Thursday Roundup: 24 hours following comeback at A-L, Lions repeat history with 3-run 7th inning to gallop past Haverling; GV/Belfast baseball, softball score big road wins

BATH — You could not have encapsulated a more overpowering comeback than what Wellsville dished out to open the season at Allegany-Limestone. 18 runs — 15 of them came in consecutive fashion, and 13 of those were in the last two innings of play to place a ferocious exclamation point on win number one to bring up the curtain on their campaign.

It was a game that the Lions wanted to have in order to refuel their chance for redemption against their turn-around opponent the very next night back over the road again — Bath-Haverling, a rematch of their previous meeting in the Class B2 Semifinals last postseason.

In order to keep the ball rolling into Myrtle Beach after this upcoming weekend, the Lions would have to engage in a near game-long chess match with their Class B counterparts right from the start. Runs were going to be difficult to come by, with three of the game’s six in total between the two teams coming across in the first three innings of play.

Two of those scores belonged to the Rams, who would continue to cling onto a 2-1 lead for much of the night. But as time passed, the action began to crescendo, especially in the top of the seventh where it would reach a boiling point. With two runners standing on base, the most prime of opportunities to overthrow Bath-Haverling from the throne arose.

Wellsville roared. And they have the red-hot Ty Vogel to thank for that.

After assembling a season-opening six-RBI night to spearhead the attack against the Gators, the Lions junior remained hotter than a firecracker to start his campaign by dispatching the team’s go-ahead sequence — a two-run double over the head of the Bath-Haverling outfielder and straight to the fence to claim their first lead since the second inning and hang onto it until the night was over, turning the game completely on its head by captaining yet another herculean comeback to post the 4-2 win over the Rams.

“The pitching we got today was solid from the back-end again. Last night, it was Brennen (Geffers) that came in to save the day, and tonight it was Gavin (Haggerty). He was efficient, he threw a lot of strikes and provided some really quick innings, pounded the strike-zone and did what he had to do to keep us in it,” said Lions coach Tom Delahunt. “Then, he led off the seventh with a big hit to get us going and Ty did the damage right after that. It’s really important to get off on a good note. We had three games on the schedule against Class B schools and it might make a world of difference when the end reaches. Getting two wins is huge, and we need to keep this up and keep it rolling so we can reap the benefits of it down the road.”

Wellsville and Bath-Haverling would deal a scoreless first inning of play before the scoring kicked into gear in the next offensive series between both teams, with Lions (2-0) breaking the ice first behind some exceptional base-running from Cooper Brockway to place himself in scoring position after solid at-bats from Karson Grover and Derek Coleman allowed him to gain passage to home plate for the first run.

The Rams would respond in the next two frames with a run in each, posting a pair of hits to formulate a game-tying response before swiping away the lead entirely in the third with what would wind up serving as their final run.

Despite falling back behind the eight-ball in the fourth inning, the Lions looked to their defense to keep themselves within reach of Bath-Haverling each step of the way. Led by the likes of Aiden Cowburn and Gavin Haggerty, the two hurlers would put the pieces of the puzzle together to hold the Rams scoreless in each of the remaining four innings of play to build a gigantic burst of momentum.

When the top of the seventh arrived in full effect, the visitors in black and orange put it all to good use behind Vogel’s scorching hot bat once again with runners on second and first. With one out on the board, the junior made the very most of the opportunity in front of him by delivering a game-altering detonation to deep left center field, pinballing the Lions back ahead once and for all to finish off their three-run frame.

The hit was Vogel’s lone knock in the contest, as Wellsville totaled four runs off five hits at the plate. Leading was Cooper Brockway with a pair, stealing two bases and scoring once along the way. On the mound, the win belonged to Haggerty during his tenure of relief, fanning two. As for the team’s starter, Aiden Cowburn struck out three and walked three across four innings.

Wellsville will now begin preparations for their home opener right before they take off down south this weekend, as they host Canisteo-Greenwood in the Lion’s Den at 1:30 p.m. on Saturday.

Wellsville 010 000 3 – 4 5 0

Bath-Haverling 011 000 0 – 2 5 3

WLSV – Aiden Cowburn (3K, 3BB), Gavin Haggerty (WP, 5) (2K) and Alex Green.

B-H – Eric Carney-Hendrix (5K, 3BB), Owen Smith (6), Thomas Mcnally (LP, 7) (K, BB), Dylan Wenban (7) and Dante Nealey.

Genesee Valley/Belfast 13, C.G. Finney 3 (F-5)

ROCHESTER — Behind a strong stand from Matt Cater at the plate to pair with a dynamic relief appearance from Owen Heaney in the late stages of their first road trip of the season Thursday night, Genesee Valley/Belfast took care of business against host C.G. Finney with a 13-3 victory after five innings to improve to 2-0 going into the holiday break.

Cater was outstanding for Genesee Valley/Belfast (2-0) to power up another spectacular showing at the plate, going a sublime 4-for-4 with four RBI, four runs scored and stole four bases out of the team’s 11 in total. As for Heaney, he managed to keep the door shut against the Falcons with a big tenure of relief beginning in the fifth inning, dealing a pair of strikeouts to keep their opposition frozen at the plate.

A complete box score of the action was not available to report upon publication.

Genesee Valley/Belfast is now off until after the Spring Break when they mark their return to the field with a 12 p.m. first pitch next Saturday afternoon against Alfred-Almond at the Rich Sullivan Complex in Belfast.

SOFTBALL

Genesee Valley/Belfast 20, Arkport-Canaseraga 2

ARKPORT — Following a first-game eruption against Hammondsport just a couple of days back in the rearview mirror, the Genesee Valley/Belfast ladies punched down on the gas at the plate once again while Hannah Southwick-Powers worked some more magic from within the circle to keep host Arkport-Canaseraga on their toes, congealing the two ingredients together to produce what was a 20-2 road win on Thursday in Arkport.

“Hannah wasn't on her best game tonight, but she's going to have those,” said GV/Belfast coach Mark Sullivan. “The offense hit the ball like crazy, from number one down to number nine in the lineup. 20 runs on 19 hits, you can't ask for much more than that. We were earning our way on base and we made everything happen off of it.”

Genesee Valley/Belfast (2-0) provided yet another five-alarm fire at the plate, posting 20 runs off 19 total hits. In the same swing, the squad would see seven different hitters record at least two of them. Amongst the contributors was a scorching hot 4-for-6 outing for Jenna Hill, belting a triple and double in the midst of her tenure to propel the attack. Whitney Young chipped in with three hits, while Hannah Southwick-Powers, Sondra Guilford, Abby Sullivan, Morgan Yackeren and Keanna Sands all scored two.

The bats would allow the visitors in black and gray to begin the festivities with a five-run opening term to break the ice against the Lady Wolves, setting the tone in the time ahead by nearly accounting for a run in six of the seven innings of action.

In the circle, Southwick-Powers took care of business with a four-hit twirling of the hosts in teal, striking out 14 and walking seven in her complete game gem.

For Arkport-Canaseraga, Mattie Kellogg recorded three of the team’s four hits. On the mound, Grace Groves fanned six and walked one in her complete game for the Lady Wolves.

Genesee Valley/Belfast is now off until the following weekend when they head back to the Rich Sullivan Complex in Belfast to welcome in Alfred-Almond for a 12 p.m. visit, next Saturday afternoon.

Genesee Valley/Belfast 501 218 3 – 20 19

Arkport-Canaseraga 100 000 1 – 2 4

GVB – Hannah Southwick-Powers (WP) (CG, 14K, 7BB) and Jenna Hill.

A/C – Grace Groves (LP) (CG, 6K, BB) and Nicole Merry.

BOYS TENNIS

Wellsville 3, Alfred-Almond 2

ALMOND — Similar to their season-opening battle with Addison to start their campaign, the Lions of Wellsville were in for yet another fight to the finish line over the road on Thursday in a titanic meeting of the boys tennis minds against Alfred-Almond.

All five matches between the two foes were decided in straight sets, but when it was all said and done, the Lions used a pair of strong performances from Adam Iantorno and Wheeler Dahlgren in the singles department to fuel their final victory of this month, as they deposited a 3-2 victory over the host Eagles to push towards a 2-0 start to their season.

Iantorno and Dahlgren both led the way in the singles matches for Wellsville (2-0), each recording a 6-1, 6-2 win in their respective matches, with Iantorno claiming victory over Patrick Power at first singles, while Dahlgren navigated towards his win over Noah Heffley at third singles. To ensure the match would remain in their favor, the visitors would use a dominant first doubles performance from Jonah Mac and Michael Bidzerkowny to put a bow on the win after a 6-1, 6-0 decision over Vincent Craft and Aeden O’Connor.

Alfred-Almond scored a pair of victories on the court, one in each department, with Liam Carstens scoring the team’s lone singles win in the midst of his second singles match against Wellsville’s Jeremiah Pensyl, claiming the 6-3, 6-1 decision. Down in the doubles department, the duo of Luca Reginio and Wyatt Worth rounded off the wins with a 6-2, 6-0 triumph over Isaac Mielke and Brayden Taggart at second doubles.

Coming up after the Spring Break, the Lions will mark their return to action in a 5 p.m. first serve back on the road, visiting the Fillmore Eagles at Houghton College on April 9.

Singles

1. Adam Iantorno (WLSV) def. Patrick Power (A-A), 6-1, 6-2.

2. Liam Carstens (A-A) def. Jeremiah Pensyl (WLSV), 6-3, 6-1.

3. Wheeler Dahlgren (WLSV) def. Noah Heffley (A-A), 6-1, 6-2.

Doubles

1. Jonah Mac/Michael Bidzerkowny (WLSV) def. Vincent Craft/Aeden O'Connor (A-A), 6-1, 6-0.

2. Luca Reginio/Wyatt Worth (A-A) def. Isaac Mielke/Brayden Taggart (WLSV) 6-2, 6-0.