Saturday Roundup: Lady Sea Lions continue hot start, swim past Salamanca in home matinee; B-R, Ark/Can share Brock Young Tourney title

Written By Chris Brooks

WELLSVILLE — It was just the second meet of the season in the water for the defending champion Lady Sea Lions of Wellsville, and on Saturday, it seems the team is beginning to swim in mid-season form.

With Salamanca in town for a matinee visit to the Lion’s Den, the Lady Sea Lions picked right back up where they left off from their season opener against Letchworth, as they provided yet another strong showing out of the gate, sweeping all of the first half events before adding four more triumphs in the back half, compiling nine total wins to come away victorious with a 99-75 win over the Lady Warriors.

“It was the second meet of the year, and the girls are swimming mid-season times,” Lady Sea Lions coach Steve Hand said. “The first relay team had a pretty fast time to start our meet off. Some of the girls are swimming different events to see what they are swimming come Sectionals. The team looks like they are headed in the right direction. We head to Livonia next week, and we’ll have some great matchups, some good swims and hopefully some better times. It’s a good mixture of younger and older kids scoring the points, and it’s a good feeling to have that.”

The 200 Medley relay kicked off the first half sweep for the Lady Sea Lions (2-0), as the team of Tiernee Brandes, Hayden Waldon, Grace Kinnicutt and Morgan Mattison raced their way toward victory behind a winning 2:08.94 time to set the tone right away. Both Brandes and Kinnicutt would pick up individual wins of their own to help further the cause in the water, with Brandes earning the medaling time in the 200 Individual Medley (2:39.15), and Kinnicutt in the 50 Freestyle (29.28).

Finishing off the perfect opening half were two more individual wins from Isabelle Hart and Kaylee Oswald on the board, as Hart swam victoriously with a 2:25.07 time in the 200 Freestyle, while Oswald provided a superb 175.22 winning score to close it out.

In the next half, the Lady Sea Lions would go on to pick up right where they left off with their last four victories coming consecutively, with Waldon starting off with the victory in the 100 Butterfly event (1:12.18). Ellie LaBenne and Kennedy Ewing would follow with the team’s final individual victories with winning times of their own, in the 100 (1:07.06) and 500 Freestyle events (6:16.72) respectively.

Wellsville would also go on to record one final relay victory from the team of Waldon, Hart, Brandes and Emily Budinger, as the four Lady Sea Lions came together to produce a triumphant 1:58.92 time in the 200 Medley Relay to close out a near perfect meet in the water.

The nearly garnered momentum will be put to the test for the Lady Sea Lions after the weekend, as they now hit the road Tuesday night for a 5 p.m. tussle with their Livingston County League rival, Livonia.

Team Score: Salamanca 75, Wellsville 99

Results

200 Medley – 1. Wellsville (Brandes, Waldon, Kinnicutt, Mattison) 2:08.94, 2. Wellsville, 3. Salamanca.

200 Free – 1. Isabelle Hart (WLSV) 2:25.07, 2. Reegan Perkins (WLSV), 3. Sarah McCormick (WLSV).

200 IMR – 1. Tiernee Brandes (WLSV) 2:39.15, 2. Camryn Quigley (SAL), 3. Emily Budinger (WLSV).

50 Free – 1. Grace Kinnicutt (WLSV) 29.28, 2. Jem Yarbour (SAL), 3. Charli Ross (SAL).

Diving – 1. Kaylee Oswald (WLSV) 175.22, 2. Ashley Oswald (WLSV), 3. Gabby Bly (SAL).

100 Fly – 1. Hayden Waldon (WLSV) 1:12.18, 2. Reegan Perkins (WLSV), 3. Kaelyn Crawford (WLSV).

100 Free – 1. Ellie LaBenne (WLSV) 1:07.06, 2. Emily Budinger (WLSV), 3. Jem Yarbour (SAL).

500 Free – 1. Kennedy Ewing (WLSV) 6:16.72, 2. Allie Bidzerkowny (WLSV), 3. Charli Ross (SAL).

200 Relay – 1. Wellsville (Budinger, Waldon, Hart, Brandes) 1:58.92, 2. Wellsville, 3. Salamanca.

100 Back – 1. Mackenzie Crouse (SAL) 1:34.21, 2. Gabby Bly (SAL), 3. Addison Follman (SAL).

100 Breaststroke – 1. Mikaela Tennity (SAL) 1:32.75, 2. Emmalee Ground (SAL), 3. Myra Breazeale (SAL).

400 Free – 1. Salamanca (Erlandson, Crouse, Follman, Breazeale) 5:35.61, 2. Salamanca.

BOYS SOCCER

Brock Young Tournament: B-R, Ark/Can share title, C-R edges Scio in OT

SCIO — The Brock Young Invitational Tournament reached its conclusion Saturday night under the lights in Scio, as both games put on display provided a bit of excitement for spectators in attendance with both games requiring extra time to complete.

One game reached a final decision, and the other resulted in the County’s first tie of the season. To lead off the evening, Cuba-Rushford and Scio exchanged multiple deadlocks across the second half until it was permanently broken near halfway of the first overtime, when a call was made inside the Scio goalkeeper’s box.

That resulted in a penalty kick chance for Chandler Wirth, who capitalized with 6:30 remaining to finish off their back-and-forth victory with the Tigers in a 3-2 overtime win in the Consolation game.

“I’m just happy for this group of guys to get their first win after the first two tough losses,” said Rebels coach Nick Perillo. “We had multiple guys score their first goals and the team was very happy to have triumphed. Credit to Scio, because they never gave up, and they have some very talented players that made this very difficult for us all night.”

Each team had their fair share of chances in the opening half in the midst of a back-and-forth midfield battle, with the best of chances coming from Ethan Davenport for Scio (0-3), who gained possession on two consecutive rushes down the field, while on the other side in the early stages of the half, Wirth broke away from the Tigers defense with an opportunity on goal, but could not cash in.

In the second half, the activity picked up extravagantly with all four regulation goals being scored, with the Rebels (1-2) getting the first just over 10 minutes into the new session. Nate Cole provided the icebreaker after digging the ball free from multiple defenders down the far sidelines to hammer home a shot that finds the upper netting of the cage to take the lead.

Scio’s response came seven minutes later from Davenport, who connected with Lazar Bulajic and his tremendous tenacity to navigate his way though the Cuba-Rushford defense to provide a shot that in return, ricocheted right to Davenport on the other side of the net, finishing the play in the process to tie the game.

The momentum that was built would allow the Tigers to take the lead at the midway mark of the session, as Jordan White outlasted Rebels keeper Jarrett Campbell in a footrace to the loose ball deep in the offensive zone, letting his shot go past Campbell on his way in before a collision took place to give the team their first upper hand.

But it was short-lived, as Cuba-Rushford responded right back once more to tie the game, inevitably for good to force overtime, as a mirror image play in the opposite zone took place with Jacob Smith for the Rebels, as he outran Scio keeper Landon Arnold to the ball and scored before a collision occurred shortly after with 9:59 left to play.

Both teams would provide one last chance to score in the game’s final minute of regulation, but no more scoring would occur. In overtime, it took just over three minutes for Cuba-Rushford to end the game, as they capitalized on a game-ending penalty kick tallied by Wirth to give them their first win of the season.

In all, Cuba-Rushford outshot Scio by a 15-12 count with Campbell recording the 10-save win. Arnold would make 12 stops altogether on the other end. The Rebels are back on the road Tuesday night with a 5 p.m. first kick in Friendship.

As for the Championship game under the lights, a different story. Both Bolivar-Richburg and Arkport/Canaseraga navigated through a midfield battle across 100 minutes of gameplay, but no outright winner was determined, as the Wolverines and the Wolves were deemed co-champions of the Brock Young Invitational after a scoreless tie.

“The boys really played hard tonight, and I am really proud of them for that,” said Wolverines coach Mike Zilker. “Hats off to Arkport/Canasaeraga, they played one heck of a tough game themselves. I’m proud of our boys, and their effort was tremendous. Arkport/Canaseraga is a great team, and to come away with a tie against a team like that and a share of the tournament title, that’s a win.”

Both teams provided six total shots on goal across the entire contest, garnering multiple chances along the way. For the Wolverines (3-1-1), they had most of the steam built up in the late stages of the first half, mounting the pressure on the Wolves with multiple rushes into the offensive zone.

Perhaps their best opportunity to strike came during a series set up by Ian Unfus down low. The ball took a few bounces around in front of the Arkport/Canaseraga net before a shot was let go in the middle of the scrum, but was covered up by Alex Preston.

But the advantage remained in Bolivar-Richburg’s favor heading into the break, despite a solid first half being broken up toward the end after a penalty kick opportunity arose for the Wolves, ultimately being missed on a shot high and wide.

In the second half and into overtime, more of the midfield battles ensued until the final buzzer, when the game was decided by a scoreless tie, resulting in both teams taking home a share of this year’s tournament title.

In goal, David Abdo made six saves for the Wolverines, who will make a return to Scio on Tuesday in a 7 p.m. first kick to take on the host Tigers.

Wayland-Cohocton 3, Wellsville 0

COHOCTON — Titan Rocha and Isaac Mehlenbacher joined forces to provide the majority of Wayland-Cohocton’s offense when they clashed with Wellsville on Saturday, as they had a role in all three goals scored against the Lions to fuel up what was a 3-0 shutout at the Cohocton Sports Complex to earn their third win in the first four games to begin their season.

The Eagles picked up a 1-0 lead at the break paid in part by Rocha and Mehlenbacher’s first connection of the day just over 10 minutes into the game to put themselves ahead. The two would trade pleasantries once more, and fast when the second half began, as Mehlenbacher found the back of the net himself to branch out Wayland-Cohocton’s lead to a pair 60 seconds in.

The scoring was finished off later on at the midway mark when Rocha connected with his second goal of the game, scoring off a feed provided by Michael Gammell. In all, the Eagles outshot Wellsville (2-2) by a 24-7 count, with Logan Dunbar staying active between the pipes, making 21 saves.

The Lions are back over the road Monday night, as they get set for a 5 p.m. first kick at Campbell-Savona.

Allegany-Limestone 4, Fillmore 0

FILLMORE — Fillmore, to most teams around Allegany County and elsewhere across the area, can be one of the toughest places to play at over the road.

In recent years, the Eagles have been untouchable on their home turf. But in the rarest of occasions, they’ve been on the losing end. On Saturday, a team familiar with turf in their own backyard paid a visit — that being Section VI power Allegany-Limestone.

The Gators would make their stay in Fillmore worthwhile, as they handed the host Eagles their second home shutout of the season by finding the back of the net four times to put the hammer down on what was a 4-0 victory under the lights.

In the shot department, Allegany-Limestone outshot Fillmore (2-2) by a 10-6 total count, with Graham Cahill making six stops in between the pipes for the hosts.

The Eagles will look to rebound back on their turf Monday night, as they host Holland in a 7 p.m. first kick.

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

Lady Lions defeat C-G to capture tourney crown at C-S

CAMPBELL — There’s no better way to start a new season of volleyball, than with a tournament victory over the road. Saturday morning, the Lady Lions did just that.

Over the road at Campbell-Savona, Wellsville managed to navigate a tough field of competition to find their way towards the winner’s circle, never losing a single set in all five games played on the court. Among them, the championship-clinching victory over Canisteo-Greenwood to finish the afternoon on the highest of notes.

“The girls came into today ready to play. We have been practicing for weeks, and I think they were all very ready to compete,” said Lady Lions coach Shannon Steiner. “We were able to play a couple of teams we have never played before, so it was a nice mix up to experience. The girls played excellent all morning, and I am very proud of them.”

The journey towards a successful ending began with their first game, as they took down Arkport/Canaseraga in straight-sets with a 25-11, 25-17 victory to move on, taking on host Campbell-Savona in the Pre-Quarterfinal round — a matchup that gave them decisive victory by a 25-12, 25-13 count.

The Lady Lions marched forward to the quarters to take on Odessa-Montour, and were able to hold their own to clinch a Semifinals berth with a 25-16, 25-16 decision, earning their spot to take on Cuba-Rushford, who they managed to take down by a 25-8, 25-17 count.

In the final round, the Lady Lions continued the trend they set all morning long, as they came away with one last straight-set victory, this time over the Lady Redskins in the Championship game to become tournament champions with a 25-7, 25-20 triumph.

Brooklyn Stisser was named as the tournament’s MVP, as she collected 17 kills and three blocks across all five games for the Lady Lions. Jaelyn Knapp added an All-Tournament nod after she combined to produce 24 aces and eight kills of her own across the entirety of the morning.

The regular season slate will begin for Wellsville on Tuesday, when they host Bolivar-Richburg to open their home campaign of games. First serve is set for a 7:30 p.m. start.

Genesee Valley/Belfast 3, Archbishop Walsh 2

BELMONT — Throughout the afternoon in the Jungle, host Genesee Valley/Belfast and Archbishop Walsh engaged in a back and forth shootout that required all five sets to complete on Saturday.

Each team would trade every other set until it came down to the wire. After having won the fourth set decisively to set up the fifth and last, the momentum was retained by the hosts in green, as they managed to slug their way past the visiting Lady Eagles to grab their first win of the season by a 23-25, 25-11, 22-25, 25-12, 25-18 count.

“My team as a whole, we have six seniors but we’re pretty new,” said GV/Belfast coach Darren Bradt. “The last couple of years, we’ve lost eight seniors from those seasons. We’re definitely a new team, but we have some young kids in the mix too. We’re only returning two starters from last year, and I have a couple of sophomores starting as well, so there’s some inexperience. But today, we started to get into a groove, but we have more work to do ahead of us to get better.”

Genesee Valley/Belfast (1-1) was led on the attack by Kaitlin Sadler, who provided a team-high 11 kills to pair with her six aces. Setter Addy Herring helped further the cause more with her 12 assists at the front to go with her team-leading eight aces from the service line.

Genesee Valley/Belfast will return to their home floor with back-to-back games beginning on Monday, as they get set to welcome in Section V powerhouse Hammondsport for a 6:30 p.m. first serve inside the Jungle.

Chris Brooks
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