Monday Roundup: Buchholz tosses 1-hit gem for B-R, bats come alive to deliver rebounding 11-0 win over Fillmore; Miller smacks 2 homers including 9th inning go-ahead to aid 7-6 Lady Eagles win at B-R
Photo and stories by Chris Brooks, managing editor, wellsvillesports.com
BOLIVAR — After enduring two grueling battles against Port Allegany and Bloomfield before the brief weekend recess, the Wolverines of Bolivar-Richburg hit the refresh button and regrouped for their third contest in four days, with their next titanic-esque battle coming against the Fillmore Eagles to start the week on Monday.
Coming face-to-face with the Eagles, the Wolverines sought an opportunity to strike while the iron on the stove was blazing hot. After a fine opening tenure of defense, they were granted that chance immediately in the bottom of the first, when they assembled the first of two four-run stanzas in the opening sequences to set the tone against the visitors in green.
The rest was blanketed in the glove of Trey Buchholz on the mound, as he proceeded to hold Fillmore at a complete standstill across all facets to record the one-hit shutout — a big 11-0 blank to bounce their way back into the win column back home.
“It was a nice bounce back after two tough games over the weekend. The guys came in focused and ready to go. Trey pitched a great game for us, and we got some key hits when we needed it to keep the momentum in our favor. Fillmore is young, but we knew coming into today that they were going to be a tough battle.” Wolverines coach Dustin Allen said.
The Wolverines (8-1) were off and running following a 1-2-3 on defense against the Eagles, with Trey Buchholz starting a four-run bottom of the first with a bang off a lead-off ground rule double. With runners occupying the corners, they would use some heads-up, phenomenal baserunning in the midst of a double steal, allowing Buchholz to score from third to break the ice.
Caden Allen was next in line to post some damage of his own, blasting an RBI single up the middle before more special teams work around the bases allowed two more runs to scratch across. The last was scored off a grounder to the right side handled by Kingston Loucks — the first of his two RBI in the contest to put a bow on the frame.
All the momentum would remain in Bolivar-Richburg’s favor in the second, despite the Eagles keeping the bats sheltered at bay in return, with Buchholz delivering a six-pitch outing to keep the visitors in green frozen in place at the plate with another 1-2-3 stand.
Heading into the bottom of the third, the hosts in white and red picked up where they left off on the attack with another four-run burst, with a one-out triple to the right center field gap from Allen propelling them ahead.
The damage would continue on with two more RBI off two big hits from both Barkley and then a return to the top of the lineup, to Buchholz, all stemming off a bases-loaded threat pinned against the Eagles to help finish off the third inning with an 8-0 lead.
The scoring would come to a conclusion in the following inning, as they crossed the 10-run threshold with a three-run stand.
As for Buchholz, he kept complete command of the mound from start to finish, going the distance behind five strikeouts and a walk to score the win for the Wolverines. On the offensive front, Buchholz and Landon Barkley each scored three hits, combining for four total RBI, while Barkley scored three runs of his own. Tavyn MacDonell added a double.
For the Eagles (4-3), Damon Potter branched his start on the hill into the third inning, as he struck out two and walked three. Nolan Krzeminski had the team’s lone hit — the very first hit of the contest on a single into left field.
Both teams will return to action Wednesday night over the road in a pair of 5 p.m. contests, with Bolivar-Richburg hitting the road for a visit to Hinsdale, while Fillmore looks to rebound with a trip to Whitesville to take on host Andover/Whitesville.
Fillmore 000 00 – 0 1 2
Bolivar-Richburg 404 3X – 11 8 0
FIL – Damon Potter (LP) (2K, 3BB), Brayden Hennard (3) (K, BB), Kalen Beardsley (3) (2K, BB) and Nolan Krzeminski.
B-R – Trey Buchholz (WP) (CG, 5K, BB) and Aydin Sisson.
More stories after Chris Brooks photo gallery:
Genesee Valley/Belfast 6, Cuba-Rushford 0
CUBA — Genesee Valley/Belfast’s Ryan Daciw and Cuba-Rushford’s Eli Sleggs put on a show across the majority of their Monday night battle in Cuba, as the two junior hurlers kept the respective bats in check for as long as they could.
But behind some big thanks to some timely hitting and some incredibly massive baserunning, a fast start allowed the visitors in black to jet off with the lead, never looking back on it, as Daciw won the pitcher’s duel behind his phenomenal complete game, three-hit shutout to aid Genesee Valley/Belfast in their third straight win with a 6-0 blank of the host Rebels.
“Ryan Daciw pounded the strike-zone tonight and he had really good command,” Rebels coach Pat Wight said. “I thought Eli pitched a heck of a game for us, only giving up three hits himself. We were not sharp defensively and Genesee Valley/Belfast made us pay, so credit to them. The team that made fewer mistakes today and deserved to win, won. We will be back at it tomorrow and fix some things in preparation for the rest of the week.”
Each team mustered just three hits on the attack, with some big special teams play, along with some key timely hits allowing Genesee Valley/Belfast (7-2) to pave the path forward, beginning with a pair of scores after the first two innings of play.
Then, some clutch strikes at the plate came to fruition in the top of the third, with Matt Cater delivering an fielder’s choice for an RBI before Daciw followed with an RBI single to burst open the team’s lead to five.
One more run worked its way across in the sixth inning to further cushion their advantage, with the rest of the contest resting upon the shoulders of Daciw, who held Cuba-Rushford (4-2) off the board completely behind his nine-strikeout performance to score the victory.
Joining Daciw on the attack for Genesee Valley/Belfast were Owen Heaney and Kevin McCumiskey — the team’s No. 8 and No. 9 hitters, as each scored a single.
As for the Rebels, Sleggs extended his start into the sixth inning, where he recorded eight strikeouts and walked three. He, along with Braeden Wight and Finn Ricketts, each recorded a hit.
Both teams are back on the diamond Wednesday night in a pair of 5 p.m. first pitches, as Genesee Valley/Belfast heads to Scio to take on host Friendship/Scio, while Cuba-Rushford stays home to host a big clash with the scorching hot Wellsville Lions.
Genesee Valley/Belfast 113 001 0 – 6 3 1
Cuba-Rushford 000 000 0 – 0 3 3
GVB – Ryan Daciw (WP) (CG, 9K) and Evan Turybury.
C-R – Eli Sleggs (LP) (8K, 3BB), Braxton Clark (6), Lucas Haskins (7) (BB) and Dean Frank, Adam Shaffer (6).
Hinsdale 14, Andover/Whitesville 11
WHITESVILLE — A wild high-scoring affair ensued and unfolded right before the eyes of the beholders in Whitesville on Monday.
Between both the Bobcats of Hinsdale and host Andover/Whitesville, 25 total scores would navigate its way onto the board through all seven innings of play. The two foes would come together for a close battle in the opening frames of play, and then, the runs soon came down in an avalanche.
Each team would garner a massive inning of attack to throw the balance of power off-kilter down the homestretch. But in the end, the last of those stands belonged to the Bobcats, who pulled ahead in the top of the sixth to secure their win permanently by a 14-11 count for their first win of the season.
Hinsdale and Andover/Whitesville were tangled in a deadlock within a first three inning stand that saw a ton of scoring, beginning with a 1-1 tie after the first and concluding with a game-tying run from the Bobcats (1-4) in the top of the third to retie the game at four going into the fourth inning.
They would swap positions in the driver’s seat each time during that span, with the Bobcats posting three runs while the hosts in purple doubled them up with their largest frame — a six-run bottom half to claim a 10-7 lead.
Following the exchange of a scoreless fifth, it was the Bobcats’ turn to deliver a big right hook, one of insurmountable force, as they posted a seven-run top half of the sixth to navigate their way back behind the steering wheel once and for all to claim their first win of the season.
Hinsdale totaled 14 runs off 11 hits mustered at the plate, while Andover/Whitesville (1-5) collected just four hits during their campaign at the plate to score their 11 runs.
On the mound, the win was granted to Jake Elliott in relief for the Bobcats, as he struck out five and walked nine.
As for Andover/Whitesville, Brody Vance stepped onto the rubber in the fourth inning to hand out six chairs, walking three along the way.
Additional statistics were not made available to report upon publication.
Both teams will return to the field Wednesday night with a pair of 5 p.m. first pitches on the docket, as Hinsdale heads back home to host Bolivar-Richburg, while Andover/Whitesville stays put in Whitesville to welcome in Fillmore.
Hinsdale 121 307 0 – 14 11 5
Andover/Whitesville 130 601 0 – 11 4 3
HIN – Henry Schwartz (3K, 2BB), Jake Elliott (WP, 4) (5K, 9BB) and Peyton Keller.
A/W – Derek Perkins (2K, 3BB), Brody Vance (LP, 4) (6K, 3BB) and Colton Calladine.
SOFTBALL
Fillmore 7, Bolivar-Richburg 6 (F-9)
RICHBURG — For the second time in three games, the Lady Wolverines of Bolivar-Richburg were forced into some free softball on Monday. After a clutch final outing at the plate, this time by the visiting Fillmore Lady Eagles, it required a response in turn.
The hosts in black and red did just that with a single run to force a 6-6 deadlock after regulation play. It developed a brand new ball game with level playing ground beneath them, as both squads looked to tilt the momentum once again with just two frames of additional play needed to determine the clear cut winner.
She would give them the lead for the first time since the beginning stages. And when it came down to brass tax once more, Preslee Miller made sure she would deliver double the damage.
The Fillmore’s seniors pair of hits she would record in the game were of massive variety. Totaling three RBI at the plate, Miller came through the clutch in the most clamorous way possible, belting a pair of home runs — a two-run shot in the top of the seventh, followed by an astronomical solo homer in the top of the ninth to feather their way into the lead, as the Lady Eagles squeezed their way past Bolivar-Richburg with a 7-6 nine-inning victory to get back on track in the win column.
“The game had everything good and bad you could imagine,” Lady Eagles coach Jon Beardsley said. “Focusing on the good aspects, Preslee had two huge home runs to build some momentum, Mylee (Miller) pitched well, and we won the close game against a quality opponent in Bolivar-Richburg. I feel good for the girls, as they haven’t been on the right side of things as much as they might like to be. I give my congrats to them. They deserve it.”
Prior to the extra inning firework display taking the game by storm, the Lady Eagles (4-5) were the first to get their pistons firing on all cylinders after a scoreless exchange in the first inning, taking command of a 4-0 lead beginning with a three-run top of the second that Summer Friedl, Mattie McCumiskey and Oakley Frazier each headlined the production with an RBI single in a span of four at-bats through the lineup to break the ice.
The advantage was wiped out by Bolivar-Richburg (2-5) later on in the middle frames, as they answered back with five unanswered runs of their own — four of them in the bottom of the fifth inning to take their first lead of the game with the aid of Danika Saunders and her big bat, ending the shutout bid the inning before with an RBI single before driving in two more on special teams in her next at-bat to claim the 5-4 lead.
The score would remain frozen in place after each team stood tall in a quick inning of defense, with Kylee Whiting shelling out a 1-2-3 filled with strikeouts to build momentum going into a bottom half that Fillmore responded right back with just four batters reaching the plate.
Entering the seventh with one on and one out, Miller approached the plate with a 1-1 count and then airlifted a ball straight out of the park for a two-run blast to give the Lady Eagles their first lead since the second inning at the most opportune time.
But it was cut short immediately into Bolivar-Richburg’s half of the final inning, as Saunders came through one more time with a herculean game-tying RBI double to force extra innings against the visitors in black and green.
Saunders would conclude her night with a 2-for-4 outing that consisted of four RBI total to lead the Lady Wolverine sticks.
With the deadlock evened at six on each side, extra innings were next on the docket, as both Fillmore and Bolivar-Richburg would trade a scoreless eighth inning barb to set up a ninth inning filled with heroism for the Lady Eagles.
Specifically for Miller, who put on the cape and delivered a solo home run, her second of the game to catapult the Lady Eagles back out on top with a 7-6 lead.
After going yard a second time, the momentum the Lady Eagles senior built, would be stuffed into their back pocket for their final stand of defense, which witnessed a 1-2-3 of the Lady Wolverines bats to officially bring the curtain down on a remarkable return to the win column.
Mylee Miller aided in pacing the defense towards victory with a nine-inning complete game in the circle, as she recorded six strikeouts and a walk. She would also serve as the second Lady Eagle, following behind her older sister Preslee, to post a pair of hits.
As for the Lady Wolverines, Kylee Whiting was outstanding in her tenure of relief on the mound, as she struck out 11 and walked two. At the plate, Sydney Faulkner and Jayna Thomas each recorded a pair of hits to help further the offensive cause behind Saunders.
Both squads will make their return to the field tonight in a pair of 5 p.m. pitches, with Fillmore hitting the road again to visit Cuba-Rushford, while Bolivar-Richburg aims to rebound with a visit from Genesee Valley/Belfast.
Fillmore 031 000 201 – 7 7 6
Bolivar-Richburg 000 140 100 – 6 9 4
FIL – Mylee Miller (WP) (CG, 6K, BB) and Oakley Frazier.
B-R – Sommer Beckwith (3K, BB), Kylee Whiting (LP, 3) (11K, 2BB) and Sydney Faulkner.
Cuba-Rushford 7, Genesee Valley/Belfast 6
CUBA — After spending time in Portville with battles against the Lady Panthers and the Randolph Lady Cardinals, the Lady Rebels of Cuba-Rushford used it as an opportunity to gather up some massive experience, as well as a bushel of momentum to carry onward into a busy week ahead beginning Monday night back home against a Genesee Valley/Belfast team that has won five of their first six games.
The Lady Rebels were ready for the challenge, and in the same swing, they issued a massive start to their game, garnering a four-run lead through the first two innings of play. The advantage they would lay down as their foundation would remain intact behind the guidance of Sydney Howard, who tossed four shutout innings before the Genesee Valley/Belfast bats re-emerged with a mastodonic seventh inning to tie the game.
Although the visitors in black and gray did not force a lead change, they would create level playing ground for Cuba-Rushford’s final stand.
And in it, Mireya Rutkowski answered the dinner bell.
The Lady Rebels freshman served the role of superhero at a time the team needed it the most. After Genesee Valley/Belfast roared their way back, she went on to deliver the game-ending hit, striking on a walk-off single to put a halt on their opposition’s hot streak while extinguishing a four-game slide themselves, as they hopped, skipped and jumped their way towards a 7-6 Senior Night win in thrilling fashion.
“Mireya really came through with that game-winning hit tonight. We had two errors back-to-back in the seventh that allowed them to get back into the game, but we were able to get out of the inning with it tied and win the game with our bats,” Lady Rebels coach Mary Keesler said. “I’m really happy with how we’ve been hitting the ball the last three games, as well as Sydney for throwing another great game tonight on Senior Night. The games against Portville and Randolph have really helped find ourselves.”
Following the breaking of the ice by Genesee Valley/Belfast in the first inning, the Lady Rebels (2-4) were in the midst of getting their bats fired up when the bottom of the second arrived in its entirety. From within it, a laser show, as the hosts in gray and blue unleashed a five-run bonanza against Hannah Southwick-Powers and the defense behind her in the circle, to jump ahead into the driver’s seat with a 5-1 lead.
Both teams would trade a run across the next two innings of play before the defenses buckled down to deliver a pair of shutout stands.
That would ultimately lead up to a massive outing from Genesee Valley/Belfast (5-2), as they used the mixture of special teams and errors to work their way around the Lady Rebels defense and to home four times, tying the game at six going into Cuba-Rushford’s final at-bats.
In them, the Lady Rebels did not back down, as they put what momentum they had established to good use behind the bat of Rutkowski, who delivered home the game-winning run off her single to end the game in style for the home team.
The walk-off hit was one of five Cuba-Rushford would record. Rutkowski and Arlah Shaffer each garnered two, with the latter of the pair driving in three runs along the way.
In the circle, the win belonged to Sydney Howard, who wrapped up a fine night of service with eight strikeouts and a walk. On the opposite side, Hannah Southwick-Powers struck out 10 and walked six in her complete game five-hit performance for Genesee Valley/Belfast.
On the offensive front, Southwick-Powers and Jenna Hill each posted three hits, with Hill recording a triple and double.
Both squads will hit the field again tonight in a 5 p.m. commencement, with Cuba-Rushford welcoming in Fillmore, while Genesee Valley/Belfast visits Bolivar-Richburg.
Genesee Valley/Belfast 101 000 4 – 6 6 4
Cuba-Rushford 050 100 1 – 7 5 3
GVB – Hannah Southwick-Powers (LP) (CG, 10K, 6BB) and Jenna Hill.
C-R – Sydney Howard (WP) (CG, 8K, BB) and Arlah Shaffer.
BOYS TENNIS
Fillmore 4, Bolivar-Richburg 1
BOLIVAR — Powered by a quartet of straight-set shutouts, the Eagles of Fillmore were unstoppable on the tennis court to start a brand new week of action on Monday, as they recorded four victories from the five matches in battle against host Bolivar-Richburg to score their sixth consecutive victory by a 4-1 count.
Aiding their win was a complete sweep of all three singles matches across the court for Fillmore (6-0), with Eben Schilke, Isaiah Sisson and Marcus Wolfer all scoring 6-0, 6-0 wins in their respective battles against Bolivar-Richburg’s Anthony Densmore at first singles, Dustin Murray at second singles and Trevor Whitsell at third singles.
Fillmore would garner a doubles win along the way from the tag team of Carson Sanasith and Ezra Knapp, as they also recorded a 6-0, 6-0 triumph over Alex Parker and Nebula Wilson-Smith to finish off the match win.
The Wolverines (2-1) were able to score a second doubles win from the duo of Jamie Werner and Starlyn Kisel, who fought back after a first set defeat in a big way to deliver a second set haymaker along with a tough third-set tiebreak win to clinch the 4-6, 6-1, 7-5 win over Fillmore’s Grayson Cox and Kallan Sanasith.
Bolivar-Richburg will hit the road tonight with a 5 p.m. first serve in Wellsville.
As for the Eagles, they will visit the Lions themselves later in the week, heading for Wellsville on Thursday in a 5 p.m. first serve of their own.
Singles
1. Eben Schilke (FIL) def. Anthony Densmore (B-R), 6-0, 6-0.
2. Isaiah Sisson (FIL) def. Dustin Murray (B-R), 6-0, 6-0.
3. Marcus Wolfer (FIL) def. Trevor Whitsell (B-R), 6-0, 6-0.
Doubles
1. Carson Sanasith/Ezra Knapp (FIL) def. Alex Parker/Nebula Wilson-Smith (B-R), 6-0, 6-0.
2. Jamie Werner/Starlyn Kisel (B-R) def. Grayson Cox/Kallan Sanasith (FIL), 4-6, 6-1, 7-5.
