Batavia HS

Anytime we cover an entertainment event at Batavia High School, we wind up with a picture of Ross Chua performing. He's very talented and very motivated. This is a photo from a talent show in June.

Besides being a performer, Chua is also a songwriter and composer. On Monday, the Genesee Symphony Orchestra played one of his compositions so it could be recorded to include with his college auditions and interviews.

This may be the first time the GSO performed a composition by a local high school student.

Here's the video:

After the injury to point guard Maddy McCully that put her out for the season, Batavia's Head Coach Marty Hein said the Lady Blue Devils would be a team in search of a new identity.

That thought was back on Hein's mind last night after Batavia narrowly escaped with its 13th win, 58-55, over Irondequoit.

Batavia surrendered a 14-point lead in the fourth quarter, allowing Irondequoit to put 25 points on the scoreboard and with less than a minute left, pulling within a point of the lead.

"(McCulley was) the floor general at any given point in time," Hein said. Ryann (Stefaniak) and Tiara (Filbert) are doing a super job, but when the chips seem to be falling a bit, there was always, 'OK, Maddy, you run the point now.' That was freeing up Tiara to do whatever. She doesn't have to bring the ball up. Now, it's kind of that little identity crisis of, OK, when things start going south, who is going to be that step-up person to take that role. We played a good 24 minutes of basketball, and then the last eight..."

Filbert scored 18. Taylor Stefaniak added 16, including dropping three buckets from behind the arc. Ryann scored 14 and Sam Cecere had seven.

For Irondequoit, Megan Dano scored 16, Kylee Kanealey, 12, and Quinn Melidona, 13.

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You can always count on a Dave Pero-coached Notre Dame team to provide opponents with a test, and that's what the Batavia Lady Blue Devils got Friday night in the finale of the Batavia Rotary Club Tournament at Genesee Community College, just when, perhaps, they needed it the most.

The contest was their first without Maddy McCulley, who had her high school career cut short with a knee injury Wednesday one game removed from scoring her 1,000th career point.

The team will carry on without McCulley, but the question that needed to be answered is would her teammates would pick up the slack?

They did.

Four players finished in double figures in scoring and Batavia beat Notre Dame 60-44.

The score may look lopsided, but the game wasn't. Notre Dame fought every minute, battling through Batavia's relentless press, finding ways to the basket at times, but also surrendering a few too many possessions.

The Irish finished the first half only five down and pulled within a point of the lead early in the third quarter. 

"When something like happens, what happened with Maddy, again my condolences, I feel terrible about it," Pero said. "I feel terrible about what happened to her, but they stepped up. The injury set her down, but the team, you could see it, they stepped up. Good teams do that and they're a good team."

Freshman Ryann Stefaniak scored 16, Tiara Filbert and Sam Cecere each had 13, and Taylor Stefaniak hit for 12.

It's the first time the Stefaniak sisters were both in double figures for the game, and that bodes well for the rest of the Lady Devils' season.

"We talked about in practice yesterday," Hein said. "I said 'Look, we're still a good basketball team; obviously, we're not the same team. We have to find a new identity as far as who is going to be doing some of those other things. Bottom line is, Maddy takes about 20 shots in a game. We can't all just look at Tiera and now expect her to shoot 40 of them.' "

Newly minted starter Elyse Snow will take up some of the slack, and Cecere will get a few more looks, but Taylor and Ryann need to add from 10 to 12 shots per game between them, Hein said.

"I turned to the two Stefaniak girls and said, 'Listen, it's really on you two,' " Hein said.

Taylor said she and Ryann are ready and she's proud of how they pulled through Friday.

"I feel like we both stepped up really well tonight," Taylor said. "(Ryann) stepped up her game a lot tonight, which we've needed her to do the whole season, but it helped a lot tonight. I think she did great."

Ryann was all over the court, tipping passes on defense, joining in double teams on ballhandlers, finding open lanes on offense and crashing the glass on rebounds, getting a couple of key putback baskets.

"Ryann is skinny as a rail," Hein said. "In most cases, I  think she's got a turtle shell on her back; she seems so slow at certain points and times. But on the offensive end, she's always kind of in the right spot. She's slashing, rebound here, rebound there. It was exciting to watch."

Filbert, the tournament's MVP, is still the leader of the team, and the shooter defenses will work hardest to stop, as Notre Dame did Friday, but Filbert is unruffled by the change in circumstances.

"I'm going to keep playing my game," Filbert said. "We all came in level-headed. We knew we had a goal we wanted to accomplish and we were able to do that. Losing Maddy is going to be a big adjustment because she helped us out tremendously on and off the court. But I know she's going to be there on the sideline and we know we have the players who are going to step up and help us out."

For Notre Dame, Becca Krenzer scored 15, Margaret Sutherland, 10, and Calli McCulley, eight.

Before the game, during introductions, Calli presented her cousin Maddy with a bouquet of flowers.

Pero said he was very proud of how his girls played, especially Sutherland, who is starting to come into her own as a scorer and floor leader, and considered the game a great learning lesson for the team, which won't see any opponents with Batavia's talent or depth in the rest of the GR or Class D.

"It was a good experience," Pero said. "We're not going to see teams this good where we're going."

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Norte Dame beat Attica 45-30 and Batavia topped Cal-Mum 50-31 to set the stage for a rematch of last year's exciting final in the annual Batavia Rotary Club Tournament at Genesee Community College.

Perhaps the big news of the night was an injury to Batavia's Madison McCulley (#42), a key part of the Lady Devils' talented starting five. McCulley was honored before the game for just achieving her 1,000th career point. Shortly before the end of the third period, she fell to the floor coming off a layup crying in pain. She was carried to the locker room and came out later with her knee wrapped in an ice pack. She had a medical exam today, but those exam results are not yet available.

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University Prep and Batavia High School will vie for the Lions Tournament Championship on Wednesday following dominating victories in the opening round games Monday night at Genesee Community College.

U-Prep beat Notre Dame 80-36 behind Isaiah Brinkley's 20 points, with Joe McGrady adding 14 to go with 10 rebounds. For the Fighting Irish, Tyler Prospero had 13, Jordan Lyons had seven, and C.J. Suozzi, seven.

In the nightcap, the Blue Devils beat Albion 58-38. Off the bench, Tee Sean Ayala scored 15 points, all coming off of five three-pointers. Malachi Chenault scored 11, Adonis Davis, seven. For Albion, Tommy Mattison hit five three-pointers and scored 19 points.

Batavia is now 7-0 on the season.

U-Prep and Batavia will play at 8 p.m. Wednesday at GCC.

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After making runs at sectional titles each of the past four years, the three girls who helped make those teams contenders -- Tiara Filbert, Sam Cecere and Maddie McCulley -- are all seniors, and if they are going to turn 2015-16 into a championship season, Head Coach Marty Hein knows they can't turn it alone.

That's where sisters Taylor Stefaniak, a sophomore, and Ryann Stefanik, a freshman, come in. They're young for starters, but Taylor brings confidence and maturity gleaned from half-season as a starter last year, and Ryann is simply fearless.

"The seniors have those girls' backs," Hein said. "We know that if we want to make a deep run this year that those two sisters are a big key to it."

The Lady Devils are 2-1 on the young season after a 56-36 win over Brighton at home Tuesday night. McCulley led the way with 17 points, including sinking a trio of threes, Cecere had 15 and Filbert scored 14. Ryann Stefaniak added eight.

Any championship trail probably runs through Mendon, and it was in Mendon that Batavia suffered its lone defeat last year 50-63. There, Hein said, the team showed it still has some work to do coming together as a unit.

Ryann's youth showed a bit, he said, but that's no different than what it was for Taylor early last year and McCulley when she was a freshman.  

"It's a building process, so hopefully we'll get in the right spot by the end of the year," Hein said.

Ryann won a starting job coming out of preseason because that fearlessness is what enables her to compete at this level.

"That's why she's here," Hein said. "She's a ninth-grader. She can handle the ball. She can shoot the ball. She's not afraid to go up, so this was a huge game for her to bounce back from the Mendon game."

Still, what makes this team is that very special trio of seniors, whom Hein has coached since they were young girls. Even at this point of the year, Hein admits to getting a little misty-eyed realizing this is the last run he'll have with Filbert, Cecere and McCulley.

"I've had them for so many games through summer, spring, the regular season, the whole cohesiveness between them and the rest of the girls, they're the glue," Hein said. "They hold it all together."

Filbert plays at a whole other level, with skill and basketball IQ to create scoring opportunities and disrupt the offensive flow of opponents, and as Hein noted, "she's a highlight reel at any given point."

Filbert, Cecere, McCulley and the two Stefanik sisters -- five girls in Batavia who are likely to make the 2015-16 pretty entertaining.

The next play at home at 7 p.m. tomorrow.

In photos: Ryan, #3; Filbert, #22; Taylor #23; Cecere, #30; McCulley, #42.

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The Batavia High School Drama Club will present a special adaptation of "Peter Pan" called "Peter and Wendy" this weekend on the stage -- a theater-in-the-round setting -- in the school's auditorium.

The adaptation, by writer Jeremy Bloom, explores some of the deeper themes of "Peter Pan," including the relevance of time.

There are 28 students in the cast and four more working as stage crew. The production is directed by Caryn Burk.

Performances are at 7:30 p.m., Friday and Saturday, and 2:30 p.m., Sunday. Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for students.

Pictured are: Shannon Cervone, Eryn Dunn, and Elise Hoerbelt as Lost Boys; Alex Mott as Peter, Chelsea Jensen as Tiger Lily and Sarah Wetzel as Tinker Bell.

Cameron Bontrager performs "Sweet Child of Mine" during the 2015 Batavia HS talent show Tuesday night in the school's auditorium.

Tzyonah Scheffield-Reese performs "Photograph."

Madison Hoerbelt and Eryn Dunn perform "For Good."

Ross Chua and Chelsea Jensen perform "I'm Yours."

Hannah Bluhm performs "Dear Future Husband."

Batavia High School hosts its annual faculty and student talent show tonight in the auditorium starting at 7 o'clock.

Pictured during yesterday's rehearsal are Tzyonah Sheffield-Reese (top) and Kesa Janes.

Cheektowaga's athletic playmakers and Batavia's inability to convert a couple of scoring opportunities in the first half were the big difference in the Blue Devils' second consecutive try at a Far West Regional Championship.

A win would have propelled Batavia into the state championship Class B semifinal. Instead, as happened last year, the team traveling to Syracuse is the Warriors.

Batavia led from the opening drive until nine minutes left in the game, when Cheektowaga tied it up at 36-36. When Batavia couldn't sustain a drive on the following possession, the Warriors moved the ball downfield effectively and scored on a four-yard by Tyr Willingalea with 1:36 left on the clock. A turnover with less than 20 seconds left in the game, and the score 43-36 gave Cheektowaga the championship.

"They played so well and they've been such tough kids," said Head Coach Brennan Briggs. "My heart breaks for them. I mean, right now, my heart's broken, really. These guys, I love them. We've got 18 seniors and it's going to be very tough saying goodbye to them."

Briggs felt coming into the game his team would be able to run on the Warriors and Dom Mogavero put together a great game. He rushed for 125 yards on 33 carries. He carried the ball in twice and scored another touchdown on defense with a fumble recovery. QB Greg Mruczek had four carries for 76 yards, including a long of 61 yards. Ray Leach carried the ball six times for 29 yards, and Jonathan Barber had two carries for 19 yards and a TD.

Mruczek was 7-20 passing, including two interceptions. 

Ryan Hogan caught four of those passes for 108 yards, including a long of 58 yards. 

Batavia scored easily on its first drive and scored again less than a minute later on an Adonis Davis interception, making the score 14-0. Cheektowaga struck back quickly on its next position, but from then on until the fourth quarter, Batavia always managed to keep the game out of reach of the Warriors. Or, the Warriors used their athletic weapons to keep the Blue Devils in reach.

Cheektowaga had the last three scores of the game, a 27-yard run by Willingelea that put the Warriors within eight, a five-yard run by Eric Bartnik and a two-point conversion that tied the score, and then the final TD that sealed Batavia's fate.

"They're an athletic team," Briggs said. "They've been known for it all year. They've been down and they've come back. Even when we were up two scores, I said it to my guys, 'They are the comeback kids. They did it last year and they did it this year. They're a good football team.' "

Leach picking up a fumble that set up a Batavia TD.

Terren Lorrie was defensive player of the game.

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The watchword for the Batavia Blue Devils this football season has been relentless. Coach Brennan Briggs has it stenciled on the back of his game day windbreaker. But there's another word that can apply to the 2015 edition of the team: dominating.

Over the past six games, no opponent has been able to finish a game within three touchdowns of the Blue Devils. Whether on the ground or through the air, the Batavia offense has scorched every defense they've faced and the defense has been, well, relentless.

The Blue Devils started the year ranked #1 in a coaches' poll, but Briggs wouldn't discuss on the record how much confidence he had in his team. After today's win over Livonia by a score of 52-20 for the team's second straight Class B Section V title, Briggs admitted he believed this team was that good all along.

"It's what I expected," Briggs said. "I downplayed it all year because there was a lot of hype. I don't like the high expectations. I just like to out there and get the job done. The kids have answered the bell every single week."

Briggs (top photo with the trophy) is in his fourth season as head coach and he becomes the first head coach in school history with back-to-back sectional titles in football to his credit.

A lot of credit for today's win goes to the ground game led by Dom Mogavero and Ray Leach, and senior QB Greg Mruczek's performance was certainly title worthy, but what it really comes down to, the players say, is the play of the offensive and defensive lines.

"They've been incredible all season for us," said Mruczek, who was 9-11 passing for 158 yards and two TDs. "They work hard every single day at practice. They work hard. The trenches are where football games are won and I think people overlook that sometimes."

Mogavero put together another stellar performance, rushing for 177 yards on 14 carries, scoring twice, and he gave all the credit to the linemen.

"Those guys work hard in the trenches," Mogavero said. "They played their tails off."

Danny Williams, who has been a team leader on defense all season and had eight tackles today, said it's an amazing feeling to be part of a winning team that works so hard together.

"We're such a family," Williams said. "I've never been on team that's got my back more than this team does. However I play, they've got my back. If I mess up, there's somebody right there to make the tackle. If I don't mess up, I make the tackle or they make the tackle. It's so easy to get down, but they just help me pick up. It's great."

Batavia came ready to play a tough, physical game, Briggs said.

"The nice thing is, they're (Livonia) a smashmouth team and we wanted to show that 'hey, we can beat people up in the trenches and we can do a great job,' " Briggs said. "Our kids just played relentless football all day long. They wanted it and nobody was going to take it from them."

Trevor Sherwood had three catches for 32 yards and a TD, Malachi Chenault had two grabs for 15 yards and Anthony Gallo scored on a 60-yard TD reception, which was the second play of the game and set the tone for the day.

"It was definitely huge," Mogavero said. "It definitely gave us a little kickstart."

That well-balanced game is part of what makes Batavia hard to beat, Briggs said.

"We have athletes all over the field and we also have tough guys in the trenches, and if we want to run the ball we can run it," Briggs said. "If we want to throw it, we can throw it. A lot of it comes down to what we're seeing, what we think we can do and what we can do to open other things up. Our line, our receivers and our running backs -- all of them together just make a great football team."

Next week, we get to find out if Batavia is indeed that good. They will play Cheektowaga for the Far West Regional Championship, a stepping-stone to a shot at a state championship game. The Blue Devils went into last season's regional with high expectations, only to bump into the reality of the Warriors, losing 35-18. The 2015 edition of the Warriors are 12-0 and have as many dominating wins as Batavia.

They players are eager to go against the Warriors, they said, with some thoughts of avenging last year's loss and some just out to prove they deserve the victory.

"We're going to want some revenge, but we've got play hard just like we played today and then we'll see what that score, what that outcome, is," Williams said.

Mruczek is excited at the prospect of matching up with Cheektowaga again.

That's definitely going to be a fun game," Mruczek said. "We're all looking forward to the opportunity to play them again for sure."

Asked if the team was looking for a chance for revenge, Mogavero wouldn't go there, not quite.

"We're definitely grateful for the opportunity to play them again this year," Mogavero said.

Briggs downplayed any talk of revenge, even after saying, "we feel like we owe it to them."

"They're a great football team," Briggs said. "We're going to have to come prepared and I know they're going to come prepared."

Game time for the regional is 1 p.m., Sunday, at Sahlen's Stadium.

Anthony Gallo made a 60-yard TD reception on the second play of the game, and after that, there was no more looking back for the Blue Devils.

Dom Mogavero scores on a two-point conversion after Gallo's TD reception.

Ray Leach on the carry.

Ray Leach headed for the end zone.

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Slide show of photos by Howard Owens:

Slide show of photos by Jim Burns:

The way Greg Mruczek sees it, the challenge Hornell gave Batavia in the first quarter of Saturday's sectional semi-final for Class B gives a Blue Devils team that has faced little adversity all season long a taste of how tough advancing in the post season will get.

Mruczek and his teammates adjusted and ended up smashing the Red Raiders 43-7.

Four second-quarter touchdown passes from Mruczek sealed the deal. He hit Anthony Gallo on a 16-yard route, Ray Leach on 46 yards, Ryan Hogan on 24 yards and Malachi Chenault on 41 yards.

"We had to pick up some blitzes in that first quarter," Mruczek said. "We definately had some adversity, but we definately fought through the adversity. We definately got a feel for playing in a close game and that's definately going to happen in the finals."

In the finals, Batavia will face Livonia, and while that's a 6-3 team (compared to Batavia's 9-0 record), they scored 70 points yesterday against Penn Yan, who ran up 60 points.

The diversity of receivers Mruczek called upon for those four second-quarter TDs demonstrates the array of weapons any defense must try to counter when playing Batavia, and the ability to strike quickly from anywhere on the field gives the team a lot of confidence, said Dom Mogavero.

"We a dynamic team," Mogavero said. "Every single person on this team can play football, the twos, the threes, everyone on the depth chart can play football and we all know we're really talented atheletes.

"We stick together as a family. The only stat that matters to us is wins and losses."

Mruczek was coming off a stretch over two games where he was 19-20 passing, including a 10-10 performance last week, with his only prior missed pass a throwaway under pressure two weeks ago. Those blitzes of Hornel had Mruczek a little off balance in the first quarter and he gave up a rare interception.

Still, he went on for a 12 for 25 performance for 303 yards and four TDs.

Batavia's other two touchdowns came on runs of 56 yards by Leach and 47 yards by Caleb Burdett.

 Mogavero had 77 yards on seven carries and Ray Leach rushed for 79 yards on five carries for the Blue Devils.

Gallo caught four passes for 126 yards.

In additional to his TD reception, Hogan had two interceptions. His steller performance came less than a week after his father's death.

"He's a gamer," Mruczek said. "He's got a lot of heart. I love that kid. He works hard every day."

Malachi Chenault said the team was there for Hogan throughout the week.

"He's a tough player," Chenault said. "We knew his situation and we just tried holding him up as much as we can and be as supportive as possible, that's all."

Defensively, Danny Williams had 10 tackles (two for loss) and Trent McGraw had eight tackles (two for loss) for the Blue Devils.

Top photo: Leach celebrates his second quater TD, which came off a tipped pass (second photo).

Hogan with one of this two interceptions.

Gallo with a TD reception.

Leach on a run play.

Leach.

Leach on defense.

Gallo with a reception.

Mruczek with a second quarter pass

Williams buries Hornell's Trenton Smith.

To purchase prints of photos by Howard Owens, click here.

Jim Burns was also at the game and took photos:

Jim Nigro remembers well the night the Batavia Blue Devils scored 63 points. In was 1962 and he was a freshman on the squad that squared off against a team from the Syracuse area. The fans came into town with banners and shouting about beating the farmers, and the Blue Devils buried them 63-20.

The 2015 Blue Devils came two points shy Friday night of tying that school record in a 61-0 victory over Midlakes in the first round of the Section V Class B playoffs.

Batavia advances to the semi-finals against Hornell at 1:30 p.m., Saturday, at Cal-Mum.

QB Greg Mruczek was a perfect 10 for 10 passing for 144 yards and three touchdowns.  Dominick Mogavero ran for 79 yards and two TDs on four carries. Ryan Hogan had three TD receptions, gaining 60 yards. Malachi Chenault caught four passes for 44 yards.  Ray Leach gained 97 yards, returning two punts for touchdowns. John Garlock and Cody Dioguardi each scored. Terren Lovria and Leach had seven tackles, Mogavero six and Trenton McGraw, six with two sacks.

To purchase prints of photos, click here.

Article by Serena Strollo-DiCenso, BHS Junior and member of @ct Genesee.
Photo by Howard Owens of: Anita Strollo, Scott Wilson, Kevin Keenan, Sandy Martin and Jen Zambito.

When Federal Drug Free Communities Support Program funding ended after 10 years, the committed individuals from the Genesee Drug Free Communities Coalition continued to meet on a regular basis to determine the scope of their work. Renamed @ct Genesee Coalition, their vision is simple; they want to keep Genesee County, its youth and its families healthy, safe and substance free. 

Working closely with the WNY Prevention Resource Center, this coalition is basing their coalition development on the Strategic Prevention Framework (SPF), a proven model that helps coalitions choose data-driven actions that result in sustainable change. @ct Coalition members understand that local problems require local solutions.

“We recently developed a community survey to help understand Genesee County’s needs and concerns regarding substance use and abuse," said @ct Genesee Coalition President Anita Strollo. "Following this framework will not only help our process, but will ensure outcomes, and put us on track for future grant funding.

"The SPF comes down from the federal and state levels and it’s what they look for when assessing which coalitions are doing the right things for their communities. Those are the communities that are considered for money. Money is pretty important."

The coalition meets regularly at Batavia High School at the invitation of Scott Wilson, @ct Genesee vice president and Batavia High School principal. @ct Genesee is seeking new members who are like minded and who will pick up the mantle and join their efforts.

“We are always looking for new members with fresh ideas," Wilson said, "whether you want to attend meetings or run fundraisers, everyone has something to contribute.” 

The community survey will be distributed shortly and the coalition can use the information gained to focus their energies toward what will best suit Genesee County.

“What the community needs to know is that we are here and we care,” says Strollo. 

The next meeting of @ct Genesee Coalition is at noon at Batavia High School on Nov. 17. The meetings usually run one hour. For more information, please contact Anita at (585) 813-5371 or e-mail anitastrollo@yahoo.com.

A cold steady rain for three quarters of last night's football game did not effect the undefeated Batavia Blue Devils as they took control before halftime and finished with a 42-16 win over the home team Geneva Trojans.

Batavia battled a tough first quarter but came up leading 14-8 on a key play by freshman Ray Leach pictured above.

Dominic Mogavero scored on this handoff from senior quarterback Greg Mruczek.

Ryan Hogan caught a long pass from Mruczek where he scored a touchdown to make it 28-8 at halftime.

In the third quarter, both Batavia and Geneva added touchdowns within minutes of each other. However Batavia scored again late in the third quarter that eventually was the final 42-16.

Batavia finishes the season with a perfect 7-0 record and will play home this Friday at Vandetta Stadium at 7 p.m. versus Midlakes or Pal-Mac pending the results of today's games.

Tom Murphy, a professional MMA fighter and an Ultimate Fighting Champion, brought his anti-bullying presention, Sweethearts and Heroes, to Batavia High School on Wednesday afternoon. Murphy's program is aimed at giving students tools for combating bullying, not just a pep talk about why bullying is wrong.

“Just talking about awareness doesn’t fix anything,” said Murphy, who lives in Glen Falls and was a wrestler in college at Brockport. “What separates us from other anti-bullying presentations and projects is that we have the plan to curb, and even stop, bullying in your school, or wherever it exists for you.”

His special guest Wednesday was Rick Yarosh and his companion dog Amos. Yarosh is an Iraq War vet whose Bradley armored vehicle was incinerated by an IED, leaving Yarosh badly burned. He also lost a leg. Yarosh spoke about battling against hopelessness to live a life of purpose and optimism.  

Batavia High School Blue Devils contributed quite a bit to the spirit of Homecoming Week with a 54 to 0 win over Wayne Central. The score says it all defense and offence came to play and they did! From the opening drive to the last, a nearly overflowing Vendetta Stadium saw continuous action from turnovers, stops and scoring.

There were, however, a few fouls that could have caused Batavia some trouble if they were not completely dominant for the entire game. More pictures of the game here http://jimburns.org/p934431343#h5be14e4b

In a rare volleyball matchup, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Batavia Blue Devils met on Batavia's home court Tuesday night as part of the school's homecoming week events. In recognition of Domestic Violence Awareness Month, the Batavia squad wore purple socks and headbands.

At first the two teams played nearly even score early on, then Notre dame pulled away to take a 17-12 lead. Batavia took a timeout and settled down, but were soon down eight points and lost by a final of 25-18. 

The second set was a little different. Batavia took the lead early and went up 8-7, with the two teams swapping leads throughout the match. Batavia held on for the win 25-22.

Batavia’s Head Coach Jeremy Mettler said “I challenged them to play harder defense and more aggressive serving and they stepped it up in game two, which led us to victory."

In the third set Batavia rallied early going up 4-1 but then Notre Dame went on a hot streak scoring the next six points. Batavia took a time out. Mettler talked with his team about a few fundamentals and encouraged his players to relax and just play volleyball.

Notre Dame Head Coach Rhonda DiCasolo, with more than 40 years experience coaching, told her players to stop giving away points, get their serves over and not let the crowd get to them. Notre Dame held the lead by eight points most of the set, eventually winning 25-16.

Down two sets to one, Batavia needed a win in the fourth set and never gave in. Down by four early, they rallied and tied the score at six apiece. DiCasolo told her squad to settle down.

"Our passing had to get closer to Mary Cate so she can run the offense," DiCasolo said. "We ran a couple plays that were effective, sparked them to get back on track and started going back to the hitting. I told them to stop the tipping.

"We picked it up. They were scrappy. They were taking everything we were giving them, so I told them to go with our power hitters, Shea Norton, Becca Krenzer and Taylor DiMartino."

Notre Dame took the lead and led the middle of the set and was up 19-15 when Batavia called time out.  

Mettler said Notre Dame is a good team. Mettler told his team to play hard, work hard and hit their target with their passes.

Batavia battled, but Notre Dame held the lead and eventually won 25-17 to take the night three sets to one.

"Tonight’s crowd was awesome on both schools that brought tons of kids out to support their schools," Mettler said. "It was one of the most fun games I have coached in the Batavia High gymnasium. We missed a couple crucial serves here and there in the fourth set.

"Notre Dame played well and they didn’t let up. We kept swinging at them and attacked. We didn’t give up and we fought to the end."

Batavia’s stats:

Tessa Engel -- 15 digs, seven kills & two aces

Taylor Stefaniak -- six digs, 12 kills & two aces

Maddie McCulley -- 10 digs, two kills & 18 assists

Courtnee Yasses -- six aces

Notre Dame's stats:

Shea Norton -- 27 kills, six digs

Mary Cate Miceli -- 28 assists, 13 digs

Rebecca Krenzer -- eight kills

Lexi Gerhardy -- nine digs, five kills

Batavia’s record is now 6-7 and the team plays its next game at home today vs. Greece Olympia. Notre Dame improves to 10-1 and plays away tomorrow at Holley.

For more photos visit to: Steve Ognibene Photography

The Batavia Coaches Association hosts the 14th annual Batavia Blue Devil Athletic Hall of Fame Dinner tomorrow Terry Hills Restaurant and Banquet Facility.

Cost is $30 per person. Social hour begins at 5 p.m., followed by dinner at 6.

Tickets are available at the Athletic Director's Office at Batavia High School. For more information, call 343-2480, ext. 2003.

Below, reproductions of the plaques to be presented and hung at the school.

The game wasn't pretty, the play wasn't perfect, but Batavia High School showed a good Class A team what it's made of, what Batavia football has always been about, Head Coach Brennan Briggs told his players after the game. 

Grit. Determination. Never surrender. 

The Blue Devils played their hearts out, never giving in even after the Wilson Wildcats overcame a two-TD deficit in the first half to tie the game and threaten to take it over.

The final score was 34-28, and the game was just that close.

"It's a big win for them," Briggs said after the game. "I preached all week we were going to play a good Class A team. It was going to be a close football game and we're going to see what we're made of, and I think we showed, we're a pretty good football team, but we still have a lot to work on."

Coming into the season, with Blue Devils, returning Section V champs for Class B, were ranked #1 in a Section V coaches poll, but Briggs downplays the chatter about his team as a lot of hype.  He doesn't buy into it and he doesn't want his players getting caught up in it either.

"I absolutely hate the hype," Briggs said. "I just like us worrying about Batavia football, getting better every single week. If we put together a great football game, and we play our A game, I think we can definitely make a run, but with that said, any given moment, there's injuries and bad breaks and bad bounces and if we don't play a perfect game anybody can knock us out on any night."

A lot of the credit for Friday's win goes to the defense.  Face with a lot of short field challenges, the defense usually held together.  Briggs said the team has instituted a special red zone unit and that's been a key to Batavia getting tougher when their backs are against the goal line

"A lot of teams think, ah, they're within the five-yard line, the other team is going to score," Briggs said. "Our guys take pride in that unit. It's a special unit. They take pride in not letting the opponent get in the endzone."

Wilson benefitted from some turnovers and some questionable penalties, but the Blue Devils never gave in even as the favorable breaks helped Wilson keep the score tight.

"I was confident all night, the way our defense was playing that we could get the stops as long as we were ahead of them," Briggs said.

Senior QB Greg Mruczek was 14 of 27 for 228 yards and five TDs.  Ryan Hogan had four receiptions for 102 yards and two TDs. Trevor Sherwood caught six passes for 64 yards and a TD.  Anthony Gallo, four receptions, 70 yards and two TDs. Dom Mogavero, 12 tackles. Danny Williams, 11 tackles and a forced fumble, Ray Leach, seven tackles. Adonis Davis six tackles and an interception. Clayton Gorski, six tackles, including a sack.

Batavia is now 3-0 to start the season. Wilson falls to 2-1.  Next up for Batavia, Edison Tech at home. Game time, 7:30 p.m. on Friday.

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