Friday Roundup: Lions give State Champ Pembroke chase, but Dragons post 37 unanswered to break 28-28 tie in 71-42 win; GV/Belfast, C-R girls tie; Fri/Scio, Fillmore net blanks to close regular season
By CHRIS BROOKS, managing editor, wellsvillesports.com
WELLSVILLE — One of the wildest games you’ll see all season long on the gridiron, unfolded for all in attendance on Friday in the Lion’s Den. With the defending 8-Man State Champions hailing from Pembroke coming to town to help kickoff Homecoming weekend, the host Lions of Wellsville had to make sure they were ready for their biggest challenge this year.
Were they ever.
It was your classic wild west shootout across the entire first half between both teams, with Pembroke and Wellsville trading back and forth scores, through and through. When it was all said and done, the back of the end zones would see 16 combined touchdowns for a grand total of 113 total points shared amongst the foes.
At one point, the Lions pulled even with the Dragons not once, but twice in the second quarter off two huge touchdown throws from Brennen Geffers. But to close out the half however, Pembroke soared to the occasion.
The defending State Champions broke the last tie they shared with Wellsville with two big scores on the ground from Tyson Totten and Caleb Felski to close out the the half, opening up the next with a massive kickoff return from Felski right from the word go to further cement their advantage, putting it towards an amassment of 37 unanswered points to remain undefeated on the season with a 71-42 road win to spoil Homecoming festivities against Wellsville.
(No information or stats were emailed or called to wellsvillesports, this report is from rewatching the stream)
The back-and-forth war was waged right from the start, as each team found the back of the end zone twice. For the Lions (2-4), their scores came as responses to Pembroke, with the first coming on the ground from Brennen Geffers from 10 yards out.
While the next came as a response to the first of four Totten scores from 66 yards out, it was set up with a deep 36-yard pass from Geffers to Jack Davis, coupled alongside a long 22-yard run by the Wellsville quarterback to close in on the end zone.
To finish off the drive, Matt Ritter was called upon from the backfield for a goal line score to keep the pressure on the Dragons after the first quarter came to a close, trailing 14-12.
The second quarter would pick up a massive and full head of steam. Just how full? — Try 44 points between the two teams to close out a clamoring and rambunctious first half, which would begin immediately with another 66-yard touchdown by Totten. Wellsville came right back on the following drive after an onside kick positioned them at the Pembroke 48, and delivered with a 14-yard pass play from Geffers to Jack Davis to tie the game at 20.
On the ensuing drive for the Dragons, they fired the cannons right back at the Lions with another long run, this time by Caleb Felski, as he weaved his way straight through the Lions defense and straight to the house from midfield to grab the lead back.
Just like the last drive, Wellsville came up with a massive response again, paced by a 39-yard pass from Geffers to JJ Howard to break into the Dragons red zone.
Inching ever so closer to the end zone, Geffers hurled his second touchdown pass of the quarter to his left on the screen, connecting with Howard on the 10-yard score to tie the game at 28.
But the back-and-forth affair would come to a grinding halt for one team. For the other, they assumed complete and total control.
From the end of the second quarter onwards through much of the third, Pembroke took advantage of everything in its entirety, as they held the Lions at a complete standstill while the offense in turn, capitalized on 37 unanswered points, including a half-ending score following a Lions turnover on downs with one second remaining by Felski, and then transitioning his scoring prowess to special teams with a massive 85-yard kickoff return to start the second half, essentially affixing the Dragons lead for good.
Even though they were in the passenger’s seat, the Lions showed no signs of slowing down, as they kept themselves very much in the fight across the second half with two more scores on the ground from Xander Outman of 44 and 11 yards.
The 42 points posted by the Lions are the most that the Dragons have allowed all season long, as the hosts in black and orange gave everything they had to keep the defending State Champions well on their feet.
Next Friday night, the curtain will close on the regular season for the Lions, as they return to the Lion’s Den for Senior Night with a 7 p.m. kickoff against Caledonia-Mumford/Byron-Bergen.
Pembroke 14 28 23 6 – 71
Wellsville 12 16 6 8 – 42
Scoring Summary
1st
PEM – Madden Perry 27-yard pass from Tyson Totten, PAT good (7-0 PEM)
WLSV – Brennen Geffers 10-yard run, 2-pts failed (7-6 PEM)
PEM – Tyson Totten 66-yard run, PAT good (14-6 PEM)
WLSV – Matt Ritter 1-yard run, 2-pts failed (14-12 PEM)
2nd
PEM – Tyson Totten 66-yard run, PAT no good (20-12 PEM)
WLSV – Jack Davis 14-yard pass from Brennen Geffers, 2-pts good (20-20)
PEM – Caleb Felski 49-yard run, 2-pts good (28-20 PEM)
WLSV – JJ Howard 10-yard pass from Brennen Geffers, 2-pts good (28-28)
PEM – Tyson Totten 31-yard run, PAT good (35-28 PEM)
PEM – Caleb Felski 18-yard run, PAT good (42-28 PEM)
3rd
PEM – Caleb Felski 85-yard kickoff return, 2-pts good (50-28 PEM)
PEM – Vijay Dhanda 11-yard run, PAT good (57-28 PEM)
PEM – Caleb Felski 27-yard run, 2-pts good (65-28 PEM)
WLSV – Xander Outman 44-yard run, 2-pts failed (65-34 PEM)
4th
WLSV – Xander Outman 11-yard run, 2-pts good (65-42 PEM)
PEM – Tyson Totten 8-yard run, 2-pts failed (71-42 PEM)
Bolivar-Richburg 44, Holley 6
BOLIVAR — Senior Night took full effect at Dunsmore-Latimer Field at Bolivar-Richburg for the Wolverines final regular season home game under the Friday Night Lights, where 10 seniors will have played for the very last time in front of their home crowd.
With the Holley Hawks in for a visit, the Wolverines wasted no time striking while the iron was hot.
The seniors were sent out with a massive bang at the end of the night, as the Wolverines assumed complete control from start to finish behind their dominant run game, beginning with an icebreaking touchdown three plays removed from the opening kickoff to set the tone immediately in what was a 44-6 home win.
Tavyn MacDonell was responsible for opening up the game and fast for Bolivar-Richburg (4-2) out of the gate. Just three plays in, the senior back wasted no time getting his engine fired up from the backfield, scampering off towards the end zone on a 56-yard touchdown — his first of two in the game to propel the Wolverines offense.
In the second quarter, Caden Allen would serve as the team’s maestro on the next two scores. After a 43-yard punt return by Trey Buchholz led the Wolverines towards the Holley red zone, Allen used his arm to deliver his first of two strikes through the air, both to Kingston Loucks, as the pair connected with an 14-yard touchdown to grow the team’s lead furthermore.
Allen would then take to the ground himself on the team’s very next drive, as a series of rushes led to his eight-yard keeper to help record a 22-0 lead on the Hawks going into the halftime intermission. The defense would then enter the fray to begin the second half, as Maddox Davison recovered a fumble on Holley’s opening possession to set the offense up in prime position to pick up where they left off.
They would go on to do just that once more from the ground, with MacDonell scoring his second touchdown on the third play of the drive, breaking free from the Hawks defense and into the end zone from 28 yards out. After a long Hawks drive stalled out at the Bolivar-Richburg 26-yard line, the Wolverines turned right back around and went down the field again behind Zach Mitchell’s four-yard score to close out the third.
In the last quarter of play, the defense allowed their first score of the game through the air, as Holley ended the shutout with a 45-yard pass play from quarterback Destin Kuyal to Jake Pitcher on their first drive. But that would be all she wrote, as the Wolverines ended their night on a strong note with the second Allen-Loucks connection, as the two Wolverines intertwined on a 56-yard touchdown to finish off their fourth win going into the final week of the regular season.
The Wolverines accumulated nearly 400 yards of offense against Holley, 284 of those yards propelling their run game. Leading the charge was MacDonell, who rushed 15 times for 203 yards and his two scores. On defense, Mitchell paved the way with 10 team-high tackles. Allen followed with seven tackles, while MacDonell and Charlie Militello helped further the cause with 4.5 and four tackles, respectively.
Next week, Bolivar-Richburg will hit the road for a Saturday afternoon matinee to close out their regular season, as they visit C.G. Finney/Northstar for a 1 p.m. kickoff up north in Rochester.
Holley 0 0 0 6 – 6
Bolivar-Richburg 8 14 14 8 – 44
Scoring Summary
1st
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 56-yard run, 2-pts good (8-0 B-R)
2nd
B-R – Kingston Loucks 14-yard pass from Caden Allen, 2-pts failed (14-0 B-R)
B-R – Caden Allen 8-yard run, 2-pts good (22-0 B-R)
3rd
B-R – Tavyn MacDonell 28-yard run, 2-pts failed (28-0 B-R)
B-R – Zach Mitchell 4-yard run, 2-pts good (36-0 B-R)
4th
HOL – Jake Pitcher 45-yard pass from Destin Kuyal, 2-pts failed (36-6 B-R)
B-R – Kingston Loucks 56-yard pass from Caden Allen, 2-pts good (44-6 B-R)
Total Yards: HOL 224, B-R 365.
Passing: HOL 137, B-R 71.
Rushing: HOL 87, B-R 284.
First Downs: HOL 12, B-R 15.
Turnovers: HOL 1, B-R 2.
Penalties: HOL 4-33, B-R 3-28.
Punts: HOL 3, B-R 0.
T.O.P: HOL 34:27, B-R 19:26.
BOYS SOCCER
Genesee Valley/Belfast 4, Houghton Academy 1
HOUGHTON — Looking to bounce back after a 5-1 loss to the hands of Fillmore, Genesee Valley/Belfast took their travels back on the road again to close out their regular season with a visit to Houghton Academy, Friday night.
Just three minutes into the game, they would allow themselves to set a massive tone against the hosts in blue. Despite the Panthers working back to tie the game, they would pick up right where they left off coming out of the break, as they scored three unanswered goals to pull ahead and towards victory by a 4-1 count to officially close their regular season on a bright note.
Ryan Snyder opened up the game with the game’s first goal, setting up shop quickly for Genesee Valley/Belfast (8-6-2) to take the lead. The advantage was held leading up to the halfway mark, when the Panthers were able to respond by leveling the playing ground before heading into the break, as Ricky Song plastered his score to the back of the net.
That would be all the scoring for Houghton Academy (6-9-1), as the Genesee Valley/Belfast defense buckled in to keep the Panthers attack at a standstill while creating offense of their own back the other way.
As a direct result, the visitors went on to score three unanswered markers, two from Ian McKenzie sandwiched in between a score from Evan Turybury to finish off their win.
The four goals for Genesee Valley/Belfast were engineered by a 16-shot output on offense, as they outshot Houghton Academy by a 16-6 count.
In goal, the win belonged to Kyle McCumiskey, who made five saves. On the other end, Marco Zanini stopped 12 shots for the Panthers.
The regular season is now over for both teams, as they now await Sectional seeding this weekend.
GIRLS SOCCER
Genesee Valley/Belfast 2, Cuba-Rushford 2
CUBA — With the end of the regular season upon the horizon, the time to build much-needed momentum going into the second season next week came on Friday. Genesee Valley/Belfast and Cuba-Rushford partook in a battle that would come straight down to the wire in the second half of play, which saw two rapid responses.
With one team breaking a 1-1 tie, it was reloaded once again shortly after to create another deadlock with just under four minutes remaining. But this time around, that very deadlock would remain bolted down until the end of regulation and beyond, as both teams would collect their very first tie on the last day of action, settling at two on each side.
“To be honest, it’s one of those ties that feels more like a small victory for us, especially considering how much they controlled the game and out-played us earlier in the year,” Lady Rebels coach Aaron Wight said. “We were a little unlucky not to come away with this one, and we had a couple of very good chances in overtime. In the end, it felt like a pretty good Senior Night for these three seniors. They’ve been with me for four years now, and they have a lot of heart. They showed that tonight when they really stepped it up a notch in a game like this.”
Both ties in each half of play would come within minutes of each other, beginning in the opening 40 where Genesee Valley/Belfast (12-3-1) broke the ice with an opportunity created after an interception at midfield from Ava Aaronson, who sent it straight downfield for a streaking Hannah Southwick-Powers.
Breaking free from a pair of Lady Rebels defenders, Southwick-Powers took a sharp-angle shot that careened straight off of Lilly Johnson-Clark in goal and into the upper right corner for the lead.
But it was an advantage that didn’t hold for long. Just over four minutes later, Cuba-Rushford (7-8-1) responded in a big way off a sublime corner kick put on goal by Haydn Jones, as she found Jen Tuttle directly in the middle of the Genesee Valley/Belfast cage for the deadlocking marker with 24:11 left until the break.
The tie would remain in place across the remaining minutes of the first half, and elapsing into the second half where the battle would come down to the last six minutes of regulation. With the pressure beginning to reach a boiling point, it would see some relief at the 6:18 mark off a massive penalty kick chance for the Lady Rebels.
After a foul inside the box allowed the prime scoring chance to come into full fruition, the kick received Cloey Larabee’s election. Her shot was initially swatted away by Kimme Ball, but it created a loose rebound back in front of the net where Larabee raced over to provide a follow-up — one that squibbed straight across to the other side of the net and in to give Cuba-Rushford a 2-1 advantage.
But like in the first half, the quick responses would carry over. With 3:47 left to play, Genesee Valley/Belfast found a way to tie the game again with the assistance of Abby Sullivan from the near corner. Her shot carried enough zip and pirouetted the ball straight over top of everyone in front of the Lady Rebels cage and into the goal to create a deadlock for the remainder of the game whilst forcing overtime.
When it was all said and done, Genesee Valley/Belfast took a hold of a 7-6 advantage in the shot department, with Johnson-Clark making five saves for the hosts in blue, and Ball recording four saves on the opposite end of the pitch for the visitors.
Both teams will now await their placings in the Sectional tournament, which is set to begin after the weekend.
Friendship/Scio 1, Andover/Whitesville 0
SCIO — She was responsible for scoring the team’s first goal back on Wednesday against Bolivar-Richburg. Now two days later, she had another card in her back pocket to play on Friday.
In Friendship/Scio’s regular season finale against Andover/Whitesville, Cece Davenport’s second career Varsity goal came at no better moment in time. With under three minutes remaining, she ended the game on her own accord, as she accounted for the game’s only deciding factor that crossed the white line and into the net, propelling the hosts in black and gold towards a .500 mark finish going into Sectionals with a 1-0 shutout in Scio.
“We’re going to have a home Sectional game after tonight. This is a big win, and we knew coming into this week, we probably had to get both games to guarantee ourselves that,” said Friendship/Scio coach Dillon McFall. “That was one of our goals coming into this season, and the other one was to actually win that game. It gives us a great chance to do that, and these girls deserve a shot at it. Tonight’s game will be a great building block.”
Davenport’s goal came with 2:21 left in regulation, as she broke a game-long scoreless deadlock by breaking free from the Andover/Whitesville defense. The Friendship/Scio (8-8) eighth grader made a run straight up the field following alongside Nevaeh Ross to her right. The ball was slid across to Davenport where she provided a one-time shot. The ball was initially stopped at first, but the momentum of the shot allowed it to slither into the net to account for the game’s first and only goal.
The goal came off eight total shots for the hosts, as they took the advantage in the shot department by an 8-3 count over Andover/Whitesville (3-11).
In between the posts, the shutout victory was claimed by Grace Drumm, making all three saves. On the opposite end, Olivia Waters made seven saves for the visitors.
Both teams will now begin their wait for Sectional seeding, as play for the second season commences next week.
Fillmore 9, Bolivar-Richburg 0
FILLMORE — After setting a new single-season record for the Lady Eagles of Fillmore, all that was left for Hope Russell to do was to add more bricks to the foundation at the top of the program. On Friday, the senior did just that, scoring four more goals — upping her grand total to 56 on the season, as Fillmore finished their campaign with a fifth straight undefeated standing and a 9-0 shutout of visiting Bolivar-Richburg.
“We had our Senior Night tonight recognizing our nine seniors who have given a great service to FCS soccer,” said Lady Eagles coach Jon Beardsley. “You might say it was a bit emotional before the game. We do some unique things as a team on Senior NIght before anyone shows up, and like many others, this took a lot out of us. We celebrated many great moments regarding these girls. The game was icing on the cake, and finishing undefeated is certainly something to feel good about.”
Along with her four first half goals for the Lady Eagles (16-0), Russell would send along three helpers to finish off an electric 11-point night on the attack. Following behind was Grace Russell, who chipped in with two goals and handed out four helpers. Ryleigh Goodliff, Mylee Miller and Oakley Frazier (assist) all recorded a goal each, while Amelia Rose rounded off the scoring with a helper.
With the win, Fillmore officially locked up the No. 1 seed for Sectionals, as their chase through the Class D bracket begins.
The Lady Eagles defense was fronted by Preslee Miller, who finished off a dominant regular season between the posts with her 13th shutout, stopping one shot Bolivar-Richburg (4-11) applied on goal to do so.
On the other end of the pitch, Caitlyn Steiner made 11 saves for the Lady Wolverines.
“We’ve played 16 games, so we aren’t going to downplay the regular season,” Beardsley said. “Now that we accomplished that goal, we move onto another goal we have, and that’s winning a Sectional title. It is hard to win one of those, but we are excited for the opportunity and we feel we are ready. We will take some time to heal up a bit, get some rest and get focused and prepared for the next step.”
Both teams will now await Sectional play, beginning next week.
GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
Cuba-Rushford 3, Hinsdale 0
CUBA — The Lady Rebels of Cuba-Rushford continued to remain red hot on the volleyball court Friday night in the Wighthouse, as they rattled off their 11th straight win — their fourth in straight sets, taking down visiting Hinsdale with a 3-0 win by a 25-13, 25-11, 25-8 count.
The offense that Cuba-Rushford (11-1) provided was balanced across the board, with Jessica Ringelberg and Jordyn Radomski each leading the way with five kills and five aces each. Setter Kendall Tompkins helped set everything up at the front of the net with her game-high 22 assists, chipping in five more aces of her own along the way.
Statistics for the Lady Bobcats (1-13) were not made available to report upon publication.
Both teams will resume regular season play on Monday over the road in a pair of 7:30 p.m. first serves, as Cuba-Rushford looks to keep their inferno burning with a visit to Olean, while Hinsdale hits the road to take on Genesee Valley/Belfast.
