The Kiwanis Club of LeRoy Pavilion Stafford will host its 4th Annual Election Night Pancake Supper on Tuesday, Nov. 4 at the Stafford Fire Hall, Rte 5, Stafford from 4:00-7:00 PM. The cost is $6 for adults and $3 for children. Proceeds will go toward support of the club's community service projects.
Party supporters packed into the Democratic headquarters last night in the Genesee Country Mall. They came for signs. They came for cider. They came to meet their candidates.
I was there to meet some of the candidates, too, though I was mostly hoping to run into Alice Kryzan. Unfortunately, the congressional candidate wasn't expected to arrive until sometime around 6:30pm due to a plane delay—the event started at 5:00pm—and I had to head out before then.
No matter. I had a chance to chat with a couple other candidates.
Larry Stabell is running to keep his seat as judge for the town of Darien. Stabell told me that his work with the department of corrections made him interested in the position and capable of doing it well.
We soon got to talking about what's going on out in Darien. Stabell told me that the town is currently facing a problem with its school districts: it's got four of them, none of which are in Darien. All the school kids are going in different directions, he said. This in a town where the population is maybe 3,200.
Darien used to be a farming community, he said. But it has since become "somewhat of a bedroom community for Rochester and Buffalo." The town has about 10 to 15 new homes going up every year, and is down to maybe eight or nine full-time farmers.
Of course, they've got Darien Lake Theme Park, which means that at any given time, you could have ten times the population of the town packed in there, and those folks "come out to have a good time," he said. That's the prime reason why the judge in Darien never wants for work, in the summer months especially.
I also had a few minutes to chat with Le Roy Councilman Tom Stella, who is also running to keep his seat. Stella told me that things have been pretty quiet in Le Roy over the past few months. Most of the major projects have gone through, including the Walgreen's and the Wal-Mart. What they'll be looking at next is something called the Farmland Protection Program, which would allow landowners—farmers in particular, but not exclusively—to get their land placed on a protection list that would say it could only be used for farming, never for development.
Should be interesting to see how that plays out.
The previews for Week 7 are now up in Sports and I've done special playoff previews for both Alexander and Notre Dame.
As always, readers are encouraged to comment on the games and make predictions.
Here is the list:
Elba/Byron-Bergen at Bishop Walsh
Hornell (5-1) at Le Roy (6-0)
7:30 p.m. Friday
This is the last tuneup before sectionals for the Oatkan Knights, and what a tuneup it is.
Le Roy is looking to keep the 41-game win streak at Hartwood Park alive with a game against a very solid Class B squad, that is coming off a 14-7 win over rival Bath last weekend. The Oatkan Knights are also coming off a win versus a rival, a 27-20 win over Caledonia-Mumford.
Le Roy - the Livingston Conference Division II champion - is ranked fourth in the state in Class C while the Red Raiders jumped from not being ranked up to No. 8 in Class B.
This game means a lot to LR as the top seed in the Section 5 Class C playoffs is up for grabs. Oakfield-Alabama should run away with Holley and would move up to No. 1 if Hornell were to win this game.
That means Le Roy could end up with Pembroke in the semifinals and then O-A in the finals. This is no regular tune-up for the playoffs.
The Oatkan Knights will come out and try to take hold on this game early with some big scores. Don't be surprised if quarterback Travis Fenstermaker tries to get the ball to Mike Humphrey early in this game.
Humphrey had his quietest game of the season last week and it showed as LR fell behind 14-0 early. He did catch seven passes, but for only 40 yards and no touchdowns.
Humphrey has 28 receptions for 435 yards and nine scores and every time he makes an impact early in a game, Le Roy rolls.
Fenstermaker completed 11-of-15 attempts for 106 yards and a TD last week, and continues to be a great passing quarterback that can make a difference with his feet. He scrambled nine times for 34 yards against Cal-Mum.
Andrew Alexander is still having a tremendous season in the backfield. His 107 yards with a touchdown last week puts him at 888 yards with eight TDs for the season.
Le Roy's defense will have its hands full as Hornell has no problem moving the football.
Austin Dwyer has been one of the top rushers in all of Section 5 and currently has 155 carries for 1,103 yards and 12 touchdowns.
He will get the ball a lot.
If the Oatkan Knight defense can put the Red Raiders in third-and-longs, it is clear where the ball is going.
Quarterback Zach Harkenrider has completed 21-of-46 pass attempts for 375 yards with five touchdowns. Jordan Schwartz has caught 14 of those passes for 310 yards - with five touchdowns.
This is where Humphrey and Alexander can make their marks on defense. Both have solid interception numbers this year and Harkenrider has been picked off seven times.
If you have news about LeRoy to share, tag your post "LeRoy" and it will appear on this page. More help here.
Thank you to Ed Henry from Le Roy football.com for the great coverage of the story. Check out his Web site for more information on Le Roy football than you could ever imagine.
The 2008 version of the LeRoy-Cal-Mum gridiron clash played out as advertised, a nail-biting thriller at LeRoy’s Hartwood Park.
The Oatkan Knights and Red Raiders entered the contest with 5-0 records and vaunted state rankings (LeRoy #4 in Class C and the Cal-Mum #3 in Class D). The hard-hitting affair was not settled until the closing moments of the game, a game the Knights fought back valiantly to win 27-20 after trailing 14-0 midway through the first quarter.
The Raiders took possession first with a drive start at their own 36. Speedy Jeremy Wilson set the tone for the visitors on the first play from scrimmage with a beautiful 41-yard dash off the left side to put the ball at the LeRoy 23. Cal-Mum then proceeded to pound through the LeRoy D-line with RB Dave Fox picking up good yardage. The Raiders’ third talented back, Jon Marozzi, raced up the middle from 6 yards out to put the Raiders up 6-0 at the 8:37 mark. The Raider offensive line plowed the way for a Fox 2-point conversion run to push the tally to 8-0 Raiders.
The ensuing Raider kickoff was an absolute bullet into the LeRoy end zone. The Knights first play from scrimmage resulted in a fumble, recovered by Cal-Mum’s Ben Anastasi. The Raider crowd cheered wildly with their sudden good fortune. The cheers grew even louder when 4 plays later, Marozzi found the end zone from one yard out to cap the 16-yard drive. The LeRoy defense stuffed the Marozzi PAT run to make it 14-0 Raiders at the 6:35 mark of the 1st quarter. LeRoy, looking to answer the early Raider onslaught, took to the ground with Andrew Alexander and Jon Casper picking up big yardage against the Raider defense.
The dynamic pass-catch tandem of QB Travis Fenstermaker to WR Mike Humphrey picked up increasingly better field position, leading to a Casper 2-yard TD burst with 34 seconds left in the opening quarter. Fenstermaker’s kick was true to split the Raider lead in half to 14-7. The Knights’ defense held strong on Cal-Mum’s next possession as LB John Scheuing and company forced a 3-and-out by the Raiders with some timely gang tackling. The 11-yard punt by the Raiders gave the Knights’ a nice drive start at their own 47.
LeRoy QB Fenstermaker masterfully drove the Knights to the game-tying score with a 9-yard run and a 37-yard pass to TE Brian Calmes who snagged the ball beautifully between two Raider defenders and raced to the Cal-Mum 6. FB Jon Casper found the end zone on a 2-yard TD run two plays later. Fenstermaker’s PAT kick knotted the game at 14. The Knights defense started to figure out the Raider running schemes a bit better and after surrendering a first down, forced another punt as LB Scheuing dropped Cal-Mum QB Chris Voos who faked a toss to his RB, looking to catch the LeRoy defense napping on an interior run. Big plays before the half usually go a long way in determining close contests such as this.
The Knights looked to score from 70 yards away with 5:02 left until intermission. A score before halftime and receiving the ball first in the 2nd half would go a along way in establishing some control in the game for the Knights. The Knights used a balanced passing and rushing attack to move the ball against the Cal-Mum defense. Fenstermaker lined up in the shotgun, looked to his left, and then fired the ball back to his right into the arms of Alexander for the go-ahead score with a minute left in the 1st half. The 25-yard TD gave the Knights the lead at 20-14 at the half after the PAT was unsuccessful.
LeRoy took the opening kickoff with the aforementioned mindset of scoring with their first possession of the 2nd half. Enter Andrew Alexander. Alexander found the holes provided by the LeRoy O-line and ran for big chunks of yards through the Raider defense. He came up huge with a 6-yard blast as the Knights gambled on a 4th-and-2 from their own 42 early in the 3rd quarter. Alexander, looking stronger with each carry, ripped through 4 white-clad Raider defenders to find the end zone with 4:38 left in the 3rd quarter. The Fenstermaker kick pushed the lead to 27-14 LeRoy. The Raiders, looking to make a comeback of their own, started moving the ball against the LeRoy defense through their usual tough ground game and a big toss to TE Brian Sinclair. The Raider drive was thwarted when Mike Humphrey picked off his 4th interception of the season in the end zone for a score denying touch-back.
A good defensive stand by the Raiders forced a LeRoy punt from their own end zone. Thirty-four yards separated the Raiders from a much needed score. The LeRoy defense was bending, but not breaking, and the clock was running. With 5:28 remaining in the game, the Raiders were met with a 4th-and-8 from the LeRoy 21. QB Voos rolled left and fired a perfect strike to a wide open Jeremy Wilson who hopped into the nearby end zone to make the score 27-20 with 5:04 left in the game. The Knights’ defense came up big on the PAT run attempt as Jordan Casper wrapped up Marozzi short of the end zone.
The Knights looked to kill the clock and preserve the winning margin. Fenstermaker and Mike Humphrey moved the ball through the Raider defense with heady efforts. Again, it was Alexander that came up huge with two key runs that notched much needed 1st downs for the Knights in the waning moments. The Knights were able to kneel down in victory formation and enjoy the win, which they dedicated to the late Hooks Robertson, a beloved LeRoy gridiron coach who passed away earlier this year. The Knights amassed 299 yards of total offense. On the ground, Alexander gained 114 yards on 20 carries and a TD, Fenstermaker had 42 yards on 9 rushes, and Jon Casper notched 35 yards on 10 attempts, including 2 TDs. Fenstermaker was 11 of 15 for 108 yards passing, including a TD strike to Alexander of 25 yards. Mike Humphrey had 7 receptions for 42 yards, while Quentin Humphrey and Brain Calmes each had a catch for 8 and 37 yards respectively. The Knights defense was lead by Scheuing with 8 tackles, followed by Fenstermaker, Alexander, and Joe Schwab with 6 apiece. Mike Humphrey recorded an interception. Cal-Mum had 207 yards of offense, 155 of it on the ground. Leading rusher for the Raiders was Jeremy Wilson with 72 yards on 13 carries, Jon Marozzi 13-32 and 2 TDs, Dave Fox 6-23, and Chris Voos 2-7. Voos was 3 of 7 passing for 52 yards, including a 21-yard TD pass to Wilson.
When Tim Smith and Brad Riner embraced just moments after the Oakfield-Alabama football team had shocked visiting Pembroke in the final seconds to wrap up the Genesee Region League title, saying it was an emotional moment would be an understatement.
The two tearful O-A stars literally left it all on the field and scored the final points in an amazing 25-24 victory in front of an estimated 2,500 fans.
Smith's story is well known.
He literally walked off the field in the middle of a game last season and quit on his team. But his teammates welcomed him back - and it was Smith that plunged into the end zone with 29 seconds left on the clock to put the Hornets down by one point.
The coaching staff initially wanted to kick the extra point and go into overtime, especially with Smith getting banged up on the touchdown run. But the O-A players made the call to go for two, and coach John Dowd let his players decide if they were going to win the Genesee Region League championship outright on a two-point conversion.
After burning a timeout because of some confusion, the Hornets lined up and gave the ball to Riner, who took a sweep to the left side of the line and dove into the end zone to give O-A the lead.
Riner wrapped up the league title (it is the first time the Hornets have won the title outright since Dowd has been coach) with an interception two plays later.
This was a typical Oakfield-Alabama/Pembroke game, a classic battle between the top two programs in the GR.
There was no smack talk on the field, no cheap shots ... nothing but a hard fought battle between two great teams.
Pembroke looked as if it was going to dominate early on as David Kleckler returned the opening kickoff 70 yards to set up an Andrew Wright 1-yard touchdown run less than a minute into the contest.
Neither team moved the ball after that in the first quarter and it was 7-0 after 12 minutes.
Wright put an end to the battle of the punters with a 41-yard run midway through the second quarter. Matthew Phelps nailed an impressive 39-yard field goal to put the Dragons up 10-0.
O-A started near midfield and quarterback A.J. Kehlenbeck rumbled for 17 yards to set up a Riner 6-yard TD run with about a minute left in the half, making the score 10-7 at the break.
After the second half started with defensive stops, Riner broke off a 16-yarder and Smith eventually scored from 3-yards out to give the Hornets a 14-10 advantage.
The Dragons seemed to have lost it at this point.
Three consecutive conservative rushing calls set up a fourth-and-8 at the Pembroke 30-yard line.
But Kleckler scrambled around for a little bit and launched a pass into the end zone, which was hauled in by Jacob Reeves. It is just the second reception he's had all season long.
Pembroke carried the 17-14 lead into the fourth.
Oakfield-Alabama's power rushing attack led to a 7-plus minute drive that allowed the score to be tied up when Jon Fisher kicked a 24-yard field goal.
On the ensuing drive, Kleckler scrambled for 32 yards and Mike Dibble rumbled for 14 yards, but two penalties in three plays put Pembroke in a tough situation.
The Dragons had a third-and-17 at the Oakfield 23-yard line.
Kleckler dropped back to pass and felt the pressure from O-A's defensive lineman, but he scrambled around for a couple of seconds and found tight end Ken Babcock at about the 5-yard line. Babcock took a few steps into the end zone and the Dragons led 24-17 with 2:42 left in the game.
Smith had a long kick return to midfield and O-A's longest run on the final drive was a 12-yard scamper by Riner.
The win means Oakfield-Alabama is now 6-0 and is league champions. Pembroke falls to 5-1.
With Le Roy's victory over Caledonia-Mumford tonight, O-A is still the No. 2 seed in Class C and Pembroke is at No. 3.
The Dragons play Attica next week.
All of the football previews are now done and in sports, with the exception of the Pembroke/Oakfield-Alabama game. I put that one on the front page as well because I did an insane amount of work on that thing.
I'd like to get you members of The Batavian involved with these previews. Please pick the games you are interested in and make predictions as to what you think will happen and what the final score will be. Maybe we can get some good conversations going.
Here is the list of games:
Batavia at East Rochester/Gananda
Elba/Byron-Bergen at Notre Dame
Also, if you are looking for preview information on Livingston Conference, Albion or Medina games you should pick up a copy of The Daily News tomorrow. They are doing a good job of reporting on these games.
I'm guessing the only statistics and story-lines you are going to see on Batavia, Le Roy or GR games are all on The Batavian today.
Cal-Mum (5-0) at Le Roy (5-0)
7:30 p.m. Friday
Section 5's biggest rivals take the field with a lot on the line.
The two undefeated teams are fighting for the Livingston Conference Division II title and both are looking to hold on to their top seeds (Le Roy in Class C and Cal-Mum in Class DD).
The Oatkan Knights are ranked fifth in the state in C and the Red Raiders are ranked third in D.
Le Roy had some issues in last week's 49-37 win over Avon as Max Barrett had a big game running and throwing the football. Chris Voos has the ability to chuck the ball around for the Red Raiders.
Cal-Mum can throw, but will run the football as always.
Jeremy Wilson gained 161 yards in C-M's 35-0 win over Canisteo-Greenwood last week. Fullback John Marozzi will also put up some solid numbers.
The Red Raiders defense held C-G to just 47 rushing yards last week, which is something that will be very different this week.
Le Roy can and will run the football with Andrew Alexander leading the way. He had nearly 200 yards on the ground last week and now has 771 yards and seven touchdowns.
Travis Fenstermaker ran the ball 18 times for 66 yards last week, but does most of his damage with his arm.
He completed just 6-of-10 passes for 53 yards. Four of those completions went to Mike Humphrey, who made it into the end zone three times.
Every time Humphrey has the ball in his hands, good things happen. He has 21 receptions for 395 yards and a whopping nine touchdowns as a receiver.
He also does a great job of returning kicks and intercepting the ball as a DB.
The Oatkan Knights have won 40 straight games at Hartwood Park, dating back to 1998. That amazing steak will be tested against the Red Raiders and against Hornell next week.
Pembroke (5-0) at Oakfield-Alabama (5-0)
7 p.m. Friday
Genesee Region League football fans have had this game marked on their calendars since the schedules came out.
Pembroke and Oakfield-Alabama have had the top two teams in the league all season long and this game will decide the champion.
O-A would clinch the title outright with a victory and avoiding a total meltdown against Holley next week. Pembroke would clinch at least a tie and would claim the title outright with a win and a victory over Attica in the final week of the season.
This game has become the biggest rivalry in the GR in recent years as both teams are powerhouse programs that compete for a sectional title every year.
It shouldn't be any different this year as Oakfield-Alabama is currently the second seed in Class C while Pembroke follows at No. 3.
Le Roy is the top seed and will be playing tough games with Caledonia-Mumford and Hornell in the final two weeks, so the winner of this game could end up getting the prestigious top seed in sectionals.
The Hornets are ranked No. 10 in the state while Pembroke gets an honorable mention.
Pembroke's Chip Foster and O-A's John Dowd became head coaches at the same time and the Dragons have won four out of five meetings between the two powerhouses.
The games are typically defensive battles:
2003 - Pembroke 17, Oakfield-Alabama 13
2004 - Pembroke 14, Oakfield-Alabama 9
2005 - Oakfield-Alabama 34, Pembroke 16
2006 - Pembroke 14, Oakfield-Alabama 6
2007 - Pembroke 13, Oakfield-Alabama 10
The Hornets have a big size advantage on the offensive and defensive line, but Pembroke might have the edge in the amount of skilled players that will touch the football.
Andrew Wright tops that list.
He has rushed the ball 39 times for 539 yards and seven touchdowns while catching 12 passes for 334 yards and three scores.
But Wright is by no means the only offensive weapon.
Mike Dibble has gained 390 yards and scored eight touchdowns, Josh Phillips has 268 yards and six TDs and quarterback David Kleckler has rushed for 230 yards and two touchdowns on just 17 rushes.
Kleckler has completed 21-of-38 attempts for 532 yards with seven touchdowns and four interceptions. His main targets are Wright and tight end Ken Babcock (9 receptions, 198 yards, 3 TDs).
Tim Smith has been the biggest producer offensively thus far for the Hornets, gaining 651 yards with nine touchdowns on 73 carries. But O-A will spread the ball around.
Brad Riner has 413 yards and six touchdowns, Joe Natalizia has 221 yards and two scores and Jason Stanley has pitched in 212 yards with one touchdown.
Josh Athoe returned from a leg injury suffered during baseball season and got the start last week, rushing 16 times for 83 yards with two touchdowns.
A.J. Kehlenbeck has added a pretty good passing attack for the Hornets. He has completed 13-of-24 pass attempts - to seven different receivers - for 145 yards and four TDs. Noah Seward leads the team in receptions with three for 36 yards. He also has four sacks.
Reporter Scott DeSmit has a pair of interesting articles on the front page of today's Daily News. In one, DeSmit writes about how many municipalities saved themselves some considerable money by locking in their price for this year's road salt at last year's figures. That move will keep them immune, at least for now, from the 30-percent increase in the price per ton.
In the town of Batavia, that move saved them nearly $12,000. They've got 1,300 tons of the stuff packed in their barn.
It's a great article. Worth a full read.
In his front page piece for today, DeSmit writes about an odd state of affairs in Le Roy, where it turns out that ten parks in the village—some more than 100 years old—have never been "properly designated" as parks. "When is a park not a park?" DeSmit quips. "When it's in the village of Le Roy."
Now, the village will have to pass a law to say that yes, in fact, the parks are parks.
This farce is worth more than a laugh. In fact, it's a great example of the ubiquity of legislation in our lives. Without this law, those parks remain a sort of no-man's land where "regulations and restrictions on park use" cannot be "properly" enforced, and the town can't yet do anything to make sure people obey the rules, "rules such as being in the park after hours." Although, as DeSmit admits, this glitch has never prevented those rules from being enforced in actuality. Only now, once the law is passed, it will be official. Funny stuff.
We encourage you to pick up a copy of the Daily News at your local newsstand. Or, better yet, subscribe at BataviaNews.com.
Just a quick note.
My high school football previews have been pushed back until Thursday this week because I'm working on something special.
So make sure you check back throughout the day as I will be posting them as I complete them.
I was just taking a look at the current standings for the Section 5 Tournaments and figured I would relay where are local teams are and what that means come playoff time.
The most exciting tournament locally will be in Class C, where local team currently hold the top 3 spots.
Le Roy sits at 5-0 and has the top seed at this point with two big games left on the schedule. A pair of victories over Class DD Caledonia-Mumford and Class B Hornell would wrap up that spot.
Oakfield-Alabama and Pembroke are both also undefeated and are No. 2 and 3, respectively. Those two teams will be playing each other on Friday night and the winner will have the upper-hand on the second seed, with a shot at No. 1 if Le Roy loses either of its final two games.
Pembroke will host Class B Attica in the final week of the season and O-A will host Class C Holley.
Elba/Byron-Bergen (1-4) and Holley (0-5) are the other two local teams in Class C and at this point it looks like the Hawks are eliminated and will be playing Pool Play games.
The Lancers are probably going to need a victory over Class D Notre Dame this weekend and/or a victory over Section 6's Bishop Walsh in Week 7 to get in. Elba/B-B is the 9th seed right now with the same record as No. 8 Dansville. No. 7 South Seneca (3-2) is too far ahead to be caught.
Attica and Batavia are both 3-2 and look to be fairly safe in Class B as far as making the tournament.
Wayland-Cohocton, Penn Yan and Waterloo are all 1-4 and would need a lot of things to go their way to get in.
But both local Blue Devil squads have a chance to move up as high as No. 5 as Palmyra-Macedon and Livonia share records with Attica and Batavia.
Batavia will play East Rochester/Gananda - the current No. 4 seed - and Geneva - the current No. 1 seed - to wrap up the regular season.
Attica will play Holley and then Pembroke.
Cal-Mum is 5-0 and has the top seed in Class DD, but Alexander moved closer to getting the No. 3 seed with last week's victory over Elba/Byron-Bergen. The Trojans are 2-3 and the fourth seed, with Avon at No. 3.
Alexander will need a win over Barker - which is 1-4 with the No. 6 seed in Class DD - and an Avon loss against Class C Letchworth to move up to the No. 3 seed.
The Class DD and D playoffs start a week sooner than the higher classes.
Notre Dame is 3-2 and currently has the No. 4 seed in Class D. As far as I can tell, the Fighting Irish could end up anywhere from No. 2 through No. 6 depending on the outcome of the games this weekend.
LeRoy resident and Genesee County Farm Bureau president Dale Stein gets to talk politics in the Democrat & Chronicle this morning.
Spoiler alert: He says he is voting for John McCain. He says that's his personal decision, not an endorsement from the Farm Bureau.
Among his concerns are the high cost of energy and immigration.
"Too much of this country believes we have enough labor, and we don't," said Stein, who owns Stein Farms in LeRoy, Genesee County.
The labor shortage hasn't affected Stein's own farm but he said it has caused 25 percent less cabbage to be grown in western New York because farmers knew they wouldn't have the workers for harvest.
Congress won't talk about it because they won't get re-elected," said Stein, president of the Genesee County Farm Bureau.
On energy, he favors more drilling and nuclear power.
Stein's energy costs have increased 40 percent in two years, and now his electricity bill is $7,000 a month. Electricity powers the milking system and the fans that keep the cows cool.
Paul M. Rossiter, 19, of Woodstock Gardens, Batavia, was arrested Saturday evening on Route 237 in Byron for alleging possessing marijuana. Rossiter was reportedly the passenger in a vehicle that was pulled over in a traffic stop by a sheriff's deputy.
William Stephans, Jr., 41, of Lake Street in LeRoy, was arrested for allegedly driving while under the influence. He was stopped by a deputy on Route 5 in Stafford.
Both of these incidents were reported in press releases from the Genesee County Sheriff's Department.
The Avon football team played visiting Le Roy tight, but the Oatkan Knights held on to a slim lead in the second half and beat the Braves 49-37.
After the two squads were tied at the end of the first quarter, 8-8, Le Roy had a 21-14 advantage in the second.
Travis Fenstermaker tossed two touchdown passes to Mike Humphrey in the second quarter - and three in the first half - and Quentin Humphrey added another second quarter touchdown run to give Le Roy a 29-22 lead at intermission.
Avon trailed 36-29 and was driving early in the fourth quarter, but the Braves fumbled and Andrew Alexander picked it up and returned the ball 47 yards for a huge score.
Alexander added a 63-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter and Avon got a late score when Max Barrett threw a 35-yard TD pass to Pat Hayes.
Barrett was a big reason why the Braves (3-2) were in the game as he completed 9-of-17 pass attempts for 131 yards and also rushed for 137 yards with two touchdowns.
Le Roy improves to 5-0 and will be hosting rival Caledonia-Mumford next Friday night.
The Masonic Temple and several buildings around it on Main Street in downtown Le Roy have been demolished, according to WBTA's Dan Fischer. In all, eight buildings have come down, leaving a large swath of downtown vacant until construction begins on the Walgreen's that will be taking their place. Fischer connected with Le Roy's police chief, Chris Heywood, who spoke about the "new view of Lake Street."
In other news, the "credit crunch" spawned by the subprime housing crisis may be having an effect on Main Street atfer all. Fischer reports that at Genesee Community College, students may have a harder time procuring private loans. Apparently, "fewer and fewer banks are offering the loans." Most students, however, fund their tuition—and I speak out of experience here—via federal loans and grants. Now, as far as I know, those federal loans have not become harder to come across. Financial aid director at the college, Joe Bailey, told Fischer that the private loans are not as popular as the federal loans, but it's the only "means of paying tuition" for some students. How many? What percentage? "Some" never gets us anywhere when we're talking statistics, and we always seem to be talking statistics.
No matter how dire the "credit crunch," the state always seems to have money to give away. This time it's $3 million going to United Memorial Medical Center to help fund its $20 million "surgical expansion project" and add two more operating rooms at the hospital.
Le Roy (4-0) at Avon (3-1)
7 p.m. Friday
The question facing the Avon football team is simple; can they stop Mike Humphrey?
Nobody else has.
Travis Fenstermaker has continued to find his favorite target and it seems like no defensive back in Section 5 could stop the Le Roy WR at this point.
Humphrey caught six passes for 97 yards last week in a 36-0 win over Canisteo-Greenwood, including a pair of touchdowns. That gives him 17 receptions for 364 yards and six touchdowns.
He has also made an impact returning kickoffs and intercepting passes, including the two that he had last week.
Fenstermaker has completed 26-of-50 pass attempts for 485 yards and eight touchdowns.
One of the biggest surprises through four weeks is that neither of these players have won Player of the Week in Class C.
Le Roy's running attack hasn't had many problems either as Andrew Alexander has pounded the ball 72 times for 573 yards and six touchdowns.
Humphrey will probably be covering the top receiver that he has seen thus far as Avon's Garrett Kesel has caught 16 passes for 233 yards and two scores.
His quarterback is a good one.
Max Barrett has went 26-of-68 passing for 467 yards and seven touchdowns. He also runs the ball, picking up 189 rushing yards with three scores.
Rich Welch leads the Braves in rushing with 364 yards and five touchdowns on 28 attempts.
Eric Hendrick has 187 yards and four TDs.
The Oatkan Knights are ranked fifth in the state in Class C.
When the Le Roy football team played Canisteo-Greenwood last season, they were up 56-0 at the half.
A much improved Redskins team gave Le Roy a game for a while before the Oatkan Knights started putting up points in winning 36-0, giving the homecoming crowd an offensive and defensive show.
It was the 40th consecutive win at Hartwood Park for Le Roy, which last lost at home to Hornell, 7-0, in 1998.
C-G failed to move the ball down the field on its first drive of the game with a shotgun/option offense that was later making Le Roy defenders miss.
But the first drive didn't lead to much of anything.
Quarterback Mark Ahearn tried finding a receiver on the left side of the field, but Mike Humphrey - who led the state in interceptions last year - picked off the pass with a high vertical jump.
Le Roy quickly capitalized on the drive that started at the C-G 11 when Travis Fenstermaker scored on a 1-yard keeper.
This time, Canisteo-Greendwood moved the ball to midfield before the Le Roy defense forced a punt.
After Fenstermaker hooked up with Humphrey on a short pass, Andrew Alexander busted off a 46-yard touchdown run, giving Le Roy a 14-0 first quarter advantage.
The Redskins marched again, but Humphrey put the drive to an end with another interception. He returned this one from the Le Roy 15 to the 49.
Fenstermaker had a 16-yard run and found Humphrey on a 26 yard pass, setting up a 6-yard TD run for Alexander.
Le Roy faked the extra point on this one and Humphrey - who is also the holder - found John Schueing for the two point conversion.
The Oatkan Knights added one more score in the first half when Fenstermaker found Humphrey on a 20-yard TD pass. It was the sixth time this season the two have connected on touchdown passes.
Le Roy's only second half touchdown was a 1-yard touchdown run by John Casper.
Fenstermaker went 7-of-12 for 127 yards and Humphrey hauled in six receptions for 97 yards.
Alexander rushed for 152 yards and the two scores on 18 carries as Le Roy improves to 4-0 and prepares for a tough stretch.
The Oatkan Knights will face Avon, Caledonia-Mumford and Hornell to finish off the regular season.
Just a reminder, we have two big local games tonight and I will be doing coverage of both.
Le Roy is looking to improve to 4-0 and get ready for a stretch of big games to end the regular season with a game against Canisteo-Greenwood at Hartwood Park.
I will be at this game with my camera and video camera to show you what the Oatkan Knights are all about.
Batavia is traveling to Midlakes and trying to even up at 2-2. Coach Dan Geiger will be calling me after the game and I will be relaying the details as soon as possible.
Make sure you check back to The Batavian tonight for the fastest, most in-depth coverage possible of these games.
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