle, as they scored a big six-run stand to chip away at their deficit, with Cody Hand and Tyler Richards each leading the way with a double. Richards, along with Henry Schwartz, also drove in two runs. On the hill, Jake Elliott came in and delivered two strikeouts in relief.

Both teams will close out their regular seasons tonight, with Bolivar-Richburg heading to Houghton University to meet the Eagles of Fillmore in a 7 p.m. first pitch, while the Bobcats stay home to welcome in Hinsdale at 5 p.m.

Bolivar-Richburg 8(10)0 81 – 27 17 5

Hinsdale 0 1 0 60 – 7 3 5

B-R – Reiss Gaines (WP) (4K, BB), Maddox Davison (3) (2K, 2BB), Brayden Zilker (4) (K) and Aydin Sisson.

HIN – Robert Childs (LP) (K, 9BB), Tyler Richards (3), Cody Hand (4) (K, 4BB), Jake Elliott (4) (2K) and Peyton Keller.

SOFTBALL

Wellsville 5, Cowanesque Valley 0

WELLSVILLE — Following an extraordinary Senior Night win over Webster Schroeder to wrap up the weekend, the Lady Lions of Wellsville now began to look for one final victory to close out their regular season on the strongest of notes. Come Monday night, one final test entered into the fray before the hunt for Sectional glory begins — Pennsylvania powerhouse Cowanesque Valley.

There were similar predicaments that the Lady Lions encountered across their regular season finale that they also experienced during their victory against the Lady Warriors back on Senior Night Sunday. One of them in particular: Runners in scoring position.

Cowanesque Valley turned up the pressure as much as they could against the Lady Lions. But in the end, the same exact result was dispatched — Makenzie Cowburn remained unfazed.

The Wellsville senior phenom in the circle held her ground, as she tossed yet another colossal shutout to help her team end the regular season on a high note with a six-hit shutout, fanning 11 and walking just one, all while having one of the team’s biggest bats in the game along the way to help finish off a 5-0 blank of Cowanesque Valley at historic Tullar Field.

“It’s certainly nice to end things on a winning streak. We also haven’t lost at Tullar all season as well, so that was an added bonus. It was almost the same thing as yesterday, with a runner at third and they even had the bases loaded at one point. Makenzie came in and shut it down,” said Lady Lions co-coach Shelley Chaffee. “Her composure is amazing to help keep herself calm to get us out of these jams. They have an extremely good fielding team, and we hit the ball really well against them. Cowanesque Valley made some nice plays to keep us on our feet.”

To go with her back-to-back shutout performances, Cowburn also pitched in with a gargantuan bat to aid the offense in their outburst of Cowanesque Valley, as she broke the ice right in the first inning of play with the first two-run single of two in the game to put the Lady Lions (16-1) on the board first.

The momentum would remain in Wellsville’s favor, despite a scoreless exchange across the second, as the bats continued to come alive in the third when Makenna Dunbar made lift-off on a line drive homer to left center field that exited in a hurry, extending the advantage to a trio of runs against the visitors from below the border.

To ensure their lead remained glued together, the hosts in orange looked to Cowburn to deliver the goods one more time, as she drove in her third and fourth runs of the game on another single into the outfield to branch the advantage to five against Cowanesque Valley, permanently cementing the victory in the process.

Wellsville would total five runs off eight hits, with Cowburn’s 2-for-3 day leading the charge. Along with Dunbar’s solo homer, Natalie Adams also had a double to add into the mix.

The regular season is now over for the Lady Lions — one that saw them outscore the opponent, 159-20, as they continue to jockey for Class B’s No. 1 seed with Bath-Haverling in the final days. They now await Sectional seeding later this week.

Cowanesque Valley 000 000 0 – 0 6 0

Wellsville 201 020 X – 5 8 2

CV – Ruby Sherman (LP) (CG, BB) and Logan Hamilton.

WLSV – Makenzie Cowburn (WP) (CG, 11K, BB) and Lindsay Stuck.

Genesee Valley/Belfast 1, Arkport-Canaseraga 0

BELMONT — In order to get your offense clicking, you just have to keep plugging away at the plate. Since the start of Monday night’s contest against Arkport-Canaseraga, Genesee Valley/Belfast battled tooth and nail to try and get the upper-hand against Lady Wolves hurler Grace Groves, who kept her opposition at bay for the majority of the contest.

With three scoreless innings between both teams going by in a flash, it was crunchtime. In the fourth inning, the hosts in black foresaw an opportunity to strike, as they continued to feverishly connect at the plate to generate their offense. They were able to get a runner to reach, as the team guided her all the way over into scoring position.

That would set up Maddie Tarar at the plate, and although the Lady Wolves defense managed to record the out, Genesee Valley/Belfast got what they wanted in return by scoring the game’s lone run in the bottom of the fourth on what served as the game-winning RBI, as Hannah Southwick-Powers took over the captain’s chair from that point on to keep the visitors locked down with a 1-0 shutout inside the Jungle in Belmont.

“That was a great inning that we put together. We executed it very well to get that run across,” GV/Belfast coach Mark Sullivan said. “It was a good game, for both sides. They didn’t have a lot of strikeouts, but the Groves girl kept us off-balance for as long as she could. On the other end, Hannah was great tonight. She fielded two ground balls and a pop out and then hit the zone hard with 18 strikeouts. We left runners on base a lot, but this was a much more improved effort from the last time we played Arkport-Canaseraga earlier in the year.”

Sandwiched in between what was their game-winning run in the bottom of the fourth inning, was a dynamic and nectarous one-hit shutout hurled by Southwick-Powers within the circle for Genesee Valley/Belfast (11-5), as she struck out 18 Arkport-Canaseraga batters and walked five.

As for the offense itself, the hosts garnered just four hits, including a lead-off single from Abby Sullivan in that fourth inning, also claiming responsibility for the team’s lone run off the groundout by Tarar. Adding more help along the way was Southwick-Powers, Morgan Yackeren and Whitney Young, all providing a single.

As for the opposition, Grace Groves struck out five and walked two to lead the Wolves in the circle. At the plate, Alice Frechette had the team’s lone hit off Southwick-Powers.

Genesee Valley/Belfast will close out their regular season Wednesday night with a 7 p.m. visit from Cuba-Rushford at the Rich Sullivan Complex in Belfast.

Arkport-Canaseraga 000 000 0 – 0 1

Genesee Valley/Belfast 000 100 X – 1 4

A-C – Grace Groves (LP) (CG, 5K, 2BB) and Nicole Merry.

GVB – Hannah Southwick-Powers (WP) (CG, 18K, 5BB) and Jenna Hill.

Andover/Whitesville 14, Hammondsport 0

ANDOVER — While Senior Night commenced on the field adjacent to theirs in Andover, the Andover/Whitesville softball team honored all three of their departing seniors — Makaila Brewster, Ava Grice and Destiny Workman, for all of their incredible contributions to the program over the years leading into their last.

With a visit from Hammondsport in store, the goal was to help end their regular season careers on the most emphatic and positive of notes. How about a shutout?

Led by the brilliance of Brewster in the circle and a massive four-hit night from Grice at the plate, Andover/Whitesville would simply not be denied victory, as they started hot with a lead and built onto it every step along the homestretch ahead, scorching a trail of glory right past the visiting Lady Lakers with a 14-0 victory on Monday.

“Makaila once again had a very sound defense behind her, making every play error-free,” said Andover/Whitesville coach Al Barber. “She has been getting stronger every game with great command of her pitches. Reece (Winters) behind the plate is really learning how to call a great game for her as well. Ava and Makaila have been leaving it all out on the field for the last four years for us. Their senior campaigns are their best, and they show their young teammates how to play the game with passion.”

Following the docking of their first two runs off special teams prowess in the first inning, Andover/Whitesville would then look to see their bats come alive after Brewster continued to shut down Hammondsport on defense with two big shutout innings. In the bottom of the fourth, the attack generated a massive four-run stand propelled by a two-run double by Olivia Waters to extend their advantage out to six.

The lead for the hosts would double in size in the bottom of the fifth, scratching across six runs following a lead-off triple in the inning from Brewster, with Leigha Phelps, Ava Grice, Lilly Ordway and Lilly Harrington all recording RBIs to ignite the offense. The big senior send-off was finished off with a two-run single by Harrington in the bottom of the sixth inning.

In all, Andover/Whitesville collected 14 runs off 10 hits, with Grice and her 4-for-4 outing of perfection leading the way, as she scored four runs. Brewster finished with two hits. On the mound, Brewster held Hammondsport to just four hits in her shutout twirl, fanning seven.

The regular season for Andover/Whitesville is now history, as they now await Sectional seeding later on this week with a record of 4-10 overall.

Hammondsport 000 000 0 – 0 4 2

Andover/Whitesville 200 462 X – 14 10 0

[PHOTO PROVIDED]

GOLF

GV/Belfast, Fillmore each send two to Individual Sectionals

WELLSVILLE — On a beautiful day for golf, all of Allegany County’s golf teams made a mad dash for the links to battle for their place in Individual Sectional play, with 18 different golfers from the County League’s squadron of teams all converging at the Wellsville Country Club, while the Lions of Wellsville made the trek north to Fairport to partake in the Independent League Qualifier action at Eagle Vale Golf Course, Monday morning.

When it was all said and done, and all 18 holes were played, four players — two each from Genesee Valley/Belfast and Fillmore, the County’s top pair of squads on the links all season long, punched their tickets straight to the Individual Sectional tournament this weekend back up north, as Anderson Wiltsey, Dakota Hemphill, Jack Cool and Grant Preston will all compete on behalf of Allegany County for the top prize.

For the Eagles of Fillmore, they will send both Wiltsey and Cool to the big stage, with Wiltsey firing the medalist round — a first in his career at the event, to pave his path forward towards a third straight appearance in the Individual Sectional tournament behind a match-low round of 95. Cool was not far behind him, as he finished off his afternoon with his round of 97.

For Eagles head coach Tom Parks, he couldn’t be prouder.

“For Anderson, this is his third consecutive year making it to Individuals, with this being his first time being able to claim the medalist round at this event. Jack has been playing some really, really good golf these last couple of weeks, so his effort today was really nice to see him get rewarded for his efforts.” he said.

As for Genesee Valley/Belfast, they will send both Hemphill and Preston, with Hemphill following right behind Wiltsey’s medalist round for Fillmore with his score of 96. Preston would round off the scoring with a 97 to tie Cool. Head coach Lisa Scott-Schneider says that her golfers saved their best performances for last to make it to the big dance.

“Dakota certainly saved his best round of the year for this event. I knew he had it inside of him, but he hasn’t been consistent. I am so proud of him for being resilient. That smile on his face when he said 96 was priceless, and his teammates were so happy for him,” she said. “Grant has work ethic and wants to do well, so I’m not surprised to see he made it in his first year. This coach is very happy he made the transition from baseball to golf. He’s just a freshman and he’s only going to get better with more play and strength. I’m so proud of both of them and now, we’ll get to see how they do. I hope they enjoy the moment.”

As for the Lions up north in Fairport, no golfers made the cut for the Individual tournament, but they were led by a team-low round of 88 fired by Ethan Bailey in a field also containing Aquinas, Bishop Kearney and C.G. Finney. As a team, they finished third overall with a score of 531.

The Allegany County Athletic Association also named All-Stars for the season outdoors, with Wiltsey and Preston both earning nods. Fillmore also saw Reid Cockle and Zach Sisson each receive a nomination, while Will Guilford and Chris Weaver each had one for Genesee Valley/Belfast alongside Preston. Elsewhere, Cuba-Rushford’s Sebastian Saulter and Hinsdale’s Caden Miller also scored nominations.

For the four County golfers that did make the cut, their journey towards Individual glory will begin this weekend at the Ravenwood Golf Club in Victor, beginning on Saturday.

BOYS TENNIS

Class B2 First Round

No. 6 Wellsville 3, No. 11 Marcus Whitman 2

WELLSVILLE — It was the beginning of a brand new season on the tennis court. A race to Section V’s finish line, as Team Sectionals settled in at full capacity on Monday, with the No. 6 Lions of Wellsville looking to make a run to the end beginning with a visit from No. 11 Marcus Whitman.

Both teams would record a sweep across the first round battle in the Class B2 bracket, but the bigger of the two belonged to the host Lions, as they brought out the brooms in all three singles matches to declare match victory over the visiting Wildcats to advance into the Quarterfinal round the following day with a 3-2 victory.

Setting up shop for the Lions (10-5) were the singles participants of Adam Iantorno, Wheeler Dahlgren and Michael Bidzerkowny, as the three Lions all posted a win each to secure the match victory right away. Iantorno and Dahlgren used straight sets to take care of their opposition, with Iantorno laying claim to a 6-0, 6-2 win at first singles, while Dahlgren rolled to a 6-1, 6-0 win at second singles.

Bidzerkowny rounded off with a forfeit win at third singles.

Although Marcus Whitman scored both doubles matches in the win column, Wellsville’s pair of doubles teams would not make it easy by any means, as the first doubles team of David Anderson and Keenen O’Connor provided some late pressure in the second set, but ultimately fell by a 6-0, 6-3 count, while the second doubles duo of Caydon Grimes and Jonah MacCartney exchanged points left and right with their opposition, but were downed by a 6-3, 6-2 decision.

The Lions are back on the court today in a 4 p.m. first serve at Wayland-Cohocton, where they will meet No. 3 East Rochester for a Class B2 Quarterfinal battle.

Singles

1. Adam Iantorno (WLSV) def. Casey Brown (MW), 6-0, 6-2.

2. Wheeler Dahlgren (WLSV) def. Steven Randall (MW), 6-1, 6-0.

3. Michael Bidzerkowny (WLSV) by for.

Doubles

1. James Sloth/Robert Sloth (MW) def. David Anderson/Keenen O'Connor (WLSV), 6-0, 6-3.

2. James Santonastaso/Luke Jepsen (MW) def. Caydon Grimes/Jonah MacCartney (WLSV), 6-3, 6-2.

Class B3 First Round

No. 9 Bloomfield 3, No. 8 Bolivar-Richburg 2

PERRY — The No. 8 Bolivar-Richburg Wolverines gave it everything they had left in the tank across a grueling opening round battle with No. 9 Bloomfield on Monday. Despite one of the most brilliant performances of the season from Anthony Densmore, the Wolverines saw their season come to a close at the hands of the Bombers, as they snuck towards the Class B3 Quarterfinal round with a close 3-2 edge in Perry.

The spotlight shone ever so brightly on Densmore during his electric first singles matchup against Bloomfield’s Kevin Decker, as the Bolivar-Richburg senior delivered one of the more resilient and masterful performances of the season, fighting his way through two different tiebreaks, including one in the last set of regulation play, as he and Decker continued to trade points left and right throughout the match.

Densmore would go on to take the tiebreak victory and the match with an 11-9 win in his 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 victory.

Following up was Dustin Murray and his win at second singles for the Wolverines, as he rolled past his opposition with a 6-2, 6-1 win. The rest of the wins were all claimed by the Bombers, as they fueled their upset wins with triumphant performances coming at third singles and in both doubles matches in resounding fashion.

Bolivar-Richburg’s season on the tennis court has officially closed up, as the team wraps up the 2024 campaign with a record of 5-7 overall.

Singles

1. Anthony Densmore (B-R) def. Kevin Decker (BLO), 7-5, 3-6, 7-6 (11-9).

2. Dustin Murray (B-R) def. Molly Thompson (BLO), 6-2, 6-1.

3. Karisah DeMeo (BLO) def. Trevor Whitsell (B-R), 6-0, 6-2.

Doubles

1. Jessica Cody/Sadie Kachmaryk (BLO) def. Alex Parker/Nebula Wilson-Smith (B-R), 6-0, 6-0.

2. Chloe Rayburn/Selia Kachmaryk (BLO) def. Starlyn Kisel/Jamie Werner (B-R), 6-1, 6-0.