Tuesday Roundup: Lady Wolverines rally back after 2nd half surge by Wellsville, use clutch free throws in OT to seal 40-33 season-opening win on home court

Bolivar-Richburg junior Jianna Nix, middle, looks to provide a pass into the open wing while surrounded by the Wellsville defense of juniors Brooklyn Stisser, left, and Jaylynn Mess (11) during Tuesday night’s season opener in Bolivar. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Bolivar-Richburg senior Aliyah Cole, middle, works her way around the defense of Wellsville junior Kaylee Coleman, back, on her way to the basket during Tuesday’s season opener in Bolivar. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Wellsville junior Emily Costello (12) brings the possession down the court as Bolivar-Richburg senior Kelsey Ferris (20) gives chase on defense during Tuesday’s season opener in Bolivar. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Wellsville junior Jaylynn Mess, off-center, tangles with Bolivar-Richburg senior Kelsey Pacer, right, to force a jump-ball situation during Tuesday’s season opener in Bolivar. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Bolivar-Richburg junior Kayli Giardini, center, dribbles under pressure from the defense of Wellsville junior Jaelyn Knapp, right, during Tuesday’s season opener in Bolivar. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

Wellsville head coach Michelle Alvord, off-center, talks with junior Emily Costello (12) during a break in the action in the midst of Tuesday’s season opener in Bolivar. [Chris Brooks/WellsvilleSports.com]

BOLIVAR — The nightcap to Tuesday night’s Opening Night was a dandy. After a back-and-forth exchange across the first eight minutes of the night between Wellsville and Bolivar-Richburg, each team would have their strongest showing of offense across the next 16 minutes. It would ultimately lead toward the contest being decided in extra time.

That begged the question: Could the Lady Lions continue their second half momentum swing, or would the Lady Wolverines find a way to come back? The answer was decided at the charity stripe. And it was on Aliyah Cole to put a stamp on it.

The Bolivar-Richburg senior had the best night of her career, as she provided what determined to be the deciding factor. She would come up big with six clutch shots out of eight possible makes to establish what was a 10-3 Lady Wolverines run of Wellsville in overtime that saw them take the lead back after losing it in the last seconds of regulation, as they squeezed their way to victory behind a 40-33 decision.

“The biggest takeaway was our response that we had after the third quarter,” Lady Wolverines coach Justin Thomas said. “The wheels seemed like they fell off, and we had that deer-in-the-headlights look. Once we got out of that quarter, we settled back down and we went back to playing our game of basketball. Our fourth quarter was reflective of that, and we used that to win the game in overtime. I couldn’t be more proud of how they responded, especially watching a lead that we had evaporate in the third quarter. Every win counts, every game counts, and to take one off the bat against a great Wellsville team is huge.”

Before overtime came into play, both Wellsville and Bolivar-Richburg started off with an exchanging of baskets across the first eight minutes, with Cole doing the majority of the scoring down low for the Lady Wolverines (1-0). For Wellsville, Emily Costello and Jaylynn Mess each delivered a trey to keep pace. But it would be a 9-7 lead for the hosts in white and red to hold onto heading to the second.

In the last eight minute session before the half, the Bolivar-Richburg offense exploded after the Lady Lions (0-1) cut the deficit to one right at the start with a shot at the charity stripe, as they accounted for the next 13 points in a consecutive fashion to keep Wellsville off the board to capitalize on a double-digit, 22-8 lead at the break with Cole netting eight of those 13 points during the scoreless jaunt.

The senior would finish with a career-high 32 points to go with 15 rebounds and six blocks to complete her double-double.

“We did a lot of nice things in that second quarter,” said Thomas. “Our defensive spacing was great, finding ways to get the ball underneath the basket was great. When you have a couple of girls that have six-foot wingspans on the floor, that allows us to push the ball to the outside and force them to shoot it from there. We did enough to get those stops from outside, and then come back to pound the ball back inside ourselves, where Aliyah led the way for us. She’s never broken 30 points in her career, and to do that on a night like tonight against a team like Wellsville, was awesome.”

Back out on the floor for the second half, a completely revitalized Lady Lions squad. It was their turn to run the table on Bolivar-Richburg in the third quarter, as they held them without a single basket to be had on offense while they capitalized on an 18-0 scoreless run themselves across the eight minutes to take the lead away heading into the fourth, up 26-22.

With a two-point advantage in hand in the waning seconds of regulation, the Lady Lions would force overtime on a costly turnover by Bolivar-Richburg, marching down the court and converting the opportunity to tie the game at 30. Even though Wellsville was able to provide an extra session of basketball, it would give the Lady Wolverines a chance to come in through the clutch at the charity stripe, as Cole conducted a 6-for-8 outing at the line to propel what was a 10-3 run of Wellsville to secure game one in the win column for her team.

Behind Cole in the host scorebook, Jianna Nix was not far away from a double-double herself, recording seven points and 10 rebounds. Kelsey Pacer had the team’s final point from the line to go with 10 rebounds and seven assists. For Wellsville, Costello led the way on offense with a team-high 10 points. Jaelyn Knapp added in seven points of her own, while Kayli Giardini earned three steals.

Both teams are back on the floor over the road Thursday night, as the Lady Wolverines will look to keep the wheels churning into Andover with a 6 p.m. meeting against the Lady Panthers, while the Lady Lions continue their road swing to Cuba-Rushford for a 7:30 p.m. contest against the host Lady Rebels.

Wellsville 7 1 18 4 3 – 33

Bolivar-Richburg 9 13 0 8 10 – 40

WELLSVILLE: Jaylynn Mess 1 1-2 4, Emily Costello 4 0-0 10, Jaelyn Knapp 2 3-4 7, Brooklyn Stisser 2 1-2 5, Kaylee Coleman 1 0-2 2, Sara Reitz 2 0-0 5. Totals: 12 5-10 33.

BOLIVAR-RICHBURG: Kelsey Pacer 0 1-4 1, Jianna Nix 3 1-2 7, Aliyah Cole 12 8-13 32. Totals: 15 10-19 40.

3-point goals: Wellsville 4 (Costello 2, Mess, Reitz).
Total Fouls: Wellsville 16, B-R 10. Fouled out: Pacer (B-R).

Fillmore 32, Andover 17

FILLMORE — Senior Night proved to be a success for the Lady Eagles of Fillmore inside The Rock on Tuesday. All the hosts in white and green needed was a strong start to build off of. They got it right in the first eight minutes of play, connecting with a 11-3 lead at the end of the first quarter that provided the difference maker in their 32-17 season opening victory over the visiting Andover Lady Panthers.

“You could tell that both teams had seven days to prepare for the start of the season,” said Lady Eagles coach Tom Parks. “The first half was good, but if the teams weren’t out of gas at halftime, they most definitely were in the second half. It had gotten quite sloppy, and it felt like a summer league game in a way. We were working on some new things, and getting new plays accustomed to new things. But we were thrilled that we got to play. When we heard the news, we hoped to get to tonight. They were ecstatic. It was weird to honor the Seniors right at the start of the season, but this could all end at any given point.”

Just four scorers found the scoresheet for the Lady Eagles (1-0) with Emma Cole leading the charge, lighting a spark for the offense behind a game-high 15 point performance to go with nine boards off the glass, one shy from recording a double-double. Harley Miller added in eight points of her own while Morgan Byer and Rachel Hatch rounded off with five, and four points each. On special teams, Hatch led the rebounding department with 11 boards to go with three steals.

Andover (0-1) was able to chip away at Fillmore’s eight-point first quarter lead with their biggest quarter of the night right before halftime, but in the second half, it proved to be too much to overcome, as Fillmore managed to hold their ground to stay in front. The Lady Panthers offense was paced by Kelsie Niedermaier, who had six points. Gabby Terhune, Katie Calladine and Livia Simon all had three points to pitch in.

Both teams are back on the floor Thursday night with 6 p.m. contests, as Fillmore hits the road for the first time to face the Belfast Lady Bulldogs, while the Lady Panthers head back home for their home opener against the Bolivar-Richburg Lady Wolverines.

Andover 3 10 2 2 – 17

Fillmore 11 11 6 4 – 32

ANDOVER: Gabby Terhune 1 0-0 3, Katie Calladine 1 0-2 3, Addison Morgan 1 0-0 2, Livia Simon 1 1-2 3, Kelsie Niedermaier 2 2-2 6. Totals: 6 3-6 17.
FILLMORE: Emma Cole 7 1-4 15, Rachel Hatch 1 2-2 4, Morgan Byer 1 2-3 5, Harley Miller 4 0-0 8. Totals: 13 5-9 32.

3-point goals: Andover 2 (Terhune, Calladine), Fillmore 1 (Byer).
Total Fouls: Andover 10, Fillmore 7. Fouled out: None.

Whitesville 74, Friendship 23

FRIENDSHIP — Vanessa Hall put together the best game of her career for the Lady Blue Jays of Whitesville. On Tuesday, the sophomore guard, who was also last season’s leading scorer in Allegany County, made the loudest noise of the evening. A record-setting noise level, as she sank all five of the team’s triples while digging her way inside for even more baskets, collecting a career-high 46 points in their 74-23 win over host Friendship.

Along with her record-setting evening on Opening Night, Hall would add to it on special teams by grabbing eight rebounds off the glass and seven steals to help a Lady Blue Jays (1-0) team that started off the night with a massive 21-2 run of the Lady Golden Eagles in the first eight minutes of play. Whitesville got more help on the scoresheet from Kennedy Bledsoe, who added in 17 points of her own. Gabbi Hall and Rachel Jackson chipped in with four, and three points respectively.

Friendship (0-1) was led by Nevaeh Ross, who netted a team-leading 15 points. Kaydence Donohue tallied a pair of threes for six points, while Logan Roberts rounded off with a two-point basket.

Both teams are on the road for 6 p.m. contests on Thursday, with Whitesville heading to Genesee Valley while Friendship pays a visit to Scio.

Whitesville 21 14 26 13 – 74

Friendship 2 19 0 2 – 23

WHITESVILLE: Kennedy Bledsoe 7 3-4 17, Rachel Jackson 1 1-1 3, Vanessa Hall 18 5-10 46, Aislinn Hamilton 1 0-0 2, Gabbi Hall 1 2-2 4, Brynn Scholl 1 0-0 2. Totals: 29 11-17 74.
FRIENDSHIP: Nevaeh Ross 6 0-2 15, Logan Roberts 1 0-0 2, Kaydence Donohue 2 0-0 6. Totals: 9 0-2 23.

3-point goals: Whitesville 5 (Hall), Friendship 5 (Ross 3, Donohue 2).
Total Fouls: Whitesville 5, Friendship 15. Fouled out: None.

Belfast 57, Scio 6

BELFAST — The Lady Bulldogs of Belfast struck every chord imaginable on both offense, and defense Tuesday, as three different scorers netted at least 10 points or more to fuel a strong first quarter they never looked back from, propelling their way toward a 57-6 home victory over the Lady Tigers of Scio to start their season strong.

Kaitlin Sadler, Emma Sullivan and Anna Drozdowski all led the way for a Lady Bulldogs (1-0) offense that netted a 28-3 outscoring in the first eight minutes of play to set the tone almost immediately. Sadler led the scoring with a game-high 19 points. Emma Sullivan followed behind with three of the team’s five triples on her way toward 13 points. Drozdowski rounded off with 10 points of her own.

For Scio (0-1), Kiara Grover led the Lady Tigers with three points.

Both teams are back in action on their home floors at 6 p.m. on Thursday, with Belfast welcoming in the Lady Eagles of Fillmore, while Scio returns home for their home opener against the Lady Golden Eagles of Friendship.

Scio 3 0 2 1 – 6

Belfast 28 14 10 5 – 57

SCIO: Emily Stilson 0 1-6 1, Kiara Grover 1 1-2 3, Melana Davenport 0 2-4 2. Totals: 1 4-12 6.
BELFAST: Abby Sullivan 1 0-0 3, Alicia Borden 0 1-2 1, Anna Drozdowski 5 0-0 10, Mary Hamer 2 0-0 5, Kaitlin Sadler 8 3-4 19, Harley Proctor 0 0-4 0, Emma Sullivan 5 0-0 13, Cierra Wallace 2 2-4 6. Totals: 23 6-14 57.

3-point goals: Belfast 5 (E. Sullivan 3, A. Sullivan, Hamer).
Total Fouls: Scio 11, Belfast 14. Fouled out: Drozdowski (BEL).

BOYS VOLLEYBALL

Wellsville 3, Scio 0

SCIO — After their season left off falling in the Allegany County League title game last winter, the Lions of Wellsville returned to form to start their new season strong on the road in Scio, Tuesday night, as they rolled their way toward a straight-set victory over the Scio Tigers by a 25-19, 25-15, 27-25 count.

Walker Waldon led the offensive efforts for Wellsville (1-0) with a team-high nine kills to go with his one assist. Aiden Tucker provided six more kills on offense to go with five aces and one block. From the back, Mason Parks provided a game-high 18 service points to go with three kills. For Scio (0-1), Joey Nickerson led the way with 10 service points of his own to go with two kills, while Ben Weimer had seven service points and two aces.

Both teams are up next against the defending County Champions - the Rebels of Cuba-Rushford with Scio hosting them Friday night with a 6 p.m. first serve. Wellsville will host the Rebels back home in their home opener next Tuesday night at 6 p.m.