Tuesday Roundup: Ward scores late 2nd half goal to give Eagles cushioning in holding 2-0 shutout victory over Lions

Wellsville senior Alex Ordiway (1) and Fillmore senior Mason Cool (16) battle for the loose ball at midfield during Tuesday night’s contest in Wellsville. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Fillmore senior Mitch Ward (2) skips the ball past the defense of Wellsville senior Liam McKinley, off-center, during Tuesday night’s contest in Wellsville. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Fillmore senior Isaiah Voss, middle, battles alongside Wellsville senior Sam Schmidt (13) for the loose ball near midfield during Tuesday night’s game in Wellsville. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Wellsville senior Dominic Sawyer (6) clears the ball away from the reach of Fillmore junior Carter Sisson, center, during Tuesday night’s contest in Wellsville. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Wellsville junior Dylan Day (2) dribbles down the endline while under pressure, as Fillmore sophomore Zach Sisson (7) races in to defend during Tuesday night’s contest in Wellsville. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

WELLSVILLE — The temperatures were cool. The rain was falling down. It’s the kind of weather conditions that Fillmore head coach Jamie Mullen loves to have whenever it comes time to hit the field. The type of days that bring back a lot of memories when he was a soccer player himself.

“It's exciting,” he said. “I don't like hot days, I love cool days and honestly with the rain coming down, it brings back so much memories of playing soccer on grass fields. I was a tackler, and with the field being so wet, you didn't really hurt your skin much at all. It's one of those types of conditions where you just wanted to get down and battle.”

It wasn’t quite like the grass fields that Mullen remembered playing on, but it was a different surface that Fillmore is more than familiar with - turf, as they paid a visit to Wellsville on Tuesday where they took on the Lions in a battle of undefeated teams. For the Lions, they entered the game unbeaten in regulation despite a tie to Bolivar-Richburg.

For most of the night, the Eagles were overwhelming the Lions in their own defensive zone, pinning them deep while formulating multiple scoring chances on the offensive attack. The majority of them Fillmore could not cash in. But when they did, they made the most of it.

While keeping Wellsville in check for most of the night, the Eagles were able to go onto the attack, scoring a goal in each half of the 80 minute contest including a big goal in the last 10 minutes to extend their cushion to a pair, ultimately taking the 2-0 shutout to move to a 6-0 start on the season while handing the Lions their first regulation loss.

“There are four guys out there that are some of the toughest players that I’ve ever coached,” Mullen said. “We have to get everyone on the same page and sort it out. Adversity, like everything in life, will make or it will expose our flaws. The good news is, when you play your absolute non-best game and win 2-0, things are not that bad. We’re just going to build on it, and we have to get better. I’m never happy, even when we win 8-0. There’s always something better that we can keep shooting for. I’m playing for these guys to play college soccer someday.”

The Eagles (6-0) got off to a flying start as far as stacking up the chances against Wellsville, earning two corner kick chances in the first 10 minutes of play, as well as an early rush from Mitch Ward. Although the chances could not find the back of the Lions net, one of them did just past the halfway mark of the half.

After a foul by the Lions just outside the box, it set up a direct kick chance for Mason Cool. The Eagles senior took the shot, which went in between the legs of a Wellsville defender in front and past a diving Logan Dunbar by the far post to get Fillmore off and running with 23 minutes left in the half. The goal would build up more momentum for the visitors, as Ward continued to make his runs to the net. His next run was one that saw him finesse his way past the Lions defense to put a shot right to the chest of Dunbar in goal.

But nothing more would cross behind Dunbar in the first half, as the Eagles lead 1-0 at the half.

“Here’s what it is, we have to grow up,” Mullen said. “The nightmare every coach knows, is you enjoy it when things are smooth, you like being on the beach with the non-alcoholic mai tai. You win 8-0, or 7-1, and there’s nothing you can do to say things are going to be fine. It’s not going to be easy all the time. We have this primadonna, aristocratic notion, and we have to go back into the minds and figure out what it means to be a blue collar player. At the end of the day, we’re going to be in a game where we need that.”

Fillmore continued to keep the pressure pinned against Wellsville (4-1-1) in the first 10 minutes of the second half, nearly capitalizing on a pair of Lions turnovers in front of their own cage, including a near-header by Ward, and immediately on the next rush, a Ward cross in front of the net which was redirected high and wide off a foot.

On the next corner kick opportunity, Alex Ellsworth very nearly gave Fillmore a 2-0 lead after his kick slipped through the hands of Dunbar in between the pipes, and into the net with the time approaching halfway on the clock. Still maintaining all of the control in the game, the Eagles managed to crack through one last time with under eight minutes left, as Ward took a deep Brent Zubikowski ball and making a run with it. With his initial shot being blocked, Ward scampered his way into the zone for a humongous goal to extend Fillmore’s lead to a pair.

For Ward, it was his County-leading 12th goal of the season. Mullen says that he’s the kind of player he’s dreamt of having on his teams.

“Mitch is a phenomenal kid to coach. He is literally that kid. I’ve always dreamed of having that one kid who was 6-10, who could jump through the roof when I was coaching basketball. I got a Matt Dean out of it, but he was a two card. I wanted one guy that was so good, and Mitch has that potential for soccer. You don’t find a kid with the triple threat. The speed, the skill and the tenacity. The last kid I coached that would have stuck that kind of play, is Matt Beardsley. Mitch is going to be a special player, and he already is working his way there.”

When it was all said and done, Fillmore outshot Wellsville by a 12-3 count on offense, including a 4-to-1 ratio in the corner kick department (8-2). Dylan Valentine was credited with the shutout, despite being pulled late in the second half in favor of Luke Colombo, as he made a pair of saves. Dunbar on the other end would make nine saves for the Lions.

Both teams are back in action Thursday night, as Fillmore’s five-game road trip continues in their search for seven in a row at Genesee Valley in a 7 p.m. matchup. Wellsville on the other hand, will hit the road again for a 6 p.m. battle at Cuba-Rushford.

Genesee Valley 3, Scio 0

BELMONT — Will Scholes had a productive night on the field for Genesee Valley. Despite the inclement conditions coming into play, the Jaguars senior still managed to lead the way up front as they rolled their way toward a 3-0 shutout of visiting Scio, Tuesday night.

All three Genesee Valley (2-3-1) were scored in the second half of play, as both the Jaguars and Tigers found their way to the end of the first half with zeroes across the board. Scholes broke the ice nearly five minutes into the new session after taking a pass from Trent Scott at center to bury it to the Scio netting.

It would remain 1-0 up until the very end of the game, when the Jaguars put the icing on the cake with a pair of goals coming in the last two minutes of play, with Scholes finding the net a second time in that span. With 22 seconds remaining, Christian Tuttle earned a goal himself to wrap up shop for the offense.

“We had a bit of a slow start at first, in the first half. We had some opportunities that we should have capitalized on, but we couldn’t,” Jaguars coach Ryan McKnight said. “It was a back-and-forth battle right to the end, but the second half was a much better half of soccer from the guys.”

Keegan McKnight picked up the shutout victory for Genesee Valley, stopping all seven shots Scio (2-4-1) applied in the contest. On the flip side, Cory Bolzan made nine stops for the Tigers.

Both teams are back on the field on their home fields Thursday night in 7 p.m. contests, as Genesee Valley prepares to host the unbeaten Fillmore Eagles, while Scio heads back home to welcome in the Bolivar-Richburg Wolverines.

Bolivar-Richburg 3, Cuba-Rushford 1

BOLIVAR — The Wolverines and Rebels were deadlocked at one each through the first half of play. But before the time came to a close, Bolivar-Richburg would jump out in front. Little did Cuba-Rushford know, it was for good, as Mark Pangburn accounted for the next two goals in the game to lift the Wolverines into the driver’s seat, crossing the finish line with a 3-1 victory at home on a soggy Tuesday night.

Rudy Polk and Logan Lewis each got the Wolverines and Rebels started with a goal to bring the game to a 1-1 tie in the first half, with Lewis recording his goal with assistance from Tanner Lewis from center for the visitors. On the other end, Polk’s goal would come unassisted. With the tie in effect, Pangburn took matters into his own hands to break the tie going into halftime, as Polk delivered a pass to set up his goal for the hosts in black.

It would remain 2-1 up until Pangburn added his second goal of the night for the Wolverines (3-2-1), receiving a Dom Baldwin pass to help lay down the foundation that secured their victory over their County rivals.

Wayne Karnuth earned the win in goal for Bolivar-Richburg, stopping eight shots. Jarrett Campbell also made eight saves in between the pipes for Cuba-Rushford (1-3-1).

Both teams are back on the field Thursday night, as Bolivar-Richburg looks to keep things going over the road in Scio for a 7 p.m. contest. As for the Rebels, they head back home with a chance to turn things around with Wellsville coming to town for a 6 p.m. matchup.

Houghton Academy 5, Friendship 0

HOUGHTON — Through a scoreless tie in the first half of play, the cannons were firing on all cylinders for Houghton Academy on their home field, Tuesday night, as they scored all five goals in the next 40 minutes of play to boost their way toward a 5-0 win over Friendship.

“I wanted to give Friendship some credit, they were missing some guys but they fought all the way to the end,” said Panthers coach Jeff Prentice. “They worked really hard, but after a while, they really started to get gassed. We played very well in the second half, and we were passing the ball really well too.”

Simon Sardina led the Houghton Academy (3-2) offense with a pair of goals, scoring both of them back-to-back after brother, Henry Sardina opened up the scoring with one of his own. Following suit were Duy Le and Warren Torraca, adding a goal each.

On special teams, Malachi DeGolyer added two assists while Anna Huizenga dished out one to help a Panthers offense that recorded 33 total shots on the Friendship (0-3) net. In goal, Chris Habecker set aside all three shots he faced to preserve the shutout. Atlin Moore made 11 saves for the Golden Eagles.

Houghton Academy will get an extended period of time off to prepare for their next game, which takes place on Monday at 5 p.m. against Hinsdale over the road. As for Friendship, they’ll continue the quick turnarounds of soccer with a 7 p.m. road trip to Belfast tonight.

SWIMMING

Wellsville 80, Hornell 71

HORNELL — The Lady Sea Lions dove back into the water again, but this time, with no spectators in attendance for their first road trip of the season, as they went east to pay a visit to Steuben County and their longtime rivals Hornell on Tuesday.

Despite the subtraction from the meet, finding the win column was still on top of the minds of Wellsville. In the first half of their road meet, they went on to score four of the first five wins, collecting six first place finishes in all to move to a 3-0 start on the season with an 80-71 victory over the Lady Red Raiders.

“It was another solid meet where I let some of the younger girls go for the points to win us this meet while allowing the older girls to swim exhibition, and still get those Sectional times,” said Lady Sea Lions coach Steve Hand. “It’s nice to see some of the second or third year swimmers getting Sectional cuts and even some of the first year girls. Grace Kinnicutt and Morgan Mattison had good swims pushing each other, Allie Bidzerkowny and Kennedy Ewing both posted winning times. With a short season, we’re still figuring out where the girls can score us the most points.”

The 200 medley relay team of Emily Budinger, Allie Bidzerkowny, Kaylee Oswald and Reegan Perkins got things started for the Lady Sea Lions (3-0) in the water, swimming their way toward a first place 2:28.50 time to earn the first big points. Later on, Grace Kinnicutt, Sarah McCormick and Ashley Oswald ended the first half of the meet with three of the next four victories in the individual setting.

Kinnicutt picked up the first individual win of the night in the event following the medley relay, finishing with a 2:25.54 first place time in the 200 freestyle. After a Hornell win at the 200 individual medley relay, McCormick and Oswald went back-to-back to close things out, scoring wins in the 50 freestyle (31.56) and on the diving board (154.65) respectively.

At the start of the second half of the meet, Wellsville would close things up with two last wins from Kennedy Ewing in the 100 butterfly (1:27.35), and two events later, Kinnicutt recording her second individual victory of the night in the 500 freestyle (6:38.19).

Wellsville returns back home on Thursday for a 6:30 p.m. meet, as they look for a 4-0 start with Bath-Haverling coming to town.

Results:

200 Medley – 1. Wellsville (Budinger, Bidzerkowny, Oswald, Perkins) 2:28.50, 2. Wellsville, 3. Hornell.

200 Free – 1. Grace Kinnicutt (WLSV) 2:25.24, 2. Morgan Mattison (WLSV), 3. Brooklyn Ribble (HHS).

200 IMR – 1. Cecilia Wall (HHS) 2:53.90, 2. Allie Bidzerkowny (WLSV), 3. Emily Budinger (WLSV).

50 Free — 1. Sarah McCormick (WLSV) 31.56, 2. Serena Boussa (WLSV), 3. Willow Everett (WLSV).

Diving – 1. Ashley Oswald (WLSV) 154.65, 2. Kaylee Oswald (WLSV), 3. Makayla Kriner (HHS).

100 Fly – 1. Kennedy Ewing (WLSV) 1:27.35, 2. Makayla Kriner (HHS), 3. Talia O'Connor (WLSV).

100 Free – 1. Brooklyn Ribble (HHS) 1:09.86, 2. Allie Bidzerkowny (WLSV), 3. Kadience Gollinitz (HHS).

500 Free – 1. Grace Kinnicutt (WLSV) 6:38.19, 2. Morgan Mattison (HHS).

200 Relay – 1. Hornell (Kriner, Ribble, Gollinitz, Passero) 2:19.55, 2. Hornell.

100 Back – 1. Cecilia Wall (HHS) 1:22.42, 2. McKenna Donlon (HHS).

100 Breaststroke – 1. Gabby Passero (HHS) 1:44.94.

400 Free – 1. Hornell (Wall, Cotton, Passero, Ribble) 5:32.54.