Thursday Roundup: Fillmore tennis clinches Class B4 Finals berth, set another date with undefeated Naples for crown; Wellsville’s Parks fires medalist round at 2nd annual Girls Golf Day

HOUGHTON — Just a single footstep separates the Fillmore Eagles from a trip back to the Finals. They have dominated the tennis court match in and match out, but with the stars aligning for yet another meeting with powerhouse Naples waiting on the other side, the Eagles had to kick it into high gear on Thursday.

They were tasked with No. 3 Wheatland-Chili — a Wildcats team that features a doubles duo that eliminated Fillmore’s first doubles team of Ezra Knapp and Carson Sanasith during Individual Sectional play just a couple of weeks ago. Fast forward to present day, it was round two between the foes.

This time around, how about a redemption arc?

After falling in a close first-set defeat to begin their contest, Knapp and Sanasith battled back with a dominant second set finish to force what ultimately formulated into a super tiebreaker to end the match, as they managed to squeeze out the two-point cushion they needed to remain out in front of Wheatland-Chili’s Benjamin Allen and Gianluca D’angi, igniting what was a 4-1 team win for the Eagles to clinch their spot in the Class B4 Finals.

“The story of the night was Ezra and Carson. The team they played tonight was the same team that eliminated them from doubles Sectionals a short time ago. They started off well, but they lost some confidence and fumbled away the first set. After that, they really recovered and took over the match to close it out in a super-breaker,” Eagles coach Randy Crouch said. “I’m really proud of the fight they had. This was a great night for the team. Wheatland-Chili has a great program and they’re always tough to beat. I knew this would be our toughest battle this season, and that we’d have to play our best tennis to win. Mark (Wolfer) and Isaiah (Sisson) really came out of the corner swinging and closed their matches out early. Eben (Schilke) started off a little overhyped and had way too many unforced errors, but after about the fifth game, he dominated a pretty tough opponent. Even second doubles, in spite of losing, played their best match tonight as well.”

Knapp and Sanasith defeated Allen and D’angi by a 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (8-6) victory to help claim Fillmore’s (13-0) lone doubles victory in the match. The rest of the triumphant performances stemmed off another singles sweep from all three Eagles on the court, with Eben Schilke’s tough first singles match against Wheatland-Chili’s Ethan Hallock helping generate the path forward, as he shook off a back-and-forth first-set battle and finished his match strong to collect a 6-4, 6-1 win.

Isaiah Sisson and Marcus Wolfer would follow behind at second and third doubles, as they both chipped in dominant performances of their own, with Sisson claiming a 6-1, 6-1, win over Eli Orloff, while Wolfer rolled to a 6-2, 6-2 finish over Kyle Otto.

Fillmore’s second doubles team of Kallan Sanasith and Brayden Walton were downed by a 6-0, 6-4 count to Wheatland-Chili’s Sienna Makker and Kasey Tabor — their lone victory in the match.

Tonight, the Eagles will go for it all, as they prepare to square off with undefeated and top-seeded Naples for a third straight season in Sectional play. This time, in the Class B4 Finals, which will take place at Alfred-Almond in a 4 p.m. first serve.

“We’ve got two-time defending champion Naples up next. They have essentially the same lineup the last two years, and this will be the third year in a row where both of us will have met undefeated. We will need to find another level, but I know that we will be focused and ready to go.” Crouch said.

Singles

1. Eben Schilke (FIL) def. Ethan Hallock (W-C), 6-4, 6-1.

2. Isaiah Sisson (FIL) def. Eli Orloff (W-C), 6-1, 6-1.

3. Marcus Wolfer (FIL) def. Kyle Otto (W-C), 6-2, 6-2.

Doubles

1. Ezra Knapp/Carson Sanasith (FIL) def. Benjamin Allen/Gianluca D'angi (W-C), 4-6, 6-1, 7-6 (8-6).

2. Sienna Makker/Kasey Tabor (W-C) def. Kallan Sanasith/Brayden Walton (FIL), 6-0, 6-4.

[PHOTOS PROVIDED]

GOLF

Wellsville’s Parks shoots medalist round at 2nd Annual Girls Golf Day

RUSHFORD — With the regular season having come and gone and the wait for Team Sectional play now settling in, there was one more final piece of business to handle from upon the links at Allegheny Hills in Rushford on Thursday — the 2nd Annual Allegany County Girls Golf Day match.

Eight different golfers from four different schools were in attendance — four from Wellsville, two from Hinsdale, and one from both Friendship and Fillmore, to take in the sights and sounds of the golf course one more time, while enjoying every passing minute of it along the way.

When the end of the night arrived in full, Wellsville’s Maddy Parks was awarded first place for her performance, as she recorded the match’s medalist round of 54 to claim this year’s top honor.

“We started this last year and the kids all had a great time. I was able to talk to some of last year’s participants during the regular golf season, and they were asking me way back at the beginning of the season when Girls Day would be,” said Fillmore coach Tom Parks. “I think it has created something for the girls golfers to look forward to. It was fun to watch all of them play some quality golf. I just think they’re a little more in their comfort zone playing exclusively with other girls and getting to play from the Women’s tees as opposed to the men’s in the regular season.”

Following Parks on the leaderboard was Friendship’s Olivia Marks, who was not far behind the lead, as she recorded a second place finish with her round of 56. Jenna Sutton finished third behind her carding of a 59. As for the other competitors that took center stage: Hinsdale’s Lily Howell recorded a 68. Fillmore’s Grace Clark had a 71, while Wellsville’s Lexi Aftuck, Lane Joyce and Bella Arias rounded out the scoring with their scores of 73, 75 and 80 respectively.

“We will miss three senior ladies from this event next year, Olivia, Maddy and Lily. But, I am really looking forward to keeping this tradition going. Hopefully this will keep seeing more girls come out for this in the future.” said Parks.