Photos and story by CHRIS BROOKS, managing editor, wellsvillesports.com
Tuesday Roundup: Lewis-Ellison’s PK aids And/Whi’s strong finish to regular season with 1-0 shutout at Fri/Scio; GV/Belfast girls net 3 early markers in 2nd half to set up 4-0 blank of Lady Lions
SCIO — After their absolutely tenacious performance of the season back on Friday to capsize the Lady Rebels of Cuba-Rushford on their home grass, the Andover/Whitesville girls were back to the grind, and they were looking for more to contribute towards a strong finish to their regular season on Tuesday.
A regular-season ending consultation with Friendship/Scio was in store for a chilly night in Scio, where both teams fought the fight through the field for possession early on. As the defensive battle ensued, the chances were limited.
With the action coming to a scoreless halt going into the break, something had to give way. That’s when a massive chance to strike came in the early-going.
For Andover/Whitesville, Graci Lewis-Ellison made a world of difference by netting what would suffice as the game’s only score, as she knocked home a free opportunity to break the ice and ultimately aid the team’s gravitation towards a strong finish to their regular season campaign with a 1-0 win — their third in their last four games, over host Friendship/Scio.
Lewis-Ellison came away with Andover/Whitesville’s monumental marker approaching the removal of the first 10 minutes in the second half. After just over 40 minutes of digging and clawing their way through the Friendship/Scio defense, the senior was provided the biggest of opportunities to tilt the game overwhelmingly.
After a foul was drawn against Friendship/Scio (5-9-1) in their defensive box, Lewis-Ellison lined up for a penalty kick that she did not squander, as she knocked it in past Avery Lamberson in between the posts for the hosts to give Andover/Whitesville a one-goal lead they would continue to hold until the end of the night.
The goal, which clocked in with 31:20 remaining, was part of a nine-shot display of offense for the visitors, as they outshot the hosts in black and gold by a 9-6 total count. In net, the shutout was claimed by Olivia Waters, who made all six stops to help finish the job.
As for Lamberson, she would put a stop to eight shots faced from the opposition. Friendship/Scio will close out their regular season Thursday night right back in Scio, as they host Genesee Valley/Belfast in a 6 p.m. first kick.
Andover/Whitesville will now await what the future holds in Sectionals, which begin next week, as they wrap up their regular season with a record of 5-10 overall.
More stories from Monday and Tuesday action after the photos:
Genesee Valley/Belfast 4, Wellsville 0
BELMONT — A repeat of history from their previous matchup fell into the cards for the Genesee Valley/Belfast girls on Tuesday.
After claiming a 4-0 victory over the road against the Wellsville Lady Lions just a couple of weeks ago, Genesee Valley/Belfast would do it all over again, this time on their home turf, as they struck gold right out of the gate before cementing into place a second half rapid succession to advance their lead towards insurmountable territory, rolling towards a second 4-0 blank of the Lady Lions at Judy Bliven Field in Belmont to sweep the season series.
There was no better way to start the game for Genesee Valley/Belfast (13-1-1), as they immediately peeled out towards a 1-0 lead of Wellsville just 38 seconds into the game. With the ball working back towards midfield in the midst of a defensive regroup, Sophie Zillgitt was the first to start a brand new possession of soccer, as she danced with the Lady Lions defense before shifting a pass dead ahead to Bayleigh Tallman.
After surveying the field in front of her, Tallman then spearheaded a pass to a streaking Hannah Southwick-Powers, who finished off a brilliant shot from the near post to the far side of the Lady Lions cage to break the ice.
Genesee Valley/Belfast would remain vigilant in a tight battle for possession across the midfield for the remainder of the first half, leading up towards a massive second half detonation in the first 10 minutes, as they went on to score three more goals in a span of 2:20 to take a one-goal advantage and quadruple it in unbreachable fashion.
The first tally, stemming off a Madison Yackeren throw-in and finished by a Bayleigh Tallman rocket over the head of Lydia Kaye in the Lady Lions (5-9-1) net from the top of the 18.
Tallman then used some heads-up awareness to swipe away possession again from Wellsville, intercepting a direct kick near midfield to deliver a pass up the middle for Southwick-Powers, who broke free for a rush alone to the goal, burying home her second of the game just two minutes later for a 3-0 lead.
The scoring was finished off 27 seconds later following the kick at midfield, as Genesee Valley/Belfast used some great ball movement to work the ball back into the Wellsville zone. After a Kayla Wedge pass was sent ahead for Tallman, she would then aid Southwick-Powers again for a third time with a pass to her left-hand side that was finished off in hat trick-clinching style.
The four goals by the hosts were scattered across a 14-shot offensive display, as they managed to collect a 14-3 advantage in the shot department over the Lady Lions. In net, the shutout belonged to Morgan Yackeren, who made all four stops.
For Wellsville, Lydia Kaye finished with 10 saves.
Both teams will return to the pitch Thursday night in a pair of 6 p.m. first kicks, as Genesee Valley/Belfast travels down the road to visit Friendship/Scio in Scio, while Wellsville heads back home for their final regular season game with a visit from Bolivar-Richburg.
Fillmore 8, Bolivar-Richburg 0
BOLIVAR — After a temporary battle for possession through the field, the Lady Eagles of Fillmore kept the water going at a rolling boil before they uncorked a flurry of scores against host Bolivar-Richburg to kick the action into a completely different gear, as they accounted for five first half markers to set the tone in what was an 8-0 blank over the Lady Wolverines.
Out of their five markers in the first 40 minutes, Fillmore (14-1) set up shop right away with three of them coming in a nine-minute span to springboard their way ahead of Bolivar-Richburg, with Kallie Pastorius starting the scoring on a solo effort to the cage.
Towards the midway point, Morghyn Ross then took matters into her own hands with back-to-back strikes, with her first stemming off a penalty kick before receiving a pass from Pastorius to finish off two minutes later.
The scoring would cease until the last 10 minutes of the frame when Ryleigh Goodliff and Peyton Duvall each provided a solo marker to branch Fillmore’s lead to five.
Along with a second goal in the last 40 minute session from Pastorius, Brooklyn Templeton and Emalyn Mucher bookended the frame with a goal each, with assists from Grace Walton and Kylie Songster, respectively, coming along the way.
Mucher would receive credit for the assist on the second Pastorius goal.
The eight total scores against Bolivar-Richburg (4-10) were recorded off 20 total shots, as the Lady Eagles claimed a 20-2 advantage in the shot department over the Lady Wolverines. In net, the win belonged to Grace Clark, who split time with Kelsie Songster in between the posts, as they combined for the two-save shutout.
On the opposite side, Rylee Whiting made 12 saves for the hosts in black and red.
The Lady Eagles will close out their regular season with another road trip coming up on Friday, hitting the road for a 7 p.m. clash with Cuba-Rushford in Hinsdale, while Bolivar-Richburg hits the road for a 6 p.m. visit to Wellsville on Thursday.
GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
Fillmore 3, Hammondsport 0
FILLMORE — Since the beginning, the big message that head coach Lacie Fuller has sent to her team is quite simple: Keep your foot on the gas.
With the Lady Eagles of Fillmore closing in on a top seed for Sectionals right around the corner, they fulfilled that duty once again on Tuesday back inside The Rock, as they took care of business with a dynamic straight-set sweep of Hammondsport after a 25-17, 25-17, 25-17 match win.
The Lady Eagles (9-6) continue to soar high behind the guidance of Mya Keeler, who recorded a team-leading four kills on the offensive, pairing them with two digs. On defense, Eevie Cox kept the ball off the floor to the best of her ability, collecting four digs to pair with her trio of aces from the service line, while setter Eleanor Reitnour contributed to the cause by aiding the offense’s establishment, handing out 12 big assists at the front.
Up next for Fillmore, they will go for their 10th win of the season right back on their home floor tonight with a 7:30 p.m. visit from Andover/Whitesville.
Houghton Academy 3, Rochester SOTD 2
ROCHESTER — It was one tough fight to the finish line up north in the World’s Image Center on Tuesday, but it was one that the Houghton Academy Lady Panthers were able to walk away victorious from, as they survived a tough challenge from the Rochester School of the Deaf to secure the five-set victory. Set scores were not made available to report.
Leading the charge for the Lady Panthers (8-5) was Julia Winkens of the frontlines, as she recorded a team-leading 12 kills to pair with three digs and a couple of aces. Emily Xie chipped in with six aces, six digs and four more kills, while Rebekah Qian chipped in with two kills and two huge denials at the net.
Houghton Academy will look to continue their winning ways back home in a quick turnaround tonight, hosting Hinsdale at 6:30 p.m.
Keshequa 3, Hinsdale 1
NUNDA — The Lady Bobcats of Hinsdale were able to reorganize and deliver a match-saving performance in the third set of their Tuesday night visit to Keshequa, but the recovery by the host Lady Wildcats was just as strong, as they managed to close out the night on top with a four-set victory by 25-21, 25-22, 22-25, 25-17 count.
Statistics for the Lady Bobcats (3-9) were not made available to report upon publication.
Hinsdale is right back on the road tonight with a 6:30 p.m. visit to Houghton Academy.
Monday Roundup: Despite late game-tying marker, Dansville returns favor with quick response to propel past Wellsville; Lady Lions deadlock C-G, Fri/Scio escapes Lima Christian with 1-0 shutout
DANSVILLE — We have come to that time again.
The final stretch before Sectional euphoria settles in this upcoming weekend for the next several weeks. The remaining games on every team’s docket, now serving a much more vital purpose than it ever has before, through the course of the season.
For the Lions of Wellsville, it was a Columbus Day Monday afternoon they wanted to take complete advantage of, having won four of their last five games — those wins including tremendous triumphs against Avon, Campbell-Savona and, more recently, a dynamic 4-3 overtime win against Fillmore on the road.
A road trip for the Lions up north was in store, visiting a team currently two spots ahead of them in the Class B standings — the Dansville Mustangs, as their aim for the end of the regular season campaign was centered around climbing higher up the ladder with their momentous headful of steam.
The Mustangs, however, had other plans.
Following a first half fight for possession, the offenses managed to turn the key to their respective ignitions and let loose, with Wellsville and Dansville alternating goals through the first 25 minutes of play. The visitors in white and orange had the latter of the pair to tie the game, but the quick response soon came immediately after, proving to be paramount for the Mustangs in their reclaiming of the advantageous edge once and for all to stymie the Lions with a 2-1 home victory.
After both teams battled through a first half without a goal finding the back of the net, the second half provided a different point of view with the Mustangs breaking a nearly 70-minute scoreless stalemate on a term of offense that began near midfield. The ball would eventually work its way to the near sideline before one more pass up against it was applied.
Following the immediate two-man rush into the Wellsville (6-4-4) zone, a cross was delivered to Ryan Burley, who served as the third attacker entering the zone in the middle of the box, as he held his position, picked up the ball and ripped in straight home to the top shelf with 31:43 left to go, giving the Mustangs a big 1-0 lead to work with.
The advantage was held across the next several minutes until the Lions found their way onto the scoreboard for the first time to make the action even more interesting down the stretch. With less than 15 minutes remaining, a long ball was airmailed on the Dansville net by Kam Dodge standing right on the 30-yard line.
With it, the ball took a bounce in front of the Mustangs keeper and redirected off of him to create an available rebound for a streaking Aiden Cowburn to rush towards the doorstep and poke home the game-tying score.
However, not long after the Lions created level playing ground with the Mustangs, the hosts in black and red made it uneven again. With the removal of just 1:48 off the clock, Burley was able to collect an accidental drop pass near the corner of the Wellsville 18 after it was jarred loose from within a crowd of players, booting it home from one side of the Lions net to the other to give Dansville the lead right back.
This time for good, as the Mustangs held the Lions in check for the last 11 minutes to secure a massive victory in Class B action. Dansville went on to outshoot Wellsville by a 14-7 count, with Gavin Haggerty making 12 saves in between the posts for the Lions.
Coming up Wednesday night, Wellsville is back home to host Senior Night, as they look to bounce back into the win column with a red-hot Genesee Valley/Belfast squad coming to town for a 7 p.m. visit.
GIRLS SOCCER
Wellsville 0, Canisteo-Greenwood 0
CANISTEO — The Lady Lions and Lady Chargers settled on a 0-0 game.
No stats were reported to Chris Brooks at Wellsvillesports.com.
The Lady Lions are (5-8-1).
Friendship/Scio 1, Lima Christian 0
LIMA — Friendship/Scio assembled a 14-shot outburst against host Lima Christian during their Columbus Day road trip to the north.
In the midst of those applications, one of them found the back of the net in the early stages of the second half, as Addyson Sekoll served as the game’s difference maker all the way to the final horn, as they put a wrap on a big 1-0 shutout over the Lady Saints.
“I thought the first half, we did a great job winning the ball, but the anticipation on making those runs just wasn’t there,” said Friendship/Scio coach Dillon McFall. “We continued to win the ball, and the girls were really starting to move in the second half to get things going finally. We’ve had some tight games lately, especially with our last one against Fillmore, so it’s nice to finally get out on the good side of things.”
Sekoll’s goal chimed in for Friendship/Scio (5-8-1) with 31:52 remaining in the second half, as she buried home a pass sent along by Emily Lamberson to shatter the scoring against Lima Christian with an advantage they proceeded to never lose, as the defense buckled down and held the opposition in check for the remainder of time ahead.
Friendship/Scio finished with a strong 14-5 advantage in the shots department over the Lady Saints. The five shots faced on goal were all stopped by Avery Lamberson in between the posts, as she picked up the shutout to start the team’s final week of the regular season.
Tonight, Friendship/Scio is back home in Scio, where they will get set to host Andover/Whitesville in a 6 p.m. first kick.
Saturday Roundup: Fillmore keeps building steam towards Sectionals, Sisson nets equalizer in OT to set up big 1-0 home blank of And/Whi; Both C-R boys, girls receive shutouts by Allegany-Limestone
FILLMORE — The Eagles of Fillmore have found themselves under the overtime knife as of late, falling in a pair of tough decisions against both Genesee Valley/Belfast and Wellsville in over a week’s span before catapulting back into the win column with a strong Senior Night win over Friendship/Scio entering the weekend.
Now on Saturday, a gigantic contest with Andover/Whitesville became the next topic of discussion — their second and final battle with them in the regular season, with their original clash resulting in a hard-fought and well-matched 2-2 tie in Andover just a couple weeks ago.
It was more of the same once again, but on this occasion, both teams were in the midst of pitching a shutout. But a short time into the first overtime period, the game’s only goal was submitted. It was garnered by Isaiah Sisson, who was at the right place and at the right time to deliver home a big strike for the Eagles on their 11th and final shot of the night, as Fillmore outlasted Andover/Whitesville with a 1-0 home victory on Senior Night.
“We were able to get a big 1-0 overtime win tonight at home on our Senior Night. After a pretty even first half, I thought we turned the tide in the second with a lot of great pressure, but couldn’t punch one over the line,” said Eagles coach Jarrett Vosburg. “Finally four minutes into overtime, we were able to take a cross from the sideline and Isaiah cracked it home from the top of the box to get the win. Credit to our defensive core of James Hillman, Connor McCumiskey, Braylon Hatch and Ezra Knapp for the clean sheet tonight. Andover/Whitesville has some good players up top and in the center of the field that the boys were able to contain tonight.”
Sisson’s game-winning marker for the Eagles (7-4-3) came within the 85th minute of battle with Andover/Whitesville, as he collected a big pass from the sidelines by Joe Sadler, carrying it to the top of the visitor’s box in front. Sisson then proceeded to settle the ball and then shoot it square on goal and to the back of the net to end the game, sending the senior leaders out in style in one of their final regular season home games ever.
Fillmore would also go on to narrowly outshoot Andover/Whitesville (7-6-2) by an 11-8 count. In goal, Brayden Hennard scored a massive shutout, putting a stop to all eight shots he faced from the visitors.
On the other side, Skylar Orpet made 10 saves for Andover/Whitesville.
Both teams will return to the field over the road Tuesday night, with Fillmore heading to Dunsmore-Latimer Field to meet Bolivar-Richburg in a 5 p.m. contest, while Andover/Whitesville heads to Scio for a 6 p.m. clash with host Friendship/Scio.
Allegany-Limestone 6, Cuba-Rushford 0
ALLEGANY — There were plenty of goals to go around for the Allegany-Limestone Gators, as they went on to fly past the visiting Cuba-Rushford Rebels in the Swamp on Saturday with a strong 6-0 shutout.
Statistics were not made available to report upon publication.
Cuba-Rushford (7-6-1) will look to regroup and rebound on Wednesday in their next road trip, as they visit Houghton Academy for a 5 p.m. contest.
GIRLS SOCCER
Allegany-Limestone 5, Cuba-Rushford 0
ALLEGANY — A 19-shot outing on offense aided in setting up shop for the Allegany-Limestone Lady Gators, as they begun the school’s Saturday night doubleheader with Cuba-Rushford on the strongest of notes with a 3-0 first half lead they never looked back on, coasting towards an eventual 5-0 shutout of the Lady Rebels in the Swamp.
“Allegany-Limestone is tough,” said Lady Rebels coach Aaron Wight. “They play some really nice soccer. Once we settled down a bit, we realized we can compete and we created some good chances early in the second half. Overall, this game helped provide a good experience for us to gear up for Sectional play coming around the corner.”
The tone was set right away by the Lady Gators, who found the back of the net three times to set the tone on Cuba-Rushford (10-4-1), as Addie Fisher, Cait Kellogg and Abby Peck all scored to lay the foundation down for the offense.
Peck would go on to score her second of the game after the break’s conclusion, along with a second goal from Kellogg, to help put a wrap on a magnificent shutout that saw them allow only three shots on defense.
Annaleece Melton made 14 saves in between the posts for the Lady Rebels.
Cuba-Rushford now takes aim at a big bounce back with a Friday night visit from Fillmore in Hinsdale, beginning at 7 p.m.
