Photos and story by CHRIS BROOKS wellsvillesports.com and @iambrooksie on Twitter
Saturday Roundup: Southwick-Powers nabs MVP honors after 1st half pair springboards GV/Belfast towards shutout of And/Whi
BELFAST — Their goal to start their season on the right foot was to win their home tournament. After a strong debut against Avoca/Prattsburgh back on Thursday, the Genesee Valley/Belfast United ladies now found themselves a single stepping stone away from putting that checkmark next to it.
The final obstacle was Andover/Whitesville, who survived a penalty kick session with Friendship/Scio to reach the Championship round after a 1-1 tie through 100 minutes of regulation.
Straight out of the gate, the bar was set. Genesee Valley/Belfast went straight to work with a very productive first half filled with scoring opportunities for the offense, and immense pressure from the defense. Two massive ingredients towards big success, especially on the soccer field.
Those two ingredients brewed up what was a winning combination for the hosts, as Hannah Southwick-Powers kicked it up a notch with MVP honors in the tournament, scoring two more goals in the first 40 minutes of play while the defense held down the fort against Andover/Whitesville to become this year’s tournament champions with a 2-0 shutout.
“Andover/Whitesville picked it up in the second half. They had some very good counter-attacks, but I thought our defense was really rock solid tonight,” said GV/Belfast co-coach Duane Powers. “I felt like we still controlled the game and had some great opportunities ourselves on offense. It’s just a matter of finishing those plays better, but we are getting those garbage goals. We can definitely take those, but we have to be better consistently on offense.”
With Genesee Valley/Belfast (2-0) getting straight to work on piling up the scoring chances, it was only a matter of time before the ice that was being cracked, was broken through. Just past the 10 minute mark of the opening half, Southwick-Powers connected with her first of two strikes, as she waited patiently inside the Andover/Whitesville box after a Mary Hamer corner kick was sent in on goal.
A scramble for the loose ball formed in front, one that Harley Proctor was able to wedge the ball free to lift a ball on goal, hitting Southwick-Powers on the head and into the goal to open up the scoring.
Although the defensive pressure had thrown Andover/Whitesville (0-1-1) off kilter for much of the first half, they managed to find an opening towards the tail end from Kennedy Bledsoe, who collided with a defender before sending a pass along to a streaking Gabby Terhune in on goal. Her shot would hit the side of the net with three minutes remaining.
As momentum started to shift towards Andover/Whitesville’s direction, Genesee Valley/Belfast would vacuum it back on their side with Southwick-Powers’ second goal with 45 ticks remaining on the clock, as Lauren Haggstrom came up with a phenomenal assist on the play deep in the offensive zone to branch the team’s lead to a pair — a margin that would wind up being enough room for them to seal the victory in the second half behind their defense.
Genesee Valley/Belfast allowed just one shot all night long on defense, compared to the 10 back the other way on the attack. Ashley Burrows would receive credit for the shutout with the one save, while Olivia Waters made eight for Andover/Whitesville.
Prior to the tournament finale, some Consolation round action took place between Avoca/Prattsburgh and Friendship/Scio in a game that saw one particular player take complete control from start to finish.
That was Avoca/Prattsburgh’s Olivia Kilmer, who scored all five of the team’s goals, three of them coming in the first half of play to allow the Lady Titans to set the bar. One that Friendship/Scio could not reach, as they went on to split their tenure in Belfast with a 5-1 victory.
The domination from Avoca/Prattsburgh began in the first half of play, when they took complete control of the field. It would result in the Lady Titans scoring twice in a five-minute span to open up the scoring from Kilmer. With under 10 minutes remaining in the half, Kilmer would put an early bow on the hat trick, as she weaved her way through the Friendship/Scio (0-1-1) defense, picking the short side corner behind Nevaeh Ross to bury the ball in to branch the lead.
After Friendship/Scio made an exchange in goal going into the second half, it would help bolster their frontlines on the attack, as they avoided the shutout from Avoca/Prattsburgh with their lone goal coming from Ross, stemming off a mad scramble in front of the Lady Titans goal. With the ball being jarred free by Lexi Crossley, it got to within range of Ross for a shot to be had on goal, one that would go in untouched to get Friendship/Scio on the board.
Although the Lady Titans gave up just the one netter, they went straight back to work on branching their lead. One that Kilmer was able to score two more times in the last 15 minutes of play, pushing the lead out to four to officially secure Consolation round honors for the team in black and gold.
Emily Hammond picked up the win in between the pipes for Avoca/Prattsburgh behind seven saves, while Nevaeh Ross and Grace Drumm combined to make five saves.
After the weekend, all three local teams are back on the field to resume regular season play, as Genesee Valley/Belfast and Andover/Whitesville will meet once again on Wednesday in a 6 p.m. first kick in Andover, while Friendship/Scio heads home to host the Lady Eagles of Fillmore in a 5 p.m. contest of their own, in Friendship.
Blake Driskell Consolation
Wellsville 1, Alfred-Almond 1
ADDISON — After the Lady Lions of Wellsville could not find the back of the net in their first round contest against host Addison back on Thursday, the day to provide a bounce back effort arrived on Saturday to close out the Blake Driskell Tournament.
It would have to come in the Consolation round against the Alfred-Almond Lady Eagles, who were previously knocked off by Jasper-Troupsburg by a narrow 3-2 count in their opening round battle. The Lady Lions would go on to do just that, but as for the Lady Eagles themselves — they would also have a say.
After 100 complete minutes of soccer between the two foes, neither could find their way to the net one more time to break the deadlock, as their tenures in Addison came to an end via a 1-1 deadlock.
The lone goal for the Lady Lions (0-1-1) was posted by Jaden Dunbar, during the second half.
Complete statistics from the contest were not made available to report upon publication.
Wellsville will return to tournament action once more after the Labor Day weekend, as they get set to take on Canisteo-Greenwood in first round action at the Cohocton Sports Complex on Wednesday. First kick is slated for a 5 p.m. start between the Lady Lions and Lady Redskins. The winner will face either Dansville or host Wayland-Cohocton, on Friday.
Fillmore Tourney
Fillmore 4, Holland 0
FILLMORE — A solid start for the Lady Eagles of Fillmore got them going in the right direction against Portville. Finding themselves one more win away from a perfect start from their home tournament, the Section V/Section VI battles saw them pitted against Holland to close out the festivities.
Just like against the Lady Panthers, Fillmore wasted no time getting on the board, as the Russell siblings ran wild all over the turf. Both Hope and Grace Russell scored a pair of goals in the first half, with Grace finishing with six points on the night to help the Lady Eagles close the book on a 2-0 tenure against Holland.
Hope Russell started Thursday’s game against Portville with the team’s first goal in just over 90 seconds. Now, it was Grace Russell’s turn to strike while the iron was still hot, as she broke the ice for the Lady Eagles (2-0) just three minutes in off a pass from Madison Geertman at center. The lead would hold until the two siblings collaborated on Fillmore’s next goal near midway, as Grace set up Hope for her fourth of the season at the 17-minute mark.
Three minutes later, Grace would record her second of the game right at 20 minutes, as Emma Beardsley dished along a pass to her foot, burying it home to the Holland goal in the process. Closing out the first half, the siblings would come back together one last time with five minutes remaining with Grace setting up Hope once more with her fifth tally of the season.
The four goals for the Lady Eagles would be all that they required to hold down the fort in the second half, as the defense held Holland in check through and through.
“We had another quality first half,” said Lady Eagles coach Jon Beardsley. “We ended up stopping early in the second half. The Section V vs. Section VI battle was again a great success with each side going 2-2. We appreciate all the teams coming, and hope to consider the quality event at the beginning of the season.”
The Lady Eagles compiled 12 shots on goal compared to just three allowed to Holland. Preslee Miller was able to make all three of those stops to preserve her first shutout of the young season.
Fillmore is back on their home field Tuesday night, when they host Friendship/Scio in a 5 p.m. first kick.
Olean Tourney Championship
Hornell 7, Bolivar-Richburg 0
OLEAN — The Lady Wolverines of Bolivar-Richburg found themselves one more win away from starting their 2022 season with a tournament crown under their belts. Standing in their way was powerhouse Hornell, who edged out defending Section VI, Class D Champion Ellicottville back in their own first round meeting.
When the two did battle, the Lady Red Raiders made their presence known from start to finish, setting the tone early with a hefty lead at the break before building on it with a massive four-goal second half, as they rolled past the Lady Wolverines with a 7-0 shutout to capture the championship in Olean on Saturday.
Ireland Harrison, Sophie Wilkins and Abby O’Donoghue all got the goal-scoring started for Hornell, with Harrison and Wilkins going back-to-back in nearly a two-minute span to put the hammer down on Bolivar-Richburg (1-1) close to the halfway point. With the momentum swinging the Lady Red Raiders way heading into the break, more was added to the pile to start the final 40 minute half.
Three more goals in a span of seven minutes found the back of the Lady Wolverines net, including Harrison’s second goal of the game and Stella Carretto’s pair of goals. The scoring was capped off with 6:30 remaining with Sam Harkenrider finding her way on the board. Overall, The Lady Red Raiders concluded the contest with 32 total shots at the opposing cage.
Malayna Ayers was active in goal for Bolivar-Richburg, making 25 saves. On the other side, the Lady Wolverines recorded just seven shots on the Hornell cage, all of which were stopped by Alexis Patrick, who recorded the shutout.
The Lady Wolverines are back in action after the Labor Day weekend, visiting Cuba-Rushford for a 5 p.m. battle.
FOOTBALL
Coleman electrifies run game for Wolverines in 8-Man debut
SHORTSVILLE — It was perhaps one of the more difficult decisions that Bolivar-Richburg had spent pondering over the course of the summer — the future of Wolverines football.
Recently before the regular season was planned to get underway, it was decided that the Wolverines would drop down into 8-Man competition for the first time ever, opting out of possible mergers or even, not having a regular 11-man season at all due to low participation numbers.
With the move down to join fellow local Wellsville, and one of their storied rivals in Canisteo-Greenwood, it came with a new schedule. And up first to open their debut was a team that had made the deepest run through the 8-Man Sectional tournament last year — Red Jacket, the defending Far West Regional Champions. A team that hadn’t lost a game in two seasons.
On Thursday, the Wolverines accepted that challenge. And soon after, they would unload everything they had in the arsenal against the Indians. One of those weapons was Ethan Coleman, who electrified the ground from start to finish. He would go on to carry the ball 13 times for over 300 yards rushing and found the end zone five times, three times on runs for over 50 yards through the sticky and incredibly humid heat in Shortsville, as the Wolverines made the 8-Man debut worthwhile with a 42-26 victory.
“It’s interesting to say the least. If today is any indication, we can compete,” said Wolverines coach Steve Smith, who enters his eighth season at the helm. “Red Jacket had not lost a game for two years, and we got them today. It was a nice win for our first efforts in 8-Man. The defense played really well, they got after the ball, and Ethan Coleman was just unstoppable. He had missed most of the second quarter because of the heat, and he still scored four more times in the second half, which was really impressive. We didn’t know what to expect, but we knew the kids were going to play hard and we pride ourselves in giving full effort. We made a positive out of a tough situation.”
Red Jacket was the first team that got on the board, and they helped welcome Bolivar-Richburg down into 8-Man with an 80-yard punt return straight to the house from James Sideto — the first of two of his scores. But then the Wolverines (1-0) began to come to form, with Caden Allen finding the end zone for the first time on a nine-yard run to tie the game before a two-point conversion put them ahead to end the opening quarter.
The lead for Bolivar-Richburg was extended in the second on the first of five Ethan Coleman scores on the ground, as the junior tailback sprinted all the way to the house for a 66-yard score to branch out the lead to eight at the break.
More damage was done by Coleman and the Wolverines soon after. In between a Micah Harshfield touchdown for the Indians, Coleman scored two more times off runs of 25 and 66 yards, followed by a pair of two-point conversions to branch their lead out to three possessions after three complete quarters.
Red Jacket would get as close as 10 points to Bolivar-Richburg with Sideto closing the gap with a 21-yard touchdown from the arm of Harshfield. But then the legs of Coleman continued to power away at the Indians defense, as he broke free for two more runs of 15 and 52 yards to keep Bolivar-Richburg’s lead intact until the end, as their debut in 8-Man football was a successful one behind 423 yards of total offense.
On defense, the Wolverines were led by phenom Trent Sibble on the edge, as he recorded eight tackles and dropped the quarterback once for a sack. Tavyn MacDonell added in eight tackles, while Zach Mitchell had five to pair with an interception. Caden Allen chipped in with six tackles.
Bolivar-Richburg will open up their home slate of games next weekend at Dunsmore-Latimer Field with a visit from a local opponent they haven’t played in recent years — the Wellsville Lions. Kickoff between the Lions and Wolverines is scheduled for a 7 p.m. start.
Bolivar-Richburg 8 6 16 12 – 42
Red Jacket 6 0 6 14 – 26
Scoring Summary
1st
RJ – James Sideto 80-yard punt return, 2-pts failed (6-0 RJ)
B-R – Caden Allen 9-yard run, 2-pts good (8-6 B-R)
2nd
B-R – Ethan Coleman 66-yard run, 2-pts failed (14-6)
3rd
B-R – Ethan Coleman 25-yard run, 2-pts good (22-6 B-R)
RJ – Micah Harshfield 9-yard run, 2-pts failed (22-12 B-R)
B-R – Ethan Coleman 66-yard run, 2-pts good (30-12 B-R)
4th
RJ – James Sideto 21-yard catch from Micah Harshfield, 2-pts good (30-20 B-R)
B-R – Ethan Coleman 15-yard run, 2-pts failed (36-20 B-R)
RJ – Aiden Reed 26-yard catch from Micah Harshfield, 2-pts failed (36-26 B-R)
B-R – Ethan Coleman 52-yard run, 2-pts failed (42-26 B-R)
Total Yards: B-R 423, RJ 201.
First Downs: B-R 14, RJ 10.
Turnovers: B-R 1, RJ 1.
Penalties: B-R 6-20, RJ 4-24.
T.O.P: B-R 22:29, RJ 28:00.
Holley overcomes halftime deficit, score 24 unanswered to beat Lions
WELLSVILLE — It was a start to the brand new 2022 season that the Lions of Wellsville wanted to have on the gridiron, Saturday night. With the Holley Hawks in town for the first of two meetings the two clubs will have this year, the Lions wasted no time getting on the board first.
They would use the momentum to create a narrow halftime lead to control coming back out. But in the locker room, the Hawks revised their plan.
And it was one that completely changed the dynamic of the game.
Down by eight, Holley made up for lost time, and quick, as they went on to score 24 unanswered points in the second half, including three touchdowns on the ground from tailback Antonyo Geska, as the Hawks completed the comeback against Wellsville to secure the season-opening win over the road by a 30-14 count.
Further in-depth statistics and a complete scoring summary were not made available upon publication.
Wellsville (0-1) will look to regroup and prepare for next week’s battle over the road, as they get set to face the Bolivar-Richburg Wolverines beginning at 7 p.m. next Friday at Dunsmore-Latimer Field.
Holley 0 8 16 6 – 30
Wellsville 6 8 0 0 – 14
Whitney, Geneseo power big 2nd quarter to fuel shutout of C-R
GENESEO — After a quiet first quarter to kick off the night, the fireworks soon erupted.
Those were provided by Geneseo quarterback Ryan Whitney, who was lethal on the ground and through the air, scoring five of the six touchdowns for the Blue Devils, including a pair in the team’s 20-point second quarter that saw them roll away with the 44-0 shutout win over visiting Cuba-Rushford on Saturday.
Whitney had a hand in the majority of the team’s scoring drives for the Blue Devils, which began after a scoreless first quarter turned into a massive 20-point first half ending explosion. Two of the three scores in the frame came from Whitney’s legs, as he scored off short-yardage runs to help build the lead going into the break.
The Geneseo quarterback would then take his talents to the air, passing for two more touchdowns in the second half to sandwich in between his longest run of the night — a 71-yard run straight to the house to help end the third quarter. The Blue Devils accounted for 525 total yards on offense, with the defense capitalizing off four Cuba-Rushford (0-1) turnovers along the way.
The Rebels were led by Dom Bello on defense, as he recorded three tackles.
As for Cuba-Rushford, they will return home next weekend to try and turn things back around in their home opener, when they host the Alexander Trojans for a 7:30 p.m. kickoff on Friday.
Cuba-Rushford 0 0 0 0 – 0
Geneseo 0 20 16 8 – 44
Scoring Summary
1st
No Scoring
2nd
GEN – Ryan Whitney 7-yard run, 2-pts good (8-0 GEN)
GEN – Julian Huffman 42-yard run, 2-pts failed (14-0 GEN)
GEN – Ryan Whitney 2-yard run, 2-pts failed (20-0 GEN)
3rd
GEN – Eghosa Okpefe 20-yard catch from Ryan Whitney, 2-pts good (28-0 GEN)
GEN – Ryan Whitney 71-yard run, 2-pts good (36-0 GEN)
4th
GEN – Daniel Szczesniak 31-yard catch from Ryan Whitney, 2-pts good (44-0 GEN)
Total Yards: C-R 216, GEN 525.
First Downs: C-R 10, GEN 20.
Turnovers: C-R 4, GEN 2.
Penalties: C-R 3-40, GEN 6-45.
T.O.P: C-R 28:29, GEN 19:31.
