Tuesday Roundup: Lions grapplers build off home tourney title, open regular season with strong 59-18 win over Addison; GV/Belfast, C-R, B-R triumph in boys County volleyball action

WELLSVILLE — Fresh off what was their first taste of tournament splendor this past weekend on their home mat, a giant boost of great vehemence was set in motion for the Wellsville Lions grapplers. Back inside their old stomping grounds at the Elementary School across town for the first time in a few years, day one of a new campaign had arrived.

On Tuesday, the Lions had hoped the glorious weekend would continue building up over the course of time with many tough challenges ahead, including a visit from the Addison Knights to open up their regular season — a test that wasn’t easy by any means.

It was a start that the hosts wanted to begin the night with to grab the early advantage on the Knights. One that was slimmed down entering the lightweight bouts, when the visitors in maroon began to tighten the pistons with pinfall wins in three consecutive matches to trim their deficit down to within a stone’s throw of their opposition.

As the page flipped into the later stages, the heat was on. But it was something that senior Jayden Acker handled quickly and efficiently.

With Addison beginning to close in on the Lions with minimal time remaining in the evening, Acker put a halt to all of the momentous energy that the Knights established with one of the quickest pinfalls of the evening against Noah Vall at 145 pounds. His win would then set off a match-ending streak of wins, four in a row to be exact, to help close out Wellsville’s successful regular season debut with a 59-18 win in front of a packed home crowd.

“We’re excited to start off back in the Elementary School again. It’s one of many changes we’re excited and glad for,” said Lions coach Tyler Carman. “Everything that happened this weekend with our tournament, it carried over into tonight. We’re excited about that, but we still have a ton of work to do. We’re still shaking off some of the rust from some of these weight classes, and we’re still looking to finalize our lineup. We had some new guys gain some great experience out there, and they did a great job with it.”

The evening would begin with Lions (1-0) senior standout Shane Davidson at 215 pounds, and what a brilliant start it was. One of Wellsville’s premier wrestlers wasted no time making his impact known with seven fast points out of the gate. The score would gradually build up until no more could be posted on the board, as Davidson settled for a 15-0 technical fall victory over Addison’s Camden Mahnke to break the ice.

Carman said with a senior like Davidson, he was more than pleased with the start he was able to garner.

“Any time we can put a senior with that much experience on the mat like Shane Davidson has to start the match, that’s going to bring some great energy to the guys and this gym,” he said. “We know that he works hard for matches like this. We trust him and he is able to get the job done. He’s a great kid, not just as a wrestler, but as a student. You can ask anyone, they would tell you the same thing about him. That’s the most exciting part about his character.”

The start continued on with three more victories in a row, including the quickest pin of the night for the Lions immediately after Davidson’s dominant beginning. Evin Rought was responsible for it during his bout at 285 pounds, as he picked up the pinfall win in just 39 seconds to add to the lead.

After Blake Geffers and Jayden Acker each added forfeit wins at 102 and 110 pounds, it was Addison’s turn to get on the board.

The Knights would account for the next three wins in a row, all via pinfall, beginning with Justin Wise and his second round takedown against David Clark at 118 pounds. The takedown would then put him in a position to record the pinfall victory with 53 seconds remaining in the period to claim the team’s first victory. One match later, the fastest pin of the night from Jacob Howe, as he tallied a 35-second pin of Hayden Cunningham at 126 pounds.

Cade Sands would then add one final victory for the visitors at 132 pounds, cutting their deficit down to five with a pinfall triumph of his own in 49 seconds during the opening round over Jack Cicirello.

“Addison has a great group of kids, and we know they’re going to bring a tough fight every year that we face them,” Carman said. “They came prepared, and their three lightweights are some of their most competitive kids over there. We knew that coming in, but we did what we could. But with Brayden (Riley) coming in at 145, he stepped it up for us to get us right back in the match to put us where we needed to be.”

But then the momentum was halted, as Wellsville would seize control once and for all. They can thank Brayden Riley for that.

After a Landon Stratton forfeit win at 138 pounds for the Lions, another stellar case of senior leadership would blossom into perhaps a match-changing exchange of power, as Riley took care of business at 145 pounds in the midst of a scrappy tussle with Addison’s Noah Vall in just 44 seconds to regain traction on their advantage, ultimately for good.

The win was one of five straight that Wellsville would close out the night with, including a bounty of second period points from Matt Ritter at 152 pounds, recording 10 of them in all to build a big lead against Spencer Westervalt. After multiple near-falls on the mat, Ritter was able to gain the right position to force Westervalt into a pin with 18 seconds remaining before the final period of action kicked into gear.

The Lions closed out their match with back-to-back forfeit wins from Evan Buchholz (160 pounds) and Noah Black (172 pounds) before Blake Cranmer survived an early back-and-forth duel with Kora Jones at 189 pounds to record the team’s final pin-fall win with six ticks left on the clock in the opening period.

All the energy from a big season-opening victory has now been loaded into the wheelhouse ahead of this weekend’s meet-up in Arkport for their annual Holiday Dual tournament. As for the outlook ahead, Carman says with a mixed bag of freshmen and sophomores along with his five seniors, the goal is simple: Keep getting better day after day.

“It's a young group of kids, a young corps of freshmen and sophomores mixed in with our senior leadership,” he said. “We're going to keep taking things one day at a time, and try to keep getting better. We're off to a great start with some tough challenges ahead. These guys show up, they do a great job of being accountable, they do great in school and they work incredibly hard on the mat.”

The Arkport Holiday Dual Tournament will get set to get underway, beginning Saturday morning. Wellsville will resume regular season play next Tuesday night on the road, visiting the Bolivar-Richburg Wolverines for a 6:15 p.m. bout.

Results

102 – Blake Geffers (WLSV) by for.

110 – Jayden Acker (WLSV) by for.

118 – Justin Wise (ADD) def. David Clark (WLSV) by pin, 3:07.

126 – Jacob Howe (ADD) def. Hayden Cunningham (WLSV) by pin, :35.

132 – Cade Sands (ADD) def. Jack Cicirello (WLSV) by pin, :49.

138 – Landon Stratton (WLSV) by for.

145 – Brayden Riley (WLSV) def. Noah Vall (ADD) by pin, :44

152 – Matt Ritter (WLSV) def. Spencer Westervalt (ADD) by pin, 3:42.

160 – Evan Buchholz (WLSV) by for.

172 – Noah Black (WLSV) by for.

189 – Blake Cranmer (WLSV) def. Kora Jones (ADD) by pin, 1:54.

*215 – Shane Davidson (WLSV) def. Camden Mahnke (ADD) by tech fall, 15-0.

285 – Evin Rought (WLSV) def. Collin Brown (ADD) by pin, :39.

-* indicates starting weight -

BOYS BASKETBALL

Genesee Valley/Belfast 55, Hinsdale 24

BELFAST — Almost every Genesee Valley/Belfast shooter that saw the floor made a contribution to fuel the team’s hot start on Tuesday, one that they never looked back on against visiting Hinsdale to pick up their third win in the first four games of the season, coasting towards a 55-24 home win in Belfast.

The all-out balanced attack across the board for Genesee Valley/Belfast (3-1) kicked into gear right from the opening tip, as they used both ends of the floor to seize control of the battle with a 14-2 lead over the Bobcats right away. With it, their lead grew larger as time went on, as they never looked back on their strong start to lock up the win.

Leading the offense for Genesee Valley/Belfast was Kadin Logue, who had a team-high eight points. Brayden Cooper, Ian McKenzie and Max Wedge all had six points each to add in.

On the other side for the Bobcats (0-3), Henry Schwartz sank three of the team’s five total three-pointers from long range, for nine game-high points. Xander Pascucci had eight points. Hinsdale will head back home to host Houghton Academy on Monday, beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Up next, Genesee Valley/Belfast will head down south to Cowanesque Valley to partake in tournament action beginning with a 7 p.m. contest with Northern Potter in the opening round. Following their battle, Andover/Whitesville will take on host Cowanesque Valley to round off the evening at 8:45 p.m.

Hinsdale 2 9 9 4 – 24

Genesee Valley/Belfast 14 18 12 11 – 55

HINSDALE: Xander Pascucci 3 1-2 8, Brad Bergstrom 1 0-0 2, Joe Nevert 1 0-0 2, Henry Schwartz 3 0-0 9, Tyler Richards 1 0-0 3. Totals: 9 1-2 24.
GV/BELFAST: Brayden Cooper 3 0-0 6, Kadin Logue 3 2-2 8, Owen Heaney 1 0-0 2, Lance Vohs 1 0-0 2, Elden Aquila 2 0-0 4, Daemon Cobb 0 1-2 1, Kyle McCumiskey 2 0-0 4, Ian McKenzie 3 0-0 6, Max Wedge 3 0-0 6, Jacob Borden 1 0-0 2, Killian McKnight 1 0-2 2, Thai Norasethaporn 2 0-0 4, Fisher Herdman 2 0-2 4, Ryan Daciw 2 0-2 4. Totals: 26 3-8 55.
3-point goals: Hinsdale 5 (Schwartz 3, Pascucci, Richards).
Total Fouls: Hinsdale 6, GVB 3. Fouled out: None.

GIRLS BASKETBALL

Olean 48, Wellsville 43

OLEAN — Despite a back-and-forth battle for much of the night off to the west, the Wellsville Lady Lions could not find a way to extinguish an incredible night from Olean’s Leah Williams and her game-high 36 points out of the team’s 48 in all, while the team capitalized on multiple second chance baskets along the way that proved to be a massive difference maker in their narrow 48-43 home win on Tuesday.

“It was a close and good game, and we played much better and improved from the first game. But the second half was the big difference,” said Lady Lions coach Michelle Alvord. “We missed a lot of shots early on to try and get going, and the second chance points that they had really hurt us. We still went back and forth with Olean despite that.”

All four quarters were closely contested from start to finish, with Olean garnering the night’s first lead after a quiet opening frame of play. With the Lady Huskies still maintaining their lead, they would use a big moment in the second half to grab a higher upper hand on the Lady Lions (0-2) — a go-ahead basket with under 10 seconds left in the third quarter that would shift the balance of power in their direction, ultimately for good to outlast their opposition for the victory.

Despite the loss, Lindsay Stuck recorded a fine effort to pace the Lady Lions offense with a team-high 12 points, pairing them with six rebounds. Sara Reitz chipped in with nine points, while Natalie Adams and Emily Robbins each had six, with Robbins grabbing six additional rebounds. Makenna Dunbar grabbed a team-high 11 boards and dished out three assists, while Averee Palmatier had six rebounds to finish off the special teams contributions along the way.

Prior to the Varsity battle, Wellsville’s JV squad defeated Olean by a 43-26 count with Caelyn Stevens and her nine points paving the way.

Wellsville will look to bounce back down south at Cowanesque Valley this Friday night, as they partake in opening round action beginning in a 5:15 p.m. tip-off against North Penn-Mansfield.

Wellsville 6 10 14 13 – 43

Olean 7 10 15 16 – 48

WELLSVILLE: Lindsay Stuck 5 2-4 12, Natalie Adams 3 0-0 6, Edahlia Sebastian 0 1-2 1, Emily Robbins 1 3-6 6, Sara Reitz 4 0-0 9, Averee Palmatier 1 3-4 5, Makenna Dunbar 1 2-5 4. Totals: 15 11-21 43.
OLEAN: Ava Smith 1 0-0 2, Jez Fayson 2 0-2 4, Olivia Kratts 3 0-0 6, Leah Williams 12 10-13 36. Totals: 18 10-15 48.
3-point goals: Wellsville 2 (Robbins, Reitz), Olean 2 (Williams).
Total Fouls: Wellsville 14, Olean 19. Fouled out: Stuck (WLSV).

Mount Morris 42, Friendship/Scio 36

MOUNT MORRIS — Friendship/Scio did everything they could to hang stride-for-stride with host Mount Morris on Tuesday in their first big road trip of the season. In the midst of a teeter-totter battle, a shift of momentum would occur during one of the game’s most opportune times: the final eight minutes of play.

For the Lady Blue Devils, it was one they strived for.

Down by a single possession, the hosts in white and blue turned up the heat insurmountably with one final run to streak past Friendship/Scio, taking the lead in the process and hanging onto it until the final buzzer sounded to record what would be a 42-36 home victory.

“We were running out of gas, but I had some girls that were really putting the effort in. We had some great things come out of this game tonight,” said Friendship/Scio coach Ashleigh Lewis. “We weren’t going to go undefeated, so hopefully we can put something together again for them next time in a couple of weeks. This is a hard loss to take, but there’s a long season ahead and there’s plenty of room and time to keep improving.”

Part of Mount Morris’ key towards success was a stellar performance led by Maria Caceres Pou, who totaled a game-high 24 points — 15 of them from long range off all five of the team’s three-pointers in the battle. The Lady Blue Devils would overcome an early and narrow deficit in the opening eight minutes to take the lead themselves going into the break.

After exchanging back-and-forth pleasantries to start the second half that saw Friendship/Scio (1-1) jump back ahead, the Lady Blue Devils made sure they had the last say with a massive 15-7 shapeshifting run in the last eight minute period to ensure their victory in the end.

Friendship/Scio saw Kadence Donohue and Nevaeh Ross lead the way on offense with 22 points combined of the team’s 36 in all, with Donohue fronting the efforts with her team-high 12 points, while Ross followed with 10. Sophie Bolzan and Kiara Grover both had four points to round off the efforts. On special teams, Grover grabbed a team-leading seven rebounds off the glass.

Up next is the Scio Christmas Tournament, which will get set to commence Thursday night with Cuba-Rushford and Houghton Academy kicking off in a 6 p.m. battle. Following is the nightcap between Hinsdale and host Friendship/Scio, beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Friendship/Scio 8 10 11 7 – 36

Mount Morris 7 12 8 15 – 42

FRIENDSHIP/SCIO: Sophie Bolzan 2 0-0 4, Kadence Donohue 5 1-4 12, Morghyn Ross 1 0-0 2, Lexi Crossley 1 0-0 2, Nevaeh Ross 3 2-3 10, Kiara Grover 1 2-3 4, Jenn Dickens 1 0-0 2. Totals: 14 5-10 36.

MOUNT MORRIS: Emyah Green 3 3-6 9, Cadence Stroud 2 0-0 4, Denishka Valentin 1 1-2 3, Maria Caceres Pou 8 3-4 24, Alysecia Young 1 0-0 2, Shayla Brown 0 0-2 0. Totals: 15 5-14 42.
3-point goals: F/S 3 (N. Ross 2, Donohue), Mt. Morris 5 (Caceres Pou).
Total Fouls: F/S 19, Mt. Morris 13. Fouled out: None.

Bolivar-Richburg 59, Houghton Academy 41

BOLIVAR — Jessica Prentice and Malayna Ayers each put on a clinic for their respective teams all across the hardwood on Tuesday.

The two sharpshooters combined for 55 total points in an up-and-down battle that saw Bolivar-Richburg work their way ahead on a strong note in the opening eight minutes. Before the first half closed up, Houghton Academy would have their say at providing a strong response themselves.

As a result, the two first half runs would create some even playing ground heading into the break. With it, an opportunity to break free from the opposition in the third quarter.

The Lady Wolverines would go on to do just that, as they connected on all fronts on the floor with their offense igniting an enormous spark, while the defense in turn held Houghton Academy to just a single shot from the field to escape their grasp and stride their way towards a 59-41 home win.

“We made a few changes at the half, and we came out strong, which is exactly what we had talked about,” said Lady Wolverines coach Hadley Ferris. “The second half was like everything had finally clicked. Everyone played an important part in this win. Malayna led us with a great game behind 25 points, and stellar defense. It’s nice to see all the girls work hard, and even more nice to see them have the drive to succeed.”

A fiery night from Ayers would begin from within the opening eight minute period for Bolivar-Richburg (2-1), as the senior found her groove with half of the team’s 22 points, helping front a balanced attack against the Lady Panthers to jumpstart a 22-14 lead.

With the lead in hand, it quickly evaporated in the second quarter when Prentice formulated a response of her own to pace the Lady Panthers (0-2) and their 12-5 run that would close the gap to a single point at the break, as she scored 11 of the team’s 12 points in the frame. With her big quarter, the Lady Wolverines lead would shrink from eight to one.

But in the second half, the momentum swayed back into the favor of Bolivar-Richburg for the remainder of the game, as one final session of balanced attack paired alongside a stellar stand of defense helped the stars align a 15-3 third quarter run that allowed them to maintain their position at the front until the end, securing the win along the way.

Finishing behind Ayers and her team-high 25 points was Nadia Baldwin, who chipped in 13 points of her own. Carmen Crowley and Caitlyn Steiner each provided six points. For the Lady Panthers, Jessica Adenuga helped the cause with nine points, while Laura Mayo rounded off with a two-point basket.

Both teams are back in action Thursday night on the road, with the Lady Wolverines crossing the border down to the south for a 7:30 p.m. tip-off at Oswayo Valley, while Houghton Academy heads to Scio to partake in the annual Christmas Tournament, as they help kick off the festivities with a 6 p.m. opening round battle with Cuba-Rushford.

Houghton Academy 14 12 3 12 – 41

Bolivar-Richburg 22 5 15 17 – 59

HOUGHTON ACADEMY: Jessica Prentice 12 5-6 30, Jessica Adenuga 3 3-6 9, Laura Mayo 1 0-0 2. Totals: 16 8-12 41.
BOLIVAR-RICHBURG: Nadia Baldwin 6 0-0 13, Emma Sisson 1 0-0 3, Raegan Giardini 1 0-0 2, Carmen Crowley 3 0-0 6, Rylee Whiting 2 0-0 4, Malayna Ayers 11 0-0 25, Caitlyn Steiner 3 0-0 6. Totals: 27 0-0 59.

3-point goals: HA 1 (Prentice), B-R 5 (Ayers 3, Baldwin, Sisson).
Total Fouls: HA 9, B-R 16. Fouled out: None.

BOYS VOLLEYBALL

Genesee Valley/Belfast 3, Wellsville 1

BELMONT — After a close battle with Wellsville right out of the gate on Tuesday, host Genesee Valley/Belfast was able to buckle down and push their opposition to the brink.

Despite a third-set rally to trim the advantage in half, Genesee Valley/Belfast was able to hang on and capture the four-set victory behind a dominant finish, by a 25-21, 25-15, 15-25, 25-12 count.

“I was really excited. We played really well, and we have three guys back from last year with experience,” GV/Belfast coach Darren Bradt said. “The rest are all new, and there were a few of them that really came up with some consistent serves to help set everything up for us tonight. They have a lot of heart and they will get on the floor, which is something that I love. Everything will come along, and it should be a fun season to see where things will go.”

Sean Mahon helped ignite a strong showing of offense for Genesee Valley/Belfast (1-1), as he recorded a game-high 12 kills to go with his one ace. Canaan Sullivan was not far behind with 10 more kills of his own. Dominic Marra had 24 assists at the front to pair with two kills and an ace.

Wellsville (1-1) was paced by a seven-kill attack from Xavier Scott, as he added three aces and a dig along the way. Gavan Dickerson chipped in with five assists, two aces and a kill, while Lucius Griggs rounded off with two kills, two assists and one more ace.

Both teams are back in action Friday night in a pair of 6 p.m. first serves over the road, with Genesee Valley/Belfast traveling to Fillmore while Wellsville looks to rebound at Bolivar-Richburg.

Cuba-Rushford 3, Fillmore 1

CUBA — The defending Allegany County League champions soared their way towards victory to begin their season back on Friday, and kept the momentum in their favor during their return home to the Wighthouse on Tuesday.

Although visiting Fillmore was able to create even playing ground after the first two sets of the night, the Rebels regrouped and put together a strong finish to hold off their late push down the stretch, securing their home opening triumph in four sets by a 25-20, 15-25, 25-16, 25-19 count.

“Fillmore has improved a lot since last year. They have made it very difficult for us to get into a rhythm offensively,” said Rebels coach Nick Perillo. “They started to wake up toward the end of the first set and then continued to take it to us in the second. I’m proud of my boys for being able to deal with the adversity and battle back to win two in a row to start the season.”

The Rebels (2-0) victory was paced by a strong offensive night from Allen Fuller, who set everything up for the attack with his game-high 14 assists, pairing them with six aces from the back line and three kills. Anderson Siegel chipped in with five kills of his own, while Haven Kellogg added in three aces, two kills and two more assists.

On the other side, Fillmore (0-2) provided some strong service with Nathan Tanner and Skylar Freeman leading the way with a combined 17 service points, with Tanner recording 11 and Freeman rounding off with six more.

Friday night, both teams will resume play in a pair of 6 p.m. battles, with the Rebels hitting the road for a big clash with Allegany-Limestone while the Eagles look to rebound back home with Genesee Valley/Belfast in town for a visit.

Bolivar-Richburg 3, Friendship/Scio 2

SCIO — It was a fight that the Wolverines of Bolivar-Richburg had to work their way back from behind in, Tuesday night. After garnering the start they wanted against Friendship/Scio on the road, the bounce back from the hosts was doubled.

Friendship/Scio proceeded to push the Wolverines towards the brink with two epic battles that were decided by no more than three points, including the third set where they tallied the win in extra serves.

But in the end, Bolivar-Richburg found a way to shake it off, as they found an opening to work their way through in the night’s remaining two sets to tie and then, complete their rally from behind to capture the five-set, 25-20, 22-25, 24-26, 25-18, 15-7 win.

Leading the efforts for the Wolverines (1-1) was Jaeger Turybury and his explosive night on offense, recording a game-high 10 kills to pair with six aces and a pair of blocks. Hunter Walp followed behind with his efforts, chipping in with seven additional kills, five aces and two blocks.

Ian Unfus would round off the scoresheet for the visitors in black with a heavy hand at the front of the net, handing out 15 assists to couple alongside five kills, three blocks and two aces from the back line.

On the other side of the net, Friendship/Scio (0-2) was led by Jordan White on the attack, as he recorded six kills, three blocks and two aces. Max Morris had 10 service points, five kills and five blocks, while Eli Wade rounded off the offensive production with a team-high 13 service points.

On special teams, Lawson Ector handed out 11 assists to go with his seven kills. Friendship/Scio will return to action on the road at Arkport/Canaseraga, Thursday night in a 6 p.m. first serve.

Bolivar-Richburg will look to keep finding the win column back home on Friday in a 6 p.m. contest of their own, as they welcome in Wellsville for battle.