Thursday Roundup: Lady Rebels bounce back behind Larabee’s 4-goal game in road win at B-R; Fillmore, GV/Belfast net shutout victories, Lady Lions tennis moves on to Semis
By CHRIS BROOKS, managing editor, wellsvillesports.com
BOLIVAR — The season for the Lady Rebels of Cuba-Rushford has been a rollercoaster ride that has been filled with many twists and turns, and ups and downs. Before the week comes to a close, the Lady Rebels were taking aim at a major bounce back in the last of a four-game road stand, with the penultimate trip seeing them visit the Lady Wolverines of Bolivar-Richburg on Thursday.
At Dunsmore-Latimer Field, they would come alive with a first half lead that they continued to build on over time. Led by an outstanding night from Cloey Larabee, they were able to get the job done, as they rebounded from Monday’s 5-0 shutout at Canisteo-Greenwood to end their road trip on the strongest of notes with a five-goal game themselves, speeding away towards a 5-1 win over the Lady Wolverines.
“We played well in the second half. We did a much better job just making the simple passes and not over-complicating things,” said Lady Rebels coach Aaron Wight. “Cloey played very well. I don’t remember the last time we had someone score four goals in a game for us. It hasn’t happened in my six years here. But I also have to give credit to the rest of the girls too. They really stepped up in the midfield and allowed her to play more offensive than usual.”
After a brief midfield fight through the first half’s opening stages, the Lady Rebels (6-6) found their way onto the board first in rapid succession, with Larabee scoring the game’s first just 10 minutes gone off the clock, connecting on a cross sent along by Shae Maples to the front of the Bolivar-Richburg net to break the ice.
Six minutes later, Larabee would dish along a helper of her own to put towards what ultimately became a nine-point night, feeding a cross across to Jen Tuttle for the finish and a 2-0 lead. The deficit for the Lady Wolverines (4-9) would be cut in half before the half reached its conclusion, courtesy of Teegan Sibble and her direct kick with 20 seconds to go.
But what momentum Bolivar-Richburg attempted to build going into the second half, was completely erased by the Lady Rebels and Larabee, as she posted a second half hat trick beginning with a shot from 20 yards out that sailed straight into the upper left corner of the Lady Wolverines cage to regain their two-goal lead nearly 10 minutes into the half.
Larabee added more damage later on off a pair of Aubrey Williams helpers, with the scores coming at the 22:47 and 16:27 marks to help close out the game on a bright note.
The five goals for Cuba-Rushford came on nine total shots against the Lady Wolverines, as they outshot their opposition by a narrow 9-8 count. In net, the win was recorded by Lilly Johnson-Clark, who made seven saves.
For the Lady Wolverines, Caitlyn Steiner made three saves. Bolivar-Richburg will return to action on Wednesday with a 5 p.m. visit to Friendship/Scio in Friendship.
Cuba-Rushford will head to Hinsdale to close out the week tonight, as they play host to the undefeated Lady Eagles of Fillmore in a 7 p.m. contest.
Fillmore 6, Wellsville 0
FILLMORE — The Russells gave the Lady Eagles of Fillmore a red hot start to work with in the first 10 minutes of play, laying the foundation down for the offense to continue building upon. At the end of it all, Hope and Grace Russell combined to record five of the team’s first six goals against visiting Wellsville on Thursday to remain undefeated in shutout fashion, rolling towards a 6-0 home win.
Grace Russell accounted for Fillmore’s (13-0) first three goals of the game, two of them in a four minute span right in the beginning stages of the battle, as she connected with the back of the Wellsville net alone on her first and then, off an Amelia Rose pass to break open the game with a 2-0 lead.
Russell would then finish off her first half hat trick with her third of the game near the midway mark, collecting a pass from Hope Russell on the run to branch the advantage out for the hosts.
Then it was Hope’s turn to score, as she recorded Fillmore’s last two goals of the half in a span of four minutes, with Mylee Miller and Grace Russell collecting the helpers on the markers while claiming a 5-0 halftime lead in the process.
Delaney Hillman would finish off the scoring for the Lady Eagles just eight minutes off the clock in the second half, scoring off a pass from Kylee Ellsworth.
The six goals were executed on 16 total shots against Wellsville (4-10-1), as they outshot the Lady Lions by a 16-4 count.
All four saves were made by Preslee Miller in between the pipes to preserve the shutout, while Lauren Viglietta made 10 saves for the visitors. Wellsville is back on the field Monday night for Senior Night, as they host Cuba-Rushford at 7 p.m.
Fillmore will have the honors of facing the Lady Rebels first in a quick turnaround tonight, as they head to Hinsdale for a 7 p.m. contest of their own.
Genesee Valley/Belfast 2, Andover/Whitesville 0
BELMONT — Chance after chance and shot after shot, Genesee Valley/Belfast did everything in their power to try and break through against visiting Andover/Whitesville. But after nearly 70 minutes of scoreless soccer between each team, the ice was finally broken by the hosts at Judy Bliven Field in Belmont.
In a span of 1:01, Genesee Valley/Belfast changed the game in one gigantic swing with a pair of markers — one each from Hannah Southwick-Powers and Abby Sullivan to propel themselves towards the game’s first lead, remaining there until the final horn to collect their seventh win in the last eight games with a 2-0 decision to send their Seniors out on a thrilling high note, Thursday night.
“We’ve been knocking and knocking and finally, we had someone answer the door,” said GV/Belfast co-coach Lisa Scott-Schneider. “A perfectly timed run by Hannah from Mary’s (Hamer) kick got us on the board, and then Abby delivered with a perfectly placed shot to give us some cushion. It was a really emotional evening for the ladies. They are really tight knit friends, and a lot of tears were flowing for Senior Night. Kudos to Mary, Kimme (Ball), Abby and Morgan (Bentley). It was really nice to get a win on their night.”
The door finally creaked open for Genesee Valley/Belfast (12-2) in the final stages of regulation with Andover/Whitesville, as they avoided extra time with a big time goal from Hannah Southwick-Powers, who made a dead sprint right on goal after a perfectly-placed direct kick from the foot of Mary Hamer to give them the advantage.
Momentum was built, and soon after, the hosts in black and gray used every bit of it to ensure their lead would remain intact, as Abby Sullivan finished off the scoring with a monstrous piece of insurance with her rocket straight to the back of the Andover/Whitesville (2-9) net off a pass dished along by Jenna Hill.
The pair of goals came courtesy of 19 total shots on the attack for Genesee Valley/Belfast, while the defense held down the fort on the opposite end of the field, allowing just one shot to Andover/Whitesville.
In goal, Kimme Ball set aside the shot to record the shutout, while Olivia Waters made 17 saves for the visitors.
Genesee Valley/Belfast will now get set for a colossal clash with the Lady Eagles of Fillmore in a game that will likely determine the outcome of this year’s Allegany County Division I title, beginning at 7 p.m. on Wednesday.
As for Andover/Whitesville, they will play host in a Columbus Day battle with Franklinville on Monday at 11 a.m. in Andover.
Avoca/Prattsburgh 7, Hammondsport 0
PRATTSBURGH — The Lady Titans of Avoca/Prattsburgh began their tenure in the Steuben County Tournament strongly on Thursday, as they used brilliant offensive performances from Olivia Kilmer and Meyah Putnam to score a 7-0 home win over the visiting Hammondsport Lady Lakers to advance into the Semifinal round.
Kilmer scored a nine-point evening for the Lady Titans on the attack, doing a little bit of everything with a hat trick and three assists. Following up was Putnam, who recorded a hat trick herself to go with two more assists. Rounding off the scoring was Madison Taylor, who scored the remaining marker. Makena Schlesing chipped in with a helper along the way.
In goal, Ellie Harrell and Lily Hausauer combined to record the shutout victory.
The Lady Titans will now face either Arkport/Canaseraga or Campbell-Savona in the Semifinal round, next week.
GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
Cuba-Rushford 3, Houghton Academy 0
HOUGHTON — After garnering one of their most prominent victories of the season against Bolivar-Richburg just 24 hours ago, the Lady Rebels of Cuba-Rushford kept their winning ways moving along on the road at Houghton Academy on Thursday, as they started the night in dominant fashion to set the tone on the Lady Panthers with what was a straight-set, 25-11, 25-18, 25-14 victory — their eighth in a row.
Lauren O’Keefe fronted the offensive firepower once again to pace the Lady Rebels (8-1), as she recorded a team-leading eight kills to go with three digs and one ace. Following up was Jessica Ringelberg, who posted four kills, four aces and two digs, while Reagan Poore chipped in with four more kills of her own to go with three big blocks at the net.
Houghton Academy (6-5) was powered by Julia Winkens on both offense and defense, recording three kills and three digs. Bella Stevens furthered the team’s cause with three aces from the service line to go with two kills and two digs.
The two teams will meet again in Cuba, Wednesday night at 7 p.m.
Beforehand, the Lady Rebels will have another quick turnaround tonight, competing in their third straight game to close out the week with a visit to Genesee Valley/Belfast at 7:30 p.m.
GIRLS TENNIS
Class B2 Quarterfinals
No. 1 Wellsville 5, No. 9 Canisteo-Greenwood 0
WELLSVILLE — There was no better way to kick off their Class B2 title defense than with a complete sweep of all five matches on the court, Thursday night in the Lion’s Den, as the top-seeded Lady Lions of Wellsville took care of business with a dominant 5-0 performance against No. 9 Canisteo-Greenwood to advance into the Semifinal round the following day.
The victory — Wellsville’s 14th straight, was propelled by three 6-0, 6-0 shutouts engineered by their singles competitors, as Samantha Bidzerkowny, Meagan Riley and Sarah Mattison all jetted towards triumph in their respective matches.
In the doubles department, the Lady Lions garnered a pair of 6-0, 6-2 victories from their teams — Hanna Miles and Caitlin Bittel at first doubles, and McKenna Wonderling and Kelsey Seely at second doubles, to finish off an incredible Sectional debut on their home court.
Wellsville now inches one step closer towards a return trip to the Finals, as they now prepare to host the No. 4 Alfred-Almond Lady Eagles in Class B2 Semifinal action on Saturday. The match Friday was postponed for rain. The winner will face either No. 3 Lyons or No. 2 Avoca/Prattsburgh for the Championship brick.
Singles
1. Samantha Bidzerkowny (WLSV) def. Serenity Sanford (C-G), 6-0, 6-0.
2. Meagan Riley (WLSV) def. Alli Jackson (C-G), 6-0, 6-0.
3. Sarah Mattison (WLSV) def. Joelle Minch (C-G), 6-0, 6-0.
Doubles
1. Hanna Miles/Caitlin Bittel (WLSV) def. Bailey Heisel/Amelia Stewart (C-G), 6-0, 6-2.
2. McKenna Wonderling/Kelsey Seely (WLSV) def. Aaliyah Tigner/McKenzie Clark (C-G), 6-0, 6-2.
