Wednesday Roundup: GV/Belfast, C-R stage electric performance across OT, but 2nd half scoring holds up in 2-2 tie; Lady Lions, Fri/Scio girls capture wins in OT, Wellsville boys tie Haverling

[ALL PHOTOS BY JOHN ANDERSON/WELLSVILLE SUN]

CUBA — There were plenty of fireworks all across the area on Wednesday, with all four contests on the pitch requiring extra time to settle their scores (you can read more about the rest of the action down below).

Cuba was among one of those many venues that saw the action come down to the wire, as an early Allegany County marquee matchup between 2-0 Genesee Valley/Belfast and 2-0 Cuba-Rushford set the stage and headlined the night.

Both teams had their opportunity to take control of the steering wheel all throughout, with the pendulum shifting in all different directions across the second half. With Genesee Valley/Belfast garnering the early edge, the Lady Rebels fought right back with two rapid strikes down the stretch to tie the game and force overtime.

But in the extra sessions, both defenses provided stellar showings on the grass and held one another in check for the remaining 20 minutes of play, as both Genesee Valley/Belfast and Cuba-Rushford remained undefeated in regulation, but garnered their very first deadlock of the campaign, settling on what was a 2-2 decision.

“It was a great game to be a part of. GV/Belfast always shows up ready to play, and they have so many weapons with (Hannah) Southwick-Powers and (Bayleigh) Tallman,” Lady Rebels coach Aaron Wight said. “Both sides had some really good chances in overtime, both keepers made some great saves. I am proud of how we battled back tonight. Hopefully we can continue to build confidence. Coming into this game, it felt a little tense. We ended last season with a 2-2 tie against them, and it was kind of like both sides had a chip on their shoulder tonight.”

A tale of two halves was authored between both Genesee Valley/Belfast and Cuba-Rushford, with the visitors in white and black making their presence known out of the gate right away, establishing an early 1-0 lead on the Lady Rebels behind Bayleigh Tallman’s score - her fifth in two games, as she moved from right to left to bury it home just six minutes in.

The game’s first advantage would hold steady until Genesee Valley/Belfast (2-0-1) found a way to double it near the halfway point, as Hannah Southwick-Powers added more fuel to the fire by prying the ball loose in the midst of a scrum adjacent to the Lady Rebels cage, heading it in with ease. Tallman was credited with the helper on the marker.

With a two-goal lead upon their return to the pitch for the second half, it would bring new life for the Lady Rebels (2-0-1) to flip the script completely. In it, the hosts in blue performed such a task by creating level playing ground at the most opportune of times, beginning with the first of two Haydn Jones tallies at the 18:43 mark off her direct kick into the net.

A mere four minutes later, Jones capitalized again, as she took care of a Lily Tompkins pass from the back and absolutely shoveled it home for a 2-2 tie with 14:18 remaining.

There were plenty of chances cascading all throughout the two extra time frames of overtime for the two County foes to settle the score, but in the end, the defenses stood strong and held the fort down, en route towards the 2-2 deadlock.

32 total shots were collected between both squads in the contest, with Genesee Valley/Belfast grabbing a hold of a 21-11 advantage. In goal, Charisma Metatos made nine saves for the visitors, while Annaleece Melton put a stop to 19 shots on the opposite end for Cuba-Rushford.

Both teams will gallop into Friday night undefeated in regulation play, as they prepare for their next battles on the pitch, with Genesee Valley/Belfast heading home to the Rich Sullivan Complex in Belfast for a 7 p.m. meeting with Fillmore, while Cuba-Rushford stays put to welcome in the Wellsville Lady Lions for a 5 p.m. showdown.

Wellsville 2, Port Allegany 1 (F-OT)

WELLSVILLE — The Lady Lions of Wellsville were in full resurgence mode on Wednesday, looking to shake off and leave a tough defeat to the hands of Portville in the rearview mirror. The road ahead was not going to get any easier, as they were challenged once again, this time by the Port Allegany Lady Gators who came to town to visit the Lion’s Den.

It would need overtime to decide the winner at the end of the night after both teams ignited their offenses across the second half of play, with the Lady Gators responding to an early Wellsville strike to force extra soccer.

But for the hosts in black and orange, they would only need just one of those sessions to close things out. They can thank Lexi Aftuck for that, as she won the game with her golden goal off a prime opportunity parked in front of the Port Allegany net, aiding the Lady Lions to their third win in their first four games of the season with a 2-1 proclamation of victory over the Lady Gators.

“We played so well all game long tonight. We possessed the ball the majority of the game to really set up some quality chances we had,” said Lady Lions coach Erica Aftuck. “We had a lot of shots, but we couldn’t find that right touch to finish them. But fortunately, we were able to get a direct kick in front and Lexi moved quickly to place it perfectly. We played like we know how to play. Now, we just need to stay consistent.”

Following a mighty battle for possession through the first 40 minutes of play, both Port Allegany and Wellsville (3-1) kicked their offenses into high gear, as the squads combined to record all three of the contest’s goals in the final 40 minutes of regulation play. Breaking the ice first were the Lady Lions, and fast, as Caelyn Stevens connected upon a 1-0 lead off a pass fed by Jaden Dunbar.

The Lady Lions would then battle tough on defense to keep Port Allegany at bay for as long as they could, but with 5:55 remaining, the Lady Gators managed to strike home the equalizer to force overtime. But the hosts would not let the game-tying score faze them one bit, as they ended the game off Lexi Aftuck’s winner with 6:29 left in the first extra session.

The two goals by the Lady Lions stemmed off a nine-shot output against the Lady Gators, while the visitors countered with 12 of their own — 10 of those being stopped by Lydia Kaye between the posts for her third victory of the young campaign.

The Lady Lions will look to keep the gas pedal down onto the floor come Friday, as they prepare to hit the road again for a 5 p.m. tussle with the Cuba-Rushford Lady Rebels.

Friendship/Scio 2, Hammondsport 1 (F-2OT)

HAMMONDSPORT — Jordyn Nickerson had her superhero cape at the ready for Friendship/Scio’s return to the pitch on Wednesday. After breaking the ice early on in the first half, they would remain glued to the driver’s seat for a good portion of battle in Hammondsport.

Although the host Lady Lakers managed to erase the shutout with a herculean score to force overtime, the momentum managed to shift one more time back in Friendship/Scio’s favor, allowing Nickerson to strike gold for a second time, as she ended the game in double overtime to give the team their first win of the campaign by a 2-1 count.

“We played pretty well in the first half. We controlled the game really well, but in the second half, Hammondsport started to take some control,” Friendship/Scio coach Dillon McFall said. “In the overtimes, we played much better and then the momentum began to carry us over the top behind Jordyn. I’m proud of the girls for not hanging their heads after giving up that game-tying goal down the stretch. They kept on fighting and they really grinded out this win.”

The grind for Friendship/Scio (1-2) began across a lengthy first half battle with the Lady Lakers. But all that battling would pay off towards the tail end of the frame when they managed to open the action up behind Nickerson’s first marker, as she found the back of the net off a pass sent along by Alexiss Herring with 12:24 remaining.

The visitors would do everything in their power to maintain control of their own destiny across the second half, all while Hammondsport continued to alter the balance of power right behind them each step of the way. With less than 10 minutes remaining in regulation, the Lady Lakers managed to do just that with a game-tying bullseye to force overtime in the same swing later on.

After a fierce fight for possession through both overtime periods, the game would reach its thrilling conclusion with 8:07 left in double overtime, as Nickerson scavenged the golden goal off a pass from Morgan Holcom to give Friendship/Scio a victorious ending to their road trip. The two goals by Nickerson stemmed from within a 16-shot performance on offense, as they outshot Hammondsport by a 16-8 count.

In net, the win belonged to Avery Lamberson, who made seven saves.

Friendship/Scio is back on the pitch Friday night with a 6 p.m. visit from Jasper-Troupsburg in Scio.

BOYS SOCCER

Wellsville 3, Bath-Haverling 3

BATH — An all-out offensive war unfolded up north in Bath, Wednesday night.

Between the Lions of Wellsville and the host Haverling Rams, a combined six goals navigated their way into the back of the net, with the Lions grabbing a leading edge going into halftime before the momentum was erased completely by the Rams late in the second half. With a 3-3 tie to carry forward, both teams raced side-by-side through overtime until no more time was displayed on the clock, as the deadlock remained frozen to close out the battle.

“It was a good game,” said Lions coach Bethany Faulkner. “We’re really learning how to control the ball and keep our composure. We’re just losing in lulls when we’re tired, and we need to work through those moments. Karson (Grover) and Kamron (Dodge) playing midfield both did a great job pushing the ball through to help get our offense set up when we needed it the most.”

The Lions (1-0-2) overcame a fast start from the Rams in the first 10 minutes of play, as they used a 1-0 deficit to their advantage, morphing it into a 2-1 halftime lead down the stretch, led by the guidance of Aiden Cowburn who had a hand in all three of the team’s goals. With 8:39 left to go on the clock, Cowburn handed out a helper for Blake Kalkhof to put away, finding the bottom portion of the Bath-Haverling net to tie the game.

Just over four minutes later to complete the rapid succession of strikes, Cowburn took matters into his own hands on a long dribble from midfield. Without hesitation, he guided the ball straight down the middle into the Rams net to help the Lions claim the one-goal lead going into the break.

Then in the second half, the momentum for the Lions carried over after a lengthy battle for possession across the field, as they looked to Cowburn to knock home his second of the game on a free kick nearly 20 yards out for a 3-1 lead. But Bath-Haverling would not go down without a fight, as they fought back with a vengeance to level the playing surface with two goals in a five-minute span down the stretch to ultimately force overtime.

After 20 extra minutes of play, no further connections would reach the back of the net for either side, as the Lions and Rams both settled on a 3-3 tie — the second for Wellsville in their first three games.

The Rams narrowly outshot the Lions on the attack, holding the 11-8 advantage in the shot department. Gavin Haggerty was busy in between the posts, putting a stop to eight saves.

Wellsville hops back on the field after the weekend, as they welcome in Keshequa for their home opener on Monday at 7 p.m. in the Lion’s Den.

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL

Genesee Valley/Belfast at Keshequa - No report.

GIRLS TENNIS

Fillmore 3, Wayland-Cohocton 2

COHOCTON — The Lady Eagles of Fillmore were in for a battle on the court come Wednesday night. In their latest road trip to Wayland-Cohocton, they were able to come away with some resilient performances, including two comeback victories for both Clair Schilke and Molly Mahoney in the singles department, as they used the momentum to ride the wave towards their first win by a 3-2 count over the host Lady Eagles.

“I am really proud of the girls and how they played tonight,” Lady Eagles coach Randy Crouch said. “Claire didn’t get off to a great start, but she began to settle in and played a solid match. Molly really battled back to close out her match at second, and I can’t say enough about my first doubles team. They were pretty evenly matched through the first two sets, and played their third set with all the other matches completed and the team match resting on their shoulders. Kirra (Bentley) and Lena (Tucker) really focused on a good start, and Kirra served a great game to close it out for us.”

It all came down to the first doubles team of Kirra Bentley and Lena Tucker for the Lady Eagles (1-2) with a 2-2 match score hanging in the balance, as the duo fought tooth and nail against Wayland-Cohocton’s first doubles duo of Harlee Grodis and Cora Hosmer from start to finish, remaining resilient to finish a three-set marathon strong with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 win.

Claire Schilke and Molly Mahoney both earned their victories in rebounding fashion, as both Lady Eagles overcame slow starts to provide a strong emphasis on their games with straight-set wins, as Schilke took a 6-2, 6-2 win over Virginia Carr at first singles, while Mahoney capitalized on a second-set tiebreak to score a 6-3, 7-5 close win over Ava Senka.

Fillmore will look to keep their winning ways moving back home to Houghton University on Friday, hosting Addison at 5 p.m.

Singles

1. Claire Schilke (FIL) def. Virginia Carr (W-C), 6-2, 6-2.

2. Molly Mahoney (FIL) def. Ava Senka (W-C), 6-3, 7-5.

3. Lillian Scholtes (W-C) def. Indigo Knapp (FIL), 7-5, 7-6 (3).

Doubles

1. Kirra Bentley/Lena Tucker (FIL) def. Harlee Grodis/Cora Hosmer (W-C), 6-4, 4-6, 6-2.

2. Grace Bondgren/Hannah Russo (W-C) def. Tori Tetta/Greta Kettinger (FIL), 7-5, 6-4.

SWIMMING

Wellsville 91, Letchworth 74

GAINESVILLE — They have been the team to beat across Section V for quite some time. Wednesday night, the Wellsville Lady Sea Lions have made their long-awaited and grand return to the pool.

In their first meet of the season, they hopped on the bus to take on host Letchworth, where their quest towards five straight Section V titles kicked off on the strongest of notes, as the reigning four-peat champions swam furiously towards a season-opening 91-74 victory.

Complete results from the meet were not made available to report upon publication.

Wellsville (1-0) will jump back into the water for their home opener Tuesday night with a 5 p.m. visit from Bath-Haverling.