By CHRIS BROOKS, managing editor, wellsvillesports.com
WELLSVILLE — For the third time in the last six years, a packed crowd on hand Tuesday night saw a title defense open up the campaign for the third time in the last six seasons.
Defending Class B2 champion Wellsville and their opposition on the docket? — Section IV superpower Corning, led by eighth-grade sniper Nolyn Proudfoot. His presence on the floor was met almost immediately by the Lions. Once he got warm, the temperature would start rising beyond measure.
At a point where his shooting prowess turned into a fiery blitz on the hardwood in the Lion’s Den.
The Corning sharpshooter was lights out from start to finish, as he took charge from every angle. Offense, defense, the glass, you name it. On multiple occasions, the possession was pushed down court. When it was all said and done, his eruption of shots on the attack and a vehement first half front line of defense were two outstanding ingredients that were mixed together for complete success, as the Hawks rolled past Wellsville to spoil their season opener with a 69-50 win.
The electricity would send shockwaves through the air in the game’s opening sequences, as Proudfoot and Cooper Brockway each traded a triple each on their first possessions for their respective games to break the ice. Proudfoot would continue the momentum in Corning’s favor however, catching fire the first time with back-to-back triples with 3:35 left in the quarter to garner a 10-point lead, forcing a Wellsville (0-1) timeout in the same swing.
With the advantage in hand, their attention was now turned to the defense, where they would apply just the right amount of pressure to force multiple turnovers against the Lions to reclaim possession. Despite it, the Hawks lead would come down to seven by the time the first quarter would reach its conclusion, as Karson Grover helped end the frame with a buzzer-beating bank off the board for the Lions.
The lead for Corning would come down to just a single possession behind Ty Vogel’s first of two second quarter triples, but the Hawks would remain on top with another 10-point lead going into the break. In the third quarter, the momentum would remain right with the hosts in black and gold the rest of the way, as their defense returned to form and forced more turnovers against the Lions and cashed in on a bulk of the chances to extend their lead close to 20 points.
All coming from the hot hand of Proudfoot, who finished with 31 points for the Hawks — a performance that included nine of the team’s 13 total three-pointers from downtown. Five more of those in the second half.
Navigating their way to the top of the stat sheet was JJ Howard, who posted a team-high 14 points, including a one-handed jam late in the third quarter. Following behind was Vogel, who concluded with 13 points. Ethan Bailey had 10 points.
The search for a rebound will be on for Wellsville back on their home floor Friday night, as they host the annual IAABO Tournament with an opening-round matchup against the Rebels of Cuba-Rushford starting in a 7:30 p.m. tip-off.
In the matchup prior to the nightcap, C.G. Finney and Fillmore will do battle in their contest beginning at 6 p.m. in the Lion’s Den.
Corning 24 15 15 15 – 69
Wellsville 17 12 7 14 – 50
CORNING: Larsen Burch 2 4-4 8, Gavyn Hogue 2 0-0 4, Kyler Stevenson 5 2-3 15, Mekai Daniels 2 0-0 5, Kohl Hogue 1 0-2 2, Nolan Terwilliger 1 0-1 2, Nolyn Proudfoot 11 0-0 31, AJ Pagaro 1 0-0 2. Totals: 25 6-10 69.
WELLSVILLE: Aiden Cowburn 2 0-2 5, Karson Grover 2 0-0 4, Cooper Brockway 1 0-0 3, JJ Howard 6 2-5 14, Ty Vogel 5 0-1 13, Ethan Bailey 4 1-2 10, Alex Green 0 1-4 1. Totals: 20 4-14 50.
3-point goals: Corning 13 (Proudfoot 9, Stevenson 3, Daniels), Wellsville 6 (Vogel 3, Cowburn, Brockway, Bailey).
Total Fouls: Corning 16, Wellsville 12. Fouled out: None.
Bolivar-Richburg 68, Genesee Valley/Belfast 46
BOLIVAR — All throughout, Genesee Valley/Belfast and Bolivar-Richburg were neck-and-neck on Tuesday. Across the first three quarters of play, it was an offensive dogfight. One that saw the Wolverines take command, but it was never out of reach from Genesee Valley/Belfast at any given point.
But with the visitors in black inching ever so closer to their coattails, the last eight minutes would permit the hosts in cementing the advantage they held for a vast majority of the contest. As for the defense, they would allow just four points to reach the board to finish off the game on the most positive of notes with a 3-0 start to their season, handing Genesee Valley/Belfast their first loss in the same swing with a 68-46 win.
“Despite some of the frustrations we had early on, we rallied around and finished strong against a scrappy team,” Wolverines coach Justin Thomas said. “(Jacob) Borden came out of nowhere as opposed to last year, he is a stud. And you know what you were going to get out of Kyle McCumiskey and Kadin Logue. They got theirs, but thankfully, we clicked on offense and circumvented some things on defense. We did everything we could, and they had an answer for it. That team is on the rise. Lintz (Bliven) does a great job getting his boys ready to go.”
The responses were delivered in back-and-forth transition all game long between the two squads, beginning with Bolivar-Richburg (3-0) and their largest frame of offense coming into full fruition with a 21-17 lead to control. They would add onto their lead once more with another outscoring of the Wolverines on the attack going into the break, keeping Genesee Valley/Belfast in the rearview mirror along the way to claim a 10-point lead.
Despite falling further and further behind, Genesee Valley/Belfast (2-1) never showed one ounce of quit each step of the way, as they kept fighting back to try and trim their deficit down heading into the fourth quarter. But the Wolverines would go on and make the most out of every opportunity in the last eight minutes with a 3-to-1 ratio on the scoreboard to keep their advantage stapled down for good.
That effort was propelled by a 26-point performance from Aydin Sisson, who helped make it all happen. Following behind was a strong three-point presence from Landon Barkley, as he knocked down four of the team’s nine triples, en route to 18 points. Kingston Loucks chipped in with four more of his own to add onto his 14-point effort.
On special teams, Waide Karnuth led the rebound game with seven, while Reiss Gaines had five more boards to collect and five assists. Barkley would also hand out five more assists for Bolivar-Richburg.
For Genesee Valley/Belfast, Jacob Borden led all scorers with his inside presence, garnering 15 team-high points. Ian McKenzie bucketed four of the team’s five triples to put towards his 14 points, while Kadin Logue finished with eight. The team will now wait until this upcoming Monday back home in The Jungle to take the floor again, as they host Campbell-Savona in a 7:30 p.m. tip-off.
Bolivar-Richburg will look to make it four straight wins to open their season on Friday, when they visit Friendship/Scio for a 6 p.m. contest in Scio.
Genesee Valley/Belfast 17 10 15 4 – 46
Bolivar-Richburg 21 16 19 12 – 68
GV/BELFAST: Kyle McCumiskey 1 0-0 2, Kadin Logue 4 0-2 8, Matt Cater 1 0-0 2, Ian McKenzie 5 0-0 14, Owen Heaney 1 0-0 3, Jacob Borden 6 3-4 15, Kenton Shultz 1 0-0 2. Totals: 19 3-6 46.
BOLIVAR-RICHBURG: Aydin Sisson 12 1-2 26, Landon Barkley 7 0-0 18, Waide Karnuth 3 0-0 6, Trevor Pforter 1 0-0 2, Reiss Gaines 1 0-0 2, Kingston Loucks 5 0-0 14. Totals: 29 1-2 68.
3-point goals: GVB 5 (McKenzie 4, Heaney), B-R 9 (Barkley 4, Loucks 4, Sisson).
Total Fouls: GVB 5, B-R 18. Fouled out: None.
