Saturday Sectionals: GV/Belfast boys, Allegany County’s last soccer team standing, stymied in C2 Finals after quick start by Kendall; Wellsville volleyball sweeps Mynderse to move into B Semifinals

HONEOYE FALLS — After three rounds of relentless and competitive soccer, the big stage was now reached. Championship Saturday, a day like no other in Section V. That feeling was felt by Allegany County’s very last team standing on the pitch this Fall.

Out of the eight teams that had to make the trek up north to Honeoye Falls-Lima for the day of ultimate grandeur, the Genesee Valley/Belfast boys had the furthest drive of them all, ringing in at around 65 miles. In their first run through the Class C2 bracket as a combined unit, they have done it all, rolling past No. 6 Harley Allendale-Columbia in the Quarterfinals before outlasting an unbelievably difficult challenge from No. 2 Dundee/Bradford in the Semifinals this past Wednesday in Hornell to earn their spot in the Finals.

Now, the No. 3 seeds were 80 minutes away. But so was their opponent — No. 1 Kendall, a team looking for long-awaited glory themselves, for the first time since 1998.

The two teams showcased an exorbitant amount of speed and quickness moving the ball all over the field from beginning to end. But three minutes into battle, the tone was set.

The Eagles took flight.

Right in the first 10 minutes, the top-seeds hailing from Kendall raced at the speed of light to deliver a massive 1-2 punch against Genesee Valley/Belfast, claiming an early lead that remained in reach for the No. 3 seeds later on, but was pushed further away once more before the end of the half with their third marker. Their halftime advantage they created ultimately withstood the test of time in the last 40 minutes of play to capture the Class C2 Championship brick with a 3-1 victory.

“We talked about it, the first 10 minutes. That was going to be important,” said GV/Belfast coach Mark Sullivan. “We controlled a lot of the game after that to get some more chances, and I thought if we could get it to halftime 2-1, we could make some big adjustments. But when they scored that third goal right before the half ended, it took the wind right out of our sails. We were pinching guys up to try and build off of it, but I don’t think we were able to get that momentum back again. Today just wasn’t meant to be.”

All four markers between the two teams were posted in the opening half, with Kendall’s electric start setting up shop in a hurry. The Eagles broke the ice nearly three minutes off the kick at midfield, capitalizing on an attempt to keep the ball pinned deep in the Genesee Valley/Belfast zone. The No. 3 seeds struggled to clear the ball out from the middle of their respective cage, but a rush straight into the madness in front from Pablo Rosario-Reyes allowed him to jar the ball loose and fire an absolute curler into the far post past keeper Zach Thomas and into the net to open the scoring.

Colby Hughes was the next in line for Kendall to unload a strike, using his footwork to finesse through the Genesee Valley/Belfast defense, shaking a couple of defenders off before launching a rocket of a shot right into the far side of the net to double the Eagles lead in an instant. Despite falling into the early hole, Genesee Valley/Belfast would ramp up the pressure on the Eagles exponentially to create major chances of their own.

That pressure build-up on the opposite end of the pitch would eventually boil over with 10:33 left in the half, as Genesee Valley/Belfast carved the deficit in half after a tremendous effort from Will Guilford to keep the ball alive in the far corner, pickpocketing the ball from his attacker to fire across a ball that landed directly on the head of Evan Turybury for a wide-open score.

But just when the momentum began to sway in the favor of the No. 3 seeds, Kendall pushed it back again. This time, permanently, as Rosario-Reyes put away his second goal of the game off a pretty passing play down into the Genesee Valley/Belfast zone, working his way towards the far post to knock in a missile straight to the near side.

The advantage for Kendall eventually froze in place all throughout the last 40 minutes of play, as their defense kept Genesee Valley/Belfast at bay to become Class C2 Champions.

The Eagles finished with an 11-7 shot advantage over Genesee Valley/Belfast, with Thomas making eight saves between the posts.

A masterful 2024 campaign on the pitch is now officially over for Genesee Valley/Belfast, as they put a wrap on a record of 15-3-1 overall. The team will graduate seven seniors when the time comes to walk across the stage this June, as they say farewell to Turybury, Thomas, Sal Gambino, Jordan White-Phipps, Brayden Cooper, Ryan Snyder and Alexander McLaughlin.

“It’s a heck of a season that we put together, these boys making it to the Finals for the first time across any sport during the merger,” Sullivan said. ”I told them to be proud of what they accomplished and what they achieved. Kendall is a skilled team up front, they trapped the ball well, they possessed really well. But that’s how it’s supposed to be at this stage of the game. The farther you go, the better the teams are. I wish the seven seniors the best in their futures ahead, but for the younger kids, they now have a really good taste of what this experience is like.”

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

Class B Quarterfinals

No. 3 Wellsville 3, No. 6 Mynderse 0

WELLSVILLE — While all the other Allegany County teams took the court to begin their Sectional quests, the Lady Lions of Wellsville had to wait patiently for their first opportunity to start theirs until Saturday, as the No. 3 seeds took their home court for the very last time this Fall.

That wait however, it was worth it.

With the No. 6 Mynderse Lady Blue Devils in for a visit, the Lady Lions were met with a tough challenge. But through it all, they went on to start their playoff run with the most solid of notes, outlasting their opposition in a third set that was pushed to extra action to record the straight-set, 25-20, 25-17, 27-25 victory.

“It was a great win to get under our belts, especially because our team had been fighting a lot of sickness leading up to this point,” said Lady Lions coach Shannon Steiner. “The girls kept their momentum even though they weren’t feeling well, and though it got really close at points. I was very proud of them for being able to stay composed and get the win.”

Makenna Dunbar had the honor of leading the Wellsville (14-4) offense with 10 big kills at the front of the net, adding them alongside eight digs and four blocks. Lindsay Stuck powered the defense, keeping the ball off the floor with 13 team-leading digs to pair with eight kills of her own. Natalie Adams chipped in eight more kills, seven digs and two aces, while Lexi Irish rounded off with 32 assists, adding them along with six digs, three aces and a block.

The Lady Lions now navigate into the Class B Semifinal round on Wednesday, where they now take on their archrival — the No. 2 Hornell Lady Red Raiders, for a spot in next weekend’s Finals. Time for first serve in Hornell has yet to be announced.