Section V girls volleyball

Going into this evening’s Section V girls volleyball Class D championship match, Pavilion’s Lauren Kingsley, a 6-foot-1 junior middle hitter, knew that it was up to her to counteract Fillmore’s star player Emma Cole, a 6-foor-1 senior middle hitter.

Kingsley came through with flying colors – recording 12 kills (scoring hits) and a couple of blocks at the net – to lead the undefeated Lady Gophers to a 25-12, 25-18, 25-14 victory over the Lady Eagles before a large contingent of fans at Caledonia-Mumford High School.

She said her team understood the challenge presented by Cole, who dominated the opening match of the overall Class D playoffs on Tuesday against Alexander.

“They have a big blocker,” she said, speaking of Cole, "and we knew that we were going to have to get those (kills) around her.”

Cole had her moments, recording 12 kills at the net and four service aces, but many of her forceful returns were handled by the Lady Gophers' experienced lineup led by Kingsley, junior outside hitter Karlee Zinkievich (four kills and six aces), senior outside hitter Adeline Milligan (four kills), senior setter Shannon Campbell (18 assists), senior middle hitter Shea Amberger and junior middle hitter Paige Landers.

In the first set, Fillmore, 13-7, pulled to within 10-8 before Pavilion went on a nine-point run, sparked by Kingsley’s four kills and Zinkievich’s serving.

In the second set, Landers served six straight points, with Kingsley posting three kills and a block, to give Pavilion a 12-6 advantage. Fillmore battled back, however, behind the serving of senior Jadyn Mucher to pull within four at 20-16 but could get no closer.

In the third set, the Lady Eagles jumped out to a 10-4 lead with Cole serving, forcing Pavilion to call a timeout. After talking it over, the Lady Gophers were able to break Cole’s serve and then scored six straight points to tie things up.

From there, Kingsley and Zinkievich took over at the net to support the serves of Landers and Sara Laurie as Pavilion won going away.

The victory extends Pavilion’s record to 24-0 -- all in straight sets -- but more importantly, moves the Lady Gophers into the Far West Regionals on Saturday at Le Roy High School. Coach Rex Eighmey’s team will take on Section VI representative Chautauqua Lake, 17-0, at 4:30 p.m.

Eighmey credited Kingsley and Zinkievich for their inspired play.

“Lauren just pounded the ball. She’s a great player and when we get the ball to her, she can put it down,” he said. “And Karlee really comes through in the tough situations.”

He also gave Fillmore its due, mentioning that Cole and her teammates “did a lot of digging and made it tough for us.”

Eighmey said he expects Saturday’s match against Chautauqua Lake to be even more difficult after watching videotape of the Lady Thunderbirds.

“They’re going to be tough,” he said. “They’re very athletic. We’re going to have to be at our best to beat them, but I’m confident that our team can do that. We’re in the state tournament now and we’re definitely looking forward to it.”

When asked about being the favorite in all these matches, Eighmey called it “a good feeling.”

“It’s a little bit different. I like to play under the radar, but we are the hunted this year and we’ve been able to take care of things. It feels great.”

Fillmore Coach Lacie Fuller said she believes Pavilion, the Section V Class D1 champion, has a very good chance to keep advancing as it moves onto the state tournament.

“I think they’ll do a fabulous job. They’re very consistent and they just keep moving,” she said.

She also said she was proud of her team that “made history in Fillmore by winning the school’s first sectional (Class D3) title since 1988.”

“They worked as hard as they could. We went up against a good team, but we’re the last one standing before the states,” she added.

Junior setter Zoe Hubbard tallied 14 assists for the Lady Eagles.

Top photo: Karlee Zinkievich makes her presence felt.

Photos by Jim Burns.

Lauren Kingsley attempting a "kill" as Shea Amberger (8) looks on.

Adeline Milligan sets one up.

The young fan's sign says it all.

Shea Amberger with the block.

The Pavilion fans filled one side of the gym.

Fillmore girls attempting to get the ball past Pavilion's defense.

The Lady Gophers celebrate their 24th straight victory.

Photos by Jim Burns.

For more photos please go to   https://jimburns.org/p196701385

Senior co-captain Emma Hill was the difference Tuesday night as the Fillmore Lady Eagles turned back the Alexander Lady Trojans in four sets in Section V Class D girls volleyball crossover competition at Pavilion High School.

Fillmore’s 25-19, 25-23, 24-26, 25-22 victory puts the Allegany County team into the Class D title match against undefeated Pavilion at 6 p.m. Thursday at Caledonia-Mumford High School.

“(Hill) was spectacular,” said Alexander Coach Marcia Hirsch this morning, speaking of the 6-foot-1 middle hitter who was the Class D3 tournament MVP. “I don’t have the stats in front of me but she had a lot of kills (scoring hits), and we just couldn’t stop her.”

Hirsch said her squad wasn’t at the top its game, but battled back from early deficits in the sets to stay in the match. In Alexander’s third set win, sophomore Alyssa Kramer served the last five points as the Lady Trojans rallied from a 24-21 deficit.

Kramer and senior co-captain Sam Sawyer led the way for Alexander, which finishes at 19-4 after capturing the school’s first sectional championship in 42 years.

Despite the loss, Hirsch said she’s pleased with the team’s progress.

“I'm really happy with where we are,” she said. “I think it takes some time. We haven't won the title for so long that kids almost didn’t know what they would be playing for afterwards. But now they experienced it and, hopefully, we can do it again soon.”

She said it would have been great to advance, but the team achieved its primary goal of winning the Class D1 title.

“Our goal was to get that (Section V) block and I think after that it was kind of like, ‘Oh, we're still playing,’” she said.

Kramer will be back next season as will juniors Julia Yax and Melanie Pohl and sophomore Riley Powell.

“And we’ve got some good jayvee players ready to move up,” Hirsch said. “We’ve got a lot of work to do, but I think we’ll be alright.”

The winner of tomorrow night’s match between Fillmore, 13-6, and the Lady Gophers, 23-0, will move into the Far West Regionals against Chautauqua Lake of Section VI at 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Le Roy High School.

With a victory on Tuesday night against Fillmore, the Section V Class D1 champion Alexander Lady Trojans will have an opportunity to face Genesee Region foe Pavilion for a second time this season – and this time there will be a trip to the Far West Regionals at stake.

Alexander Coach Marcia Hirsch, who reached the 1984 sectional finals as a player (her name then was Marcia Brown), said she is hoping to get another chance at knocking off the undefeated Lady Gophers in the Class D playoffs.

“Yeah, we played them once earlier this year, and they kind of beat up on us pretty good,” Hirsch said. “So, the girls would love another chance to play them because they didn't think they played very well that night.”

The loss to Pavilion during the regular season was one of only three defeats in 22 matches for the Lady Trojans, who upended top-seeded Letchworth in four sets on Friday night for the school’s first sectional crown since 1979.

Friday’s win puts Alexander into the three-team Class D playoff round to determine the Section V entry in the Far West Regionals at 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Le Roy High School.  Chautauqua Lake is the Section VI representative.

The playoff format is as follows:

• Alexander vs. Fillmore (Class D3 champion) at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Pavilion High School;

• The winner of that game vs. Pavilion on Thursday night at 6 p.m. at Caledonia-Mumford High School.

Hirsch, in her 17^th year as coach, said she is proud of the way this season’s team was able to come together in light of losing five key seniors from the 2020 squad. Four juniors from that team have stepped up significantly this year as Hirsch had to juggle the lineup quite a bit.

“My seniors have been awesome all year,” she said, crediting the consistent play of outside hitter Sam Sawyer, setter Adeline Kautz, libero (back row “rover”) Courtney Schum and middle hitter Norah Crawford. Sawyer, Kautz and Crawford are co-captains.

Other key contributors are sophomores Alyssa Kramer and Riley Powell, and juniors Julia Yax and Mel Pohl.

Hirsch said she has had to “do a lot of maneuvering around (with the lineup)” as only two players have stayed with their same position.

“I think the key to our success was how good Adeline came around as a setter,” she offered. “We lost our setter last year and Adeline didn't really get the opportunity to set, so this year she was awesome all year and ended up being a (league) all-star.

“Another big thing is just our coverage; it’s hard (for the opposition) to get anything to hit the floor. So, that’s been a positive for us.”

The girls return to practice today in preparation for tomorrow’s match against Fillmore, which defeated Houghton Academy in five sets in the Class D3 finals.

“I haven’t seen them since Friday so I hope they enjoyed it (time off) and are ready to get back to work,” said Hirsch, who is supported by assistant coach Abbie Kelly and jayvee coach Alycia Yax.

Submitted photo: Front from left, Melanie Pohl, Alyssa Kramer, Maia Saile, Norah Crawford, Makayla Raines; back, Coach Marcia Hirsch, Julia Yax, Samantha Sawyer, Riley Powell, Courtney Schum, Adeline Kautz, Holly Bykowski, Jayvee Coach Alycia Yax.

Update Nov. 9, 12:30 p.m. -- Pavilion's match on Thursday will be played at 6 p.m. at Caledonia-Mumford High School.

It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that the Pavilion varsity girls volleyball team has executed its game plan to perfection this season.

That’s because the Lady Gophers have played 23 matches and have not lost a single set en route to capturing the Section V Class D2 championship – their second straight sectional crown.

Second-seeded Pavilion claimed the trophy on Friday night with a 25-11, 25-15, 25-11 sweep of No. 1 Harley-Allendale-Columbia.

The victory advances the Lady Gophers to the Class D crossover final on Thursday against either Class D1 champion Alexander or Class D3 champion Fillmore.

Alexander – which defeated Letchworth in four sets for the title – will square off against Fillmore at 6 p.m. Tuesday at Pavilion High School, with the winner to meet Pavilion.

The survivor of the three-team Class D playoffs will move on to the Far West Regionals against Chautauqua Lake of Section VI at 4:30 p.m. Saturday at Le Roy High School.

Coach Rex Eighmey, in his 18^th year at the helm, said the “chemistry” of this year’s Pavilion team is off the charts and credits that to the experience most of the girls have gained from playing “club” and summer volleyball against larger schools in addition to their Section V high school schedule.

“A lot of the girls play club and they just love their volleyball,” he said. “And they just happen to be very good players. That’s the main reason; the players are the reason we’re doing what we’re doing.”

The team is led by what Eighmey calls his “Core Four” of senior setter Shannon Campbell, senior outside hitter and captain Adeline Milligan, junior outside hitter Karlee Zinkievich and 6-foot-1 junior middle hitter Lauren Kingsley.

All four are in their fourth year of varsity volleyball – which equates to a great deal of time on the floor together.

“They’re just so used to playing together,” Eighmey said. “Like some of our fans have said, it’s like a well-oiled machine. They just know where each other is going to be.”

Statistically, entering the sectional title game, Campbell, the squad’s vocal leader, had 483 assists in her setter role; Milligan had 193 kills and 145 digs; Kingsley had 203 kills, 38 ½ blocks and 77 digs, and Zinkievich had 100 aces, 120 kills and 132 digs.

Also playing key roles as hitters and defensive specialists in either the front or back row are Paige Landers, 5-foot-11 Shea Amberger, Sara Laurie, Abby Lemley and Samantha Sikora, Eighmey said.

The starting lineup and substitution patterns have worked to a T thus far as the Lady Gophers’ will take a 69-set winning streak into Thursday’s contest.

When asked how close they came to losing a set, Eighmey said that they trailed Warsaw 24-23 before his team rallied to take the next three points.

“That’s the only team that has come close to beating us in a set,” he said.

The Lady Gophers defeated Alexander this season but did not play against Fillmore.

Eighmey also credited assistant coach Rebecca Zinkievich for her dedication to the finer points of the sport.

“Rebecca is a big part of this. She does a lot of drills and a lot of practices and stuff,” he said.

On Sunday, the coaches (junior varsity coach Betty Worthington also is an assistant) and players watched the videotape of Chautauqua Lake’s 25-17, 25-12, 16-25, 25-13 victory over Randolph in the Section VI Class D finals. Chautauqua Lake is 17-0.

“They’re a strong team, but we’re looking forward to the challenge,” Eighmey said. “The sectionals are huge, and now, hopefully, we can win (the regionals) and make it to the four-team state tournament on November 20^th and 21^st in Glens Falls.”

Submitted photo: The Pavilion Lady Gophers with the Section V Class D2 trophy following Friday's victory over Harley-Allendale-Columbia. Front from left, Shannon Campbell, Sara Logsdon, Paige Landers, Abby Lemley, Lily Macaluso, Karlee Zinkievich; back, Assistant Coach Rebecca Zinkievich, Jayvee Coach Betty Worthington, Shea Amberger, Lauren Kingsley, Adeline Milligan, Sara Laurie, Samantha Sikora, Coach Rex Eighmey.

Updated, 9:50 p.m. Nov. 7:

FOOTBALL
SEMIFINALS
CLASS B
Batavia 60, Wayne 21
Honeoye Falls-Lima 41, Dansville/Wayland-Cohocton 18
Finals: No. 2 Batavia vs. No. 1 HF-L, Nov. 13, 6 p.m., at Pittsford Sutherland High School

CLASS C
Haverling 14, Le Roy 7
East Rochester/Gananda 29, Letchworth/Warsaw/Perry 13
Finals: No. 1 ER/G vs. Haverling, Nov. 13, noon, at Honeoye Falls-Lima High School

CLASS D
Avon 13, Alexander 7
Oakfield-Alabama/Elba 54, Cal-Mum/Byron-Bergen 20
Finals: No. 1 O-A/Elba vs. No. 2 Avon, Nov. 12, 7 p.m., at Van Detta Stadium, Batavia

EIGHT-MAN
Red Jacket 52, Pembroke 12

GIRLS VOLLEYBALL
FINALS
CLASS C
Le Roy defeated Attica, 20-25, 25-23, 25-16, 25-21 (story below)
Le Roy, 22-1, advances to Far West Regionals on Nov. 13 at 2:30 p.m. vs. Portville of Section VI or Skaneateles of Section III. The game will be played at Le Roy High School.

CLASS D1
Alexander defeated Letchworth, 25-21, 25-21, 17-25, 25-23
Courtney Schum, tournament MVP; Sam Sawyer, Alyssa Kramer, all-tournament selections
Alexander, 19-3, advances to a Class D crossover game at 6 p.m. Tuesday vs. Fillmore. The game will be played at Pavilion High School.

CLASS D2
Pavilion defeated Harley-Allendale-Columbia, 25-11, 25-15, 25-11
Adeline Milligan, tournament MVP; Lauren Kingsley, Shannon Campbell, all-tournament selections
Pavilion, 23-0, advances to the overall Class D finals on Thursday vs. the winner of Alexander-Fillmore at a site to be determined.

In a battle of Section V volleyball powers, the Le Roy Oatkan Knights rallied to defeat Attica in four games for the Class C championship Friday night at Avon High School.

Coach Sue Staba’s squad dropped the opening game, 25-20, before coming back to post 25-23, 25-16 and 25-21 wins for its first sectional title since 2017.

Second-seeded Le Roy, 22-1, has advanced to the finals for the past seven seasons.

Staba was named Class C Coach of the Year following the match.

“The girls worked hard all season for this,” Staba said. “They were not going to give up even after dropping the first set. We settled in during game two and started playing our game.”

Le Roy went up 19-14 in the second game, but Attica scored eight of the next 12 points to close within one at 23-22 before the Knights prevailed.

In the third game, Le Roy took control early and the Blue Devils could get no closer than 15-10.

The fourth set was close throughout, with Attica taking a 17-14 lead before Le Roy pulled into a 17-17 tie. With the score tied at 20, sophomore Dana Reschke served the Knights to a 24-20 and, following an Attica point, Le Roy ended it on a Blue Devils’ miscue.

Tournament MVP Allie Ingles filled the stat sheet for the winners, tallying 13 kills (hits that were unreturnable), 11 digs (first contact after the opposition returns the ball) and two blocks (defensive play at the net).

Ingles received plenty of support, with senior co-captains Riley Wood and Hailey Johnson recording 30 digs and 14 assists, respectively, en route to being named to the All-Tournament Team.

Reschke registered 13 assists, while junior Emma Hobart had 19 service points and six kills; senior co-captain Quinn Doty had four kills and five digs; junior Katie Salphine had three kills and four blocks, and junior Sophia Braun contributed four kills.

Other members of the Le Roy team are juniors Rylee Burns and McKenna Coniber, sophomore Lily Uberty and freshman Kylee Green.

“I couldn’t be more proud of this team and all of their hard work and dedication,” Staba added.

The fourth-seeded Blue Devils, who end their season at 18-3, have been in the finals the past three years – and took the Class C1 crown in 2019.

Coach Nici Parkhurst credited her squad for hanging in there against a Le Roy team that finished the season with 19 straight victories.

“We played tough defense and served well tonight,” she said. “The team worked hard and stayed in each set.”

Sophomore Ellie Cusmano (five kills, three aces and 24 digs) and senior Tori Walker (three aces and 29 digs) were named to the All-Tournament Team. Senior Chase Harding added six kills and nine digs, senior Emily Gadd had nine kills and Olivia Mercado chipped in with five kills and three blocks.

Le Roy moves on to regional competition with a game at home next Saturday (Nov. 13) at 2:30 p.m. against either Eden or Portville of Section VI.

Le Roy's Hailey Johnson spikes one over the net past two Attica defenders. No. 13 for Le Roy is Emma Hobart.

Tournament MVP Allie Ingles (5) gets off the ground in an attempt to get the ball past Attica's Chase Harding, left, and Emily Gadd.

Attica's Olivia Mercado makes a play on the ball at the net.

The Oatkan Knights got plenty of support from their fans.

Quinn Doty (2) gets ready as Hailey Johnson sets it up.

Attica's Maddie Robinson, Chase Harding and Tori Walker ready for the next vollley. 

Le Roy Coach Sue Staba and her Section V Class C championship squad.

Photos by Steve Ognibene.

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