basketball

On his own Friday night, Colton Dillon outscored the entire Bradford team in a second-round, Class D1 Section V playoff game in Elba.

Dillon scored 31 points and the Lancers beat Bradford 70-30.

Jon Boyce was the only other Lancer player to notch double digits with 13 points.

Jordan Suteyk scored eight points for Bradford. Steven Spina scored six points.

Next up for #2 ranked Elba (16-6) is #3 ranked Belfast (14-6).

Also in boys basketball yesterday:

• Alexander beat Geneseo 62-55. Alexander (16-5) is ranked #2 in Class C2 and will play #3 ranked Red Jacket (16-5) in the semifinal.
• York beat Pavilion 68-52 to advance to the Class C3 semifinal.
• Oakfield-Alabama lost to Naples 55-42 in a Class C3 quarterfinal. Joey Burdick scored 16 points. Nick Wissinger scored 12.

At 2 p.m. today, #2 ranked Batavia (11-10) plays #2 ranked Newark (16-3) at Newark.

Tonight #2 ranked Le Roy (12-8) plays #7 ranked Mynderse Acadamy at 7 p.m. at Le Roy in a Class B2 quarterfinal.

In girls basketball, Batavia (18-1), ranked #1 in Class B1, beat #8 ranked Livonia 73-48 (game story).

In Class C2 today, #9 ranked Alexander (7-14) plays #1 ranked Marion (16-4) at 2 p.m. at Marion in a quarterfinal and #10 ranked Byron-Bergen (6-14) plays #2 ranked Red Jacket at 2 p.m. and Red Jacket. And #4 ranked Pembroke (14-7) plays #5 ranked Lyons (14-7) at Pembroke at 2 p.m.

In Class C3 #8 ranked Pavilion (9-12) plays #1 ranked South Seneca (19-1) at South Seneca at 2 p.m. Oakfield-Alabama, ranked #2 (16-4) plays #5 ranked York (11-9) at O-A at 2 p.m.

In Class D1, #1 ranked Elba (18-1) plays #9 ranked Northstar Christian (4-15) at 2 p.m. at Elba.

Senior point guard Ryann Stefaniak, playing in the final home game of her stellar career at Batavia High School, came out shooting tonight and she didn’t stop until she scored 35 points – including eight three-point baskets – in her Lady Devils’ 78-43 victory over Livonia in a Section 5 Class B1 girls’ basketball second-round contest.

“I knew it was my last home game and I came out with so much energy,” Stefaniak said. “I worked with my shooting coach, Billy Truitt, before the game and I felt like I was going to be on.”

She certainly was “on” – scoring nine points in the first quarter with a pair of three-pointers and exploding for 14 points in the second quarter as top-seeded Batavia turned an 18-12 advantage into a 44-22 halftime lead.

Stefaniak had four three-point baskets in the closing three minutes of the half to help Batavia, now 18-2, blow the game open. She added two more three-pointers in the third quarter as the Lady Devils maintained their 22-point cushion.

Sophomore point guard Mackenzie Reigle put forth another fine all-around effort, scoring 13 points on a variety of drives and spin moves while coming up with six steals. Sophomore guard Bryn Wormley sank a trio of three-point shots and finished with 10 points.

Junior forward Emma Krolczyk added seven points and senior guard Jenae Colkey had four. Senior center Meghan Houseknecht and sophomore guard Tess Barone scored two apiece.

For eighth-seeded Livonia, 13-8, junior forward Sydney Lockwood tallied 21 points – eight in the final quarter as the teams traded baskets. Junior forward Vanessa Galbraith had nine and junior guard Sara Shellenbarger added seven.

Batavia Coach Marty Hein stated that he was impressed with his team’s offensive prowess, but said his defense need to tighten things up.

“The defense wasn’t as sound as I wanted it to be,” he said. “We allowed too many open shots and drives, especially against number 12 (Lockwood). And we had three girls in foul trouble (Krolczyk, Reigle and Stefaniak).”

Still, top-seeded Batavia moves on to the next round where it will face No. 4 Palmyra-Macedon in the second game of a doubleheader Monday night at Caledonia-Mumford.

Pal-Mac, 15-5, defeated visiting Notre Dame of Batavia, 50-43, tonight.

The first game of Monday’s twin bill has No. 2 Midlakes facing No. 3 Greece Odyssey, with a 6 p.m. starting time.

The BHS vs. Pal-Mac game is expected to tip off around 7:45.

The Blue Devils squad was on a mission in the first half to control the game over visiting Palmyra-Macedon of the first round of class B1 sectionals last evening at Batavia High School.

Opening minutes were led 10-5 by senior Mason McFollins and junior Jake Humes. Tanner Thompson for Pal-Mac scored five. Blue Devils led 23-10 after the first quarter.

Second half Pal-Mac could not stop the Devils' rush as Camden White added six points. Blue Devils' Joseph Martinucci, Andrew Francis, McFollins and Luke Grammatico also contributed points to dominate the half 44-18.

Batavia then opened the floodgates rolling through the next eight minutes as Cayden White and McFollins added another 16 points combined along with points from Francis and Tyler Hale.

In the final minutes of the third quarter, both teams pulled their starters, Batavia led 69-27.

Senior Tyivon Ayala scored nine points in the fourth to close out the quarter as Batavia wins the game 87-41 and will travel to play this Saturday at #2 Newark Reds, 2 p.m. tip off.

Top photo is Batavia's Zach Gilebarto defending Pal-Mac's Paul Goodness.

To view or purchase photos click here.

Notre Dame dominated Hammondsport in their first-round Class D1 Section V playoff game at Notre Dame on Wednesday night, winning 85-40.

Gabe Macdonald scored 27 points, Colin McCulley scored 17, and Keith Szczepanski added 14 to pace the Fighting Irish.

Spencer Misit scored eight and Andrew Moore scored six. In all, nine Irish put points on the board.

"I think this was a team effort and I thought everybody contributed," Coach Mike Rapone said. "We played really well on both ends of the floor and rebounded well, passed the ball well. Keith was dominant inside and we got him the ball in areas where he could be effective."

Rapone thinks the road to the Class D1 finals runs through Mount Morris, which is where the Irish, now 12-9 on the season, head to next at 7 p.m., Saturday. Mount Morris is ranked second and is 17-3.

"Mount Morris is a very good team," Rapone said. "They got a few guys who have been starting for three years. This is the year they've been pointing to. They think they got a chance to win it all which they do. So this is a big test for us."

Also on Wednesday night, Batavia beat PalMac 87-41. Coverage is coming.

Tomorrow:

• Elba vs. Bradford, 7 p.m. at Elba
• Alexander vs. Geneseo, 7 p.m., at Alexander

Number 8 seed Pavilion knocked off #9 seed Dundee on Wednesday night at home in a Class 3 Section V playoff game, 36-31, in girls basketball.

For the Golden Gophers, Lindsay Lowe scored nine points, Aprile Beehler and Bri Hirsman each scored eight points, Lauren Kingsley scored seven, and Karlee Zinkievich scored four.

For Dundee, Mckenzie Strait scored 11 points and Megan Sutherland scored 10.

Pavilion is now 10-11 on the season and plays #1 seed South Seneca (18-1) on Saturday at South Seneca at 2 p.m.

In other girls basketball action Wednesday:

• Pembroke 68, Bloomfield 56
• Alexander 72, Rochester Academy 49

Tomorrow's games:

• Batavia vs. Livonia, 7 p.m. at Batavia HS
• Notre Dame vs. PalMac, 7 p.m., at PalMac

Top photo: Karlee Zinkievich.

Photos by Ryan Paddock.

 Lauren Kingsley

Aprile Beehler

Jordan Barrett

Colby Tillotson scored 17 points to help lead Pavilion over Keshequa 59-46  in a first-round  Section V playoff game in Pavilion on Tuesday night.

The #6 seed in Class C3, the Golden Gophers have been without Zach Wiedrich, a top scorer on the team, since the 10th game but Tillotson, Ryley Elliott, Cameron Milligan and Luke Milligan have all stepped up to help fill the gap, said Coach Rob Milligan.

Weidrich, a junior, was diagnosed with a heart condition and may not be able to play competitive basketball again.

As an example of Weidrich scoring prowess, Milligan said he got hot one game last season and scored 36 points.

Tuesday, Elliott scored nine points, as did Cody Penders. Nate Swede scored six points. Tillotson hit three three-point shots.

For Keshequa, Cameron Chestnut scored 17 points. He also hit three three-point shots.

With a 55-49 loss to Eastridge on Thursday night, the Batavia Blue Devils finished out their season with a 10-10 record and ranked #7 in Section V Class B1 basketball.

Mason McFollins scored 28 points, hitting five three-point jumpers. Camden White scored nine points and Andrew Francis scored six.

The Blue Devils jumped out to an early lead and edged Eastridge 12 to 9 at the end of the first quarter continued to lead at the half 21-18. 

Batavia's undoing, perhaps, was starting the second half without scoring for seven minutes. The team's only points came on a McFollins' three-pointer in the final minute of the third quarter.

Eastridge scored 22 points in the third. 

For Eastridge, Jahmel Demery scored 14 points, Jordan Capers, 12, and Jalen Rose Hannah scored 10.

Photos by Steve Ognibene.

To view or purchase photos, click here.

The Batavia High Lady Blue Devils locked up the No. 1 seed for the Section 5 Girls Basketball Tournament in fine fashion Wednesday night, riding the 1-2 scoring punch of senior shooting guard Ryann Stefaniak and sophomore point guard Mackenzie Reigle to a 69-34 victory over visiting Pittsford Sutherland in Monroe County Division 4 action.

The win caps an exceptional regular season for Batavia, which takes a 17-2 record – 8-0 in league play – into the Class B1 sectionals.

Coach Marty Hein’s team will receive a first-round bye due to its lofty standing, and will open with a home game, likely against Livonia or Greece Olympia, on Feb. 22.

Playing in front of an enthusiastic “Senior Night” crowd (which saw the Batavia High varsity boys defeat Greece Olympia in the first game of a double-header), Batavia jumped out to a 22-8 first-quarter lead behind Reigle’s 13 points.

Batavia went cold in the second quarter, scoring just two points in the first 4 ½ minutes, and saw its lead cut to 24-17 before a pair of free throws and a layup by senior center Meghan Houseknecht (on a nifty assist from Reigle) made it 28-17.

Reigle then scored two baskets in the final minute to give the Lady Devils a 32-18 halftime edge.

Stefaniak got the hot hand in the third quarter, scoring nine of her game-high 23 points, while sophomore guard Bryn Wormley chipped in with five points, including a corner three-pointer, to expand the lead to 52-30 after three periods. Wormley finished with eight points.

The Lady Devils shut out the Lady Knights from the field in the fourth quarter, limiting the visitors to just four free throws, to win going away.

Senior guard Jenae Colkey made her only field goal attempt of the game in the final quarter (she added three steals and three rebounds) while the 6-foot center Houseknecht completed the scoring with a three-pointer from the top of the key.

Stefaniak and Reigle were outstanding on both ends of the floor, with Stefaniak shooting 10-for-16 from the field with six steals and four rebounds, and Reigle making eight of her 15 shots with three steals and three assists.

Batavia, unofficially, was 28-for-54 from the field and 10-for-18 from the foul line.

Senior forward Aneliese Brandt led Pittsford with 15 points and sophomore guard Maley Garcia added eight. Pittsford, in dropping its ninth straight, enters the Class A sectional tournament with a 6-14 record.

While acknowledging an outstanding regular season, Hein said he is perplexed by the team’s lack of intensity at times.

“There are still too many highs and lows,” he said. “We’re playing good basketball, but there are parts of games when we take time off.”

He said the team can’t afford to let up in the sectionals.

“The girls have to understand that they need to play with a sense of urgency,” he said, noting that the squad will scrimmage against other schools a couple times before the 22^nd.

Longtime rival Notre Dame stopped Elba's effort to finish the regular season undefeated Tuesday night, beating the Lancers on their home court, 59-47.

Elba is now 18-1 and the Lady Irish are 18-2. Both teams have 13 league wins and so finish the regular season tied atop the Genesee Region.

Entering Class D2 sectional play, Elba should be the #1 seed as it shoots for its third consecutive sectional title.

Notre Dame is ranked #6 in Class B1. Batavia High School is ranked #1 entering into sectionals.

For the Irish, Callie McCulley scored 23 points and had 13 rebounds. Stevie Wilcox scored 12 points and had seven rebounds. Morgan Rhodes scored 10 points and Amelia McCulley scored eight.

UPDATE: Stats for Elba: Taylor Augello, 19 points and eight rebounds. Maddie Muelhig, 13 points, and Leah Bezon, seven points and seven rebounds.

The Batavia High Lady Blue Devils, getting contributions from its entire roster, raised its Monroe County Division 4 girls' basketball record to 6-0 tonight with a 48-36 victory over visiting Greece Odyssey.

Batavia, now 15-2 overall, closes out the regular season against two divisional foes -- at Greece Olympia on Monday and home versus Pittsford Sutherland on Wednesday (Senior Night).

Coach Marty Hein’s squad is in position to grab the No. 1 seed in Class B1, with Midlakes and Hornell also in contention. Batavia’s first sectional tournament game will take place on Friday, Feb. 22.

Tonight’s game showcased the Lady Devils’ ball-hawking defense that forced 20 turnovers (including 10 steals) and produced 11 blocked shots, and an offense sparked by hard drives to the basket by senior guard Ryann Stefaniak and sophomore guard Mackenzie Reigle.

Batavia jumped out to a 7-0 lead but Odyssey, which came into the contest on a nine-game winning streak, rallied behind junior forward Treanna Blenman’s eight points to close within 14-12 after the first quarter.

The Lady Devils outscored the Leopards 12-6 in the second quarter and 10-6 in the third quarter to open a 12-point lead, which proved to be the margin of victory.

Stefaniak led Batavia with 18 points, along with five rebounds and three blocked shots, while Reigle had 12 points, six steals and three assists, and sophomore guard Bryn Wormley tallied 10 points.

Batavia also was sparked by senior guard Jenae Colkey, who filled the stat sheet with four points, six rebounds, two steals and two assists, and junior forward Emma Krolczyk, who had four points and five blocked shots.

Senior center Meghan Houseknecht and sophomores Tess Barone, Kennedy Kolb and Bella Houseknecht also saw significant minutes.

Blenman was the top scorer for Odyssey, 3-4 in the division and 13-6 overall, with 23 points – 14 in the first half and nine of the team’s 12 in the final period.

There were times Wednesday night when it seemed like Honeoye Falls-Lima just couldn't miss three-point shots but even with that hot streak, the Batavia Blue Devils kept the game close.

Batavia pulled to within three points in the closing seconds but the home team still came up short, losing 62-56.

HF-L's shooters hit nine three-pointers, with Patrick Lustik hitting four (22 points) and Hayden Smith hitting three (11 points).

Batavia's Mason McFollins answered with four three-pointers of his own and a total of 24 points and Andrew Francis scored 17 points. 

Photos by Steve Ognibene.

To purchase or view photos, click here.

Batavia High School’s 11-game winning streak came to an end tonight at the hands of visiting Brockport, 53-46, in a Monroe County League interdivisional girls’ basketball game.

But the Batavia Lady Blue Devils, a Class B1 team, can hold their heads high as they hung with the Class A Brockport Lady Blue Devils, whose athleticism resulted in a decided advantage on the offensive boards (multiple second- and third-chances) and solid 2-3 zone defense forced Batavia away from the basket.

The winners consistently swarmed to the hoop, which resulted in them going to the foul line 27 times -- making 15 -- while Batavia was just 2-for-4 from the free throw line.

Brockport rode a pair of scoring spurts – an 8-0 run to open the second quarter and a 9-0 burst to start the fourth quarter – to its 16^th win in 17 outings.

The 8-0 run erased a 13-9 Batavia lead that was sparked by senior guard Ryann Stefaniak’s eight points, and the 9-0 burst turned a 38-35 Brockport lead into a 12-point advantage.

Batavia responded, however, by scoring nine straight points – four by Stefaniak, three by sophomore guard Bryn Wormley and two by sophomore guard Mackenzie Reigle – to cut the deficit to 47-44 with 3:32 left.

Cheered on by the home fans, including a raucous “Blue Zoo” section of students, Batavia had a chance to tie but a three-pointer by Wormley went in-and-out.

From there, Brockport’s junior center Shinya Lee scored off an offensive rebound with 2:30 to play and senior guard Bryn Hayes hit a free throw a minute later to up the score to 50-44.

Reigle then drove to the basket and missed, but she came up with a nifty steal and layup at the 44-second mark to pull Batavia within four. That was as close as Batavia could get, however, as Brockport sank three free throws in the final seconds to close out the scoring.

Stefaniak led Batavia, now 13-2, with 19 points while Reigle added 12 and Wormley 11. Reigle also led the team with five rebounds, four steals and four assists.

For Brockport, Lee tallied 18, senior forward Doralis Allen 12 and Hayes 10.

Batavia plays at Honeoye Falls-Lima on Thursday and hosts Greece Odyssey on Friday.

Attica dealt Alexander only its fourth loss on the season, only second in league play, knocking the Trojans out of a first-place tie with Lyndonville and Elba, with a 64-54 win at home.

Alexander's Chris McClinic was the game's top scorer with 25 points. Ryan Davis scored 11 points for the Trojans.

For the Blue Devils, Devon Henderson scored 15 points, Frankie Bisceglie, 12, Trevor Goll, 11. Dawson Nelson scored 10 points, added 16 rebounds, three assists, two blocks and two steals. Ayden Goll scored nine points and had six assists, six rebounds, and two steals.

"I was very proud of the team tonight," said Attica Coach Rob Crowley. "This was two good teams going at it. It was a great game in December over there and I would not have expected anything less tonight. It's always nice to win at home versus your rivals. "

Attica is now 10-6. Alexander is 11-4.

Elba (15-3) was also lost its share of first place in the Genesee Region League on Friday night with a 52-41 loss to Lyndonville (15-1).

Oakfield-Alabama (8-7) beat Pembroke (7-9) 64-51.

Byron-Bergen (6-9) beat Holley 65-47.

Pavilion (7-9) (in the Livingston League) beat Geneseo 71-63. 

Batavia plays North Tonawanda this afternoon at North Tonawanda. Batavia, in the Monroe League, is 6-7.

Elba may be ranked number one in the state now but it's not something they think much about, said Coach Tom Redband after Friday's home victory over Pembroke 46-45.

"It's a fun thing for the fans and it's a nice thing to read about but it's not something we talk about or, you know, fixate on," Redband said. "You know we want to be as good as we can in the end; whatever that might be. We don't get into whether we're number one state or winning sectionals or winning states.

"It's just the personality of the team because of their work ethic."

And winning is a whole team effort, Redband said. The best example this year is Wednesday's road win over Avon 60-33 with no player on the team hitting double digits in scoring.

"We ended up winning by 27," Redband said. "I think that's pretty rare. I can't remember the last time we lost by 27 when the top two scorers on the other team had five points. I think that's just a testament to the girls developing and being ready at all times no matter what they did last game. You know, the next girl up when somebody is not at their best or injured or we need a little boost."

Elba, a Class D team, is 15-0 on the season now and among the reasons it's ranked number one in the state is five of those wins came against Class B teams and all but one of those other wins against Class C teams. The team has scored at least 60 points 12 times.

Friday night's win -- which Elba almost let slip away -- was another example of distributed offense with Brynn Walczak scoring 12 points, Leah Bezon with 11, Lauryn Engle, 9, Taylor Augello, 6, and Maddie Muehlig, 5. Engle hit three of her four three-point attempts.

Here's how Redband breaks down his team:

"Leah Bezon has been on the team for four years now. She's only a sophomore. She keeps developing and she has a humongous upside. She's our captain.

"Brynn Walzcak has been on the team two, three years. Maddie Mulehig three years, Taylor Augello, it's her second year starting and she's really come on this year. She worked really hard in the offseason to develop her game.

"Maddie Howard who is a senior, she'll be back soon. She was injured a couple of weeks ago. She'll be back soon. She's a great, great assist person, very unselfish looking to defend and assist. 

"Then we have shooters like Adriana Long and Dakota Brinkman and Lauryn Engle, who at any point could hit three or four threes in a game.

"Kelly Mickey is a ferocious defender and then Izzy Riner who can kind of do it all.

"We're really not a top-heavy team."

Leah Bezon

Taylor Augello

Maddie Muehlig

Maddie Muehlig

Taylor Augello

Leah Bezon

Brynn Walczak

Press release:

On Friday, Jan. 18, the JV and varsity boys basketball teams from Byron-Bergen and Elba faced off in their traditional “Battle of Route 262” games, but this year they had their sights set higher than just a victory on the basketball court. Much higher.

In response to two of their classmates receiving cancer diagnoses, the players wanted to raise money for organizations that have helped those individuals and their families. The Ronald McDonald House Charities of Rochester and Cure Childhood Cancer Association received equal shares of the evening’s donations.

“Games with Elba bring in a large local crowd,” said Varsity Boys Basketball Head Coach Roxanne Noeth. “We thought that it would be a good chance to raise money and awareness for the cause – and the crowd really was amazing.”

In the weeks leading up to the game, the Byron-Bergen boys’ basketball teams gathered donations from friends, family, and community members and organizations. But, the Bees weren’t the only ones on the fundraising offensive. Elba, a partner District with Byron-Bergen for several sports including soccer and gymnastics, also collected donations for the V Foundation for Cancer Research.

“These students face off as opponents in basketball, but in another season they may be playing side-by-side,” said Elba Athletic Director Karen Cusmano. “The districts are less than 10 miles apart. We belong to a larger community and I’m proud that both teams are stepping up to support this important cause.”

The Elba players also joined the Byron-Bergen players in the half-court shot challenge sponsored by Jimmy Z’s of Brockport. Jimmy Z’s donated $20 for every half-court basket. The crowd exploded in applause as two Byron-Bergen players and one Elba player sunk the shot.

Both teams played hard with Elba’s JV and varsity teams edging out the bees. However, the biggest score of the evening was the $5,459 raised in support of the two charitable organizations. However, the final count still is not in.

Jimmy Z’s pledged to donate 20 percent of all sales from customers who mention Byron-Bergen’s fundraiser on Monday, Jan. 21, but due to inclement weather, the final fundraising effort is rescheduled to 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday, Jan. 28.

In a tweet, the Ronald McDonald House responded to the fundraiser announcement, “Thank you so much! This is a big help for our families.”

Contact: Rich Hannan, Byron-Bergen athletic director (585) 494-1220, ext: 2003; Contact: Pat McGee Byron-Bergen Jr./Sr. high School principal (585) 494-1220, ext: 2401.

“Our sports teams have a strong tradition of raising money for charitable organizations,” said Byron-Bergen Athletic Director Rich Hannan. “It’s an amazing accomplishment for high school students to organize fundraising on this scale, but it is also an amazing show of solidarity for their classmates and their families. It says, "We’ve got your back.’Once a Bee. Always a Bee.” 

Pictured: (l-r) (back row) Corden Zimmerman, Varsity Coach Roxanne Noeth, Lucas Stucchio, Daren Barron, Jerrod Amesbury, Josh Hohn, Jonathan Hahn, Travis Lambert, Tony DiQuattro, Rick Hubbard, Kevin Smith, Alex Brumsted, Mitch Gonyea, Bryce Yockel, Chad Green, Nicholas Baubie, JV Coach Chris Chapman; (front row) Nicolas Walters, Joey Damick, Caleb Carlson, David Brumsted, Anthony Chapman, Gianni Ferrara, Ryan Muscarella, Alex Donnelly, Alex Heatherman.  

For the seventh time in 13 games this season, the Alexander Trojans topped 60 points en route to their 10th win, beating Notre Dame at Notre Dame, 63-52.

Chris McClinic led the Trojans with 24 points, hitting a pair of three-point baskets along the way, and senior captain Ryan Davis scored 13 points.

"At the beginning, we were able to attack their two-three zone," said Trojan Coach Wayne Hanley. "We were able to get through it pretty quick and made them change things up. I thought Notre Dame did a good job shooting but we did a good job on the boards."

With eight wins against Genesee Region competition (10-3 overall), Alexander is tied for the league lead with Lyndonville and Elba. 

The Trojans lost a home game to Elba on Wednesday, 61-45, and have also lost to Greece-Odyssey, 91-54, and to Cal-Mum, 73-63.

"The kids are playing really well," Hanley said. "We faced some tough competition. Greece-Odyssey, then we played Cal-Mum, and that helped us prepare for the GR itself. The GR is very tough this year. We’ve played some tough games but we’ve been focused every game so I think that has really helped us out."

For Notre Dame, now 6-8, Spencer Misiti scored 16 points, Gabe Macdonald scored 12, and Zachary Cocking scored 11.

Thank you to Coach Hanley for participating in a video interview. Unfortunately, the audio did not come out well enought to use with this video.

On a night of subpar shooting, the host Batavia High Lady Devils rode their tenacious pressure defense to a 47-29 victory over Greece Olympia in Monroe County Division 4 varsity girls’ basketball action.

Batavia, 10-1, made just seven of 43 attempts from the field in the first half, but held a 20-16 lead thanks to a swarming zone defense and full-court press that created numerous turnovers and forced Olympia into taking difficult shots.

Olympia led 10-7 after the first quarter as Batavia went 2-for-20 and went up 14-7 after Batavia missed its first nine shots of the second quarter.

But things quickly turned Batavia’s way as a three-pointer by senior guard Ryann Stefaniak ignited a 13-0 run that put the Lady Devils up 20-14. A layup by junior forward Emma Krolczyk, two free throws by senior forward Jenae Colkey, two more baskets by Stefaniak and a steal and layup by sophomore guard Mackenzie Reigle completed the burst.

Batavia broke it open in the third quarter, outscoring the Lady Spartans, 12-2, behind Krolczyk’s eight points, to take a 32-18 lead.

Stefaniak tallied nine of her game-high 21 points in the fourth quarter as Batavia pulled away. She also had four rebounds, three blocks and three steals.

Krolczyk finished with 12 points while Byrn Wormley had four points, four assists and two steals; Colkey had five rebounds and three steals, and Reigle had four steals and three assists to go with her four points.

For the game, Batavia was 19-for-70 from the field and 5-for-17 from the free throw line.

Junior guard Janelle Miller and senior center Leah Stewart each had eight points for Olympia, 3-8.

The Lady Devils play two games on the road next week – Tuesday at Brighton and Friday at Pittsford Sutherland.

UPDATE 1:13 p.m.: Last night was another new record for 'Shooting for a Cure." The event raised $30,000.

In its eighth year, Pembroke's "Shooting for a Cure" girls basketball reached a significant milestone Thursday night, topping $100,000 raised for cancer research.

The total amount raised this year hasn't been released yet but Mike Wilson said last night that organizers knew more than $19,000 had raised, putting the cumulative total over that $100K mark.

"These girls this year, they attacked it. I can’t say enough about this team," said Wilson, who was head coach the first year of the fundraiser in 2011. "They lead the charge. They really do. They’re the ones out pounding the pavement. They’re the ones out in Batavia, and on Transit Road, and Rochester, and Buffalo, and they’re on social media using it the right way for all those good things.

"They have really spread our mission. I’m so proud of this group. They’re a young group but they’re so mature in the compassion and love they have for the people in our community. It’s awesome."

Thursday night was also the night the community could celebrate a new job for Brianna Johnson.

It was Johnson who, in 2011, while on a team bus returning from a softball game, said the school should do something to support Coach Ron Funke's wife, Toni Funke. She and teammates talked with Wilson and the idea for Shooting for a Cure was born.

Today, Johnson starts a new job on the cancer research team at Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center in Buffalo.

"For Brianna to have that idea and then to move on to something in the medical field, doing cancer research, it’s come full circle," Wilson said. "They just hired her. Her intake meeting is tomorrow, so when we’re down presenting our check to Candace Johnson and the Roswell staff, Brianna is going to be there signing up to become a member of that team.

"They’re going to find a cure for cancer with Brianna on that team. She’s so passionate about this. I’m very proud of her."

As for the game, Notre Dame beat Pembroke 50-31.

The Batavia High varsity girls’ basketball team, coming off a dramatic victory over Wellsville last Friday in the finals of the Batavia Rotary Club Tournament, has tacked on two more Monroe County League victories this week -- a 54-44 win over host Greece Arcadia on Monday and a 64-33 triumph over visiting Spencerport last night.

Three Batavia starters scored in doubles figures with Ryann Stefaniak and Emma Krolczyk leading the way with 16 points apiece while Mackenzie Reigle tallied 14.

The Lady Devils were in control throughout en route to their ninth win in 10 contests.

On Monday, Batavia led by only three after three periods but used a 19-12 fourth quarter to beat Arcadia.

Stefaniak scored 16, Reigle 11 and Krolczyk 10 while Bryn Wormley and Meghan Houseknecht each added eight points.

Batavia’s next game is Friday night at home against Greece Olympia, 3-7. Olympia lost to Spencerport, 46-40, on Dec. 28.

Last evening the Genesee region girls basketball rivals, Notre Dame Fighting Irish versus the Oakfield Hornets kept the crowd cheering on both sides for an entertaining evening contest at Notre Dame High School.

Both teams battled the ball through four quarters to a close four-point game after Oakfield scored with 16 seconds left on the clock trailing 41-37. A technical was called against the hornets and foul shots benefited the Irish favor in the remaining seconds to finish on top 45-37.

Oakfield’s Coach Jeff Schlagenhauf’s postgame summary:

“We talked about getting off to a good start in their gym, it’s a tough place to play but great environment for high school basketball. Defensively we stuck to what we wanted with our game plan.

"It all came together in that early part of the game, knowing full well that they would make adjustments. Coach McCulley does a great job with his kids. We were able to weather that storm going into halftime with the lead. But we talked in the locker room, they were going to keep coming, it’s their gym, they’re a good ball club and that’s what they did.

"They really kind of took it to us in the second half a little bit of the standpoint of taking us out of what we wanted us to do. Couple things changed for us after halftime -- offensively we stopped running our plays and could not get the drops. They got a couple easier baskets that did not happen for them in the first half.

"I think that was a little bit of the momentum shift that happened for us not being able to score and they took that lead, four, five points and kind of hung there the rest of the game."

Notre Dame’s Coach Tom McCulley postgame summary:

“After the first quarter being down by 10, we talked about not panicking and do what we can do, were a good team. Oakfield obviously came out with more energy than we did and they got up big, but we got players that can do good things out on the court offensively and defensively and by that we had to dig in, get some stops. 

"Oakfield was getting some easy buckets back in transition on us and we were not getting back very well in the beginning half. Once we started getting back and getting into a half court man to man coverage, they didn’t get so many good looks at the basket and we were able to claw back into it.

"We have some young players that are in new roles this year that have never been in before. When you play a quality team like Oakfield, sometimes you got to get your feet wet, you have to get in the rhythm of the game before you start to feel comfortable and that’s what exactly happened.

"We were able to weather the storm in the first half, Amelia and Sara got comfortable in the game and were the ones that were open. Oakfield was doubling Callie and Stevie when they were in the paint and Sara and Amelia knocked off some huge shots in the third quarter and that got us up and gave us a spark and we never really gave it back.”

Notre Dame Callie McCulley had 12 points, 12 rebounds and eight blocks. Amelia McCulley added 12 points and Stevie Wilcox 10 points. Oakfield-Alabama Kelsey Shlagenauf had 15 points, Shelby Carson 10 points.

Photos by Thomas Ognibene. To view or purchase click here.