Contributed Photo – Banes celebrates the playoff championship victories. In front are Rileigh McCabe Sue Seefeldt, score keeper Samantha Heschke, Connie Heschke and Lindsay Chatt. In back are Amy Lavender, Morgan Allis, Teri Schrlau, base coach Bruce Seefeldt, Patti Page, Kathy Allen, Jami Chatt and base coach Mark Allen. Missing from the photo are Sophia Goyette and Krissy Schrlau.

Banes captured the Medina Women’s Softball ‘A’ League playoff championship by sweeping a doubleheader from Jr. Wilson by scores of 14-1 and 10-5 Monday evening.

Banes 14, Jr. Wilson 1
Banes erupted for 10 runs in the first inning to key the win over previously unbeaten  (in the playoffs) Jr. Wilson to force a second game for the championship.

Batting around the decisive first inning uprising included singles by Connie Heschke, Jami Chatt, Kathy Allen and Patti Page; RBI singles by Lindsay Chatt, Sue Seefeldt, Amy Lavender, Rileigh McCabe, Heschke, Jami Chatt, Lindsay Chatt and a double by Teri Schrlau.

Banes capped off the win with 4 runs in the fifth on a double by McCabe, singles by Schrlau and Page and RBI singles by Heschke, Jami Chatt and Lindsay Chatt.

Jami Chatt finished with 4 hits as Heschke and Lindsay Chatt both had 3,

For Jr. Wilson, Jessica Rosenbeck and Lizzy Hazel both had 2.

Banes 10, Jr. Wilson 5

Both teams scored 2 quick runs in the first inning.  Banes tallied on singles by Heschke, Jami Chatt, Lindsay Chatt and Morgan Allis and Jr. Wilson on a triple by Alyssa Robarge and singles by Hazel, Rosenbeck and Jaclyn Rodriguez,

Jr. Wilson then jumped out to a 5-2 lead by scoring 3 runs in the second inning on singles by Connie Hornquist, Chasity Chinn, Hazel and a triple by Robarge but would not score again.

Banes closed the gap to 5-4 by scoring twice in the fourth inning on an RBI single Rileigh McCabe and a double by Teri Schrlau

Banes then took the lead for good at 7-5 by scoring 3 in the 5th inning on singles by Jami Chatt and single Lindsay Chatt a 2 RBI triple Morgan Allis and an RBI single Kathy Allen

Banes capped off the title clinching win with one run in the sixth on a double Schrlau and RBI double by Page and 2 in the seventh on singles by Allis and Allen and an RBI double by Lavender.

Banes pitcher Sue Seefeldt then made a double play to end the game.

Multiple hitters for Banes were Morgan Allis with 3 including a triple and Schrlau with 3 include 2 doubles.

Playing well defensively were  Lindsay Chatt and Morgan Allis in the outfield.

Multiple hitters for Jr. Wilson included Hazel with 4 including a double, Robarge 2 including 2 triples  and Rosenbeck 2.

Photos by Cheryl Wertman – Rileigh McCabe of Banes gets the out on Lizzy Hazel of Jr. Wilson at third base.

Stormi Beach bangs out a hit for Jr. Wilson.

Photos by Charyl Wertman – The Albion/Medina OC Rivals varsity runs through a play during this afternoon’s first fall preseason practice session at Albion.

Preparations began in earnest for the fledgling Albion/Medina OC Rivals football team’s debut season with the start of fall preseason practices this afternoon at Albion.

After a series of summer camp sessions over the last couple of months, this three week preseason, which will include a scrimmage on August 29, will get the squad set for the OC Rivals historic first game on Thursday September 3 at Akron on the Tigers new artificial turf field.

“I’ve been coaching for 30 years and this is a super exciting chapter,” said Head Coach Eric Valley. “I’m very excited and have very high expectations of what we can have with this team. It’s a challenge but I know our coaches are up to it.”

“Everything has been going good,” said quarterback Preston Woodworth. “Everybody knows each other which really helps.”

“It’s really been going good,” agreed lineman Jackson Snook. “Everyone has the same goal and that goal is to win.”

“It looks like we have a lot of kids who can compete for spots and they have been picking up our system very well,” said Valley who points to the importance of having larger numbers on the merged squad. “Safety is always paramount and having larger numbers than if we had separate teams makes for a better team. Now you don’t have to put kids in positions they are not ready for.”

The OC Rivals Varsity, JV and Modified teams will be practicing at Albion this week and at Medina next week.

Albion/Medina becomes the 15th merged schools team among the 62 Section VI football squads.

A panoramic view of today’s practice sesssion.

Contributed Photo – Albion defenders Jai’Kaih Drisdom and Christopher Swan move in to tackle Holley’s Hudson Ashton during Saturday’s JV Division game at Albion.

Albion registered three victories to open the Niagara Orleans Football Association (NOFA) season on Saturday.

Albion downed Holley in the Mini and JV Divisions and Barker/Roy-Hart in the Varsity Division.

Mini Division
Albion 47, Holley 6
The Albion Mini Eagles opened things up in a big way, defeating Holley 47-6 behind a balanced rushing attack.

Five different Eagles found the end zone as Albion piled up yards on the ground. Patrick Westlund led the way with 126 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Trey Ellis added 55 yards and two touchdowns, while Hudson Palmer rushed for 77 yards and a score. Xavier Weis added 32 yards and a touchdown, and Lexington Pridgen scored on the ground with 14 yards.

Albion also received strong contributions from Elijah Cornick with 46 rushing yards, Joshua Bennett with 32, Artavion Lewis with 28, Arlen Beecher with 24 and Gunner Jackson with five.

Defensively, Westlund led the Eagles with seven tackles. Beecher, Palmer, Chazz Monacelli and Carter Hall each recorded four tackles, while Drake Neri, Weis and Bennett finished with three apiece. Roman Pridgen, Jackson, Ellis, Colton Daggs, Jai’Heem Drisdom and KK Harper each added two tackles.

Xavier Richardson highlighted the defensive effort by coming away with an interception.

JV Division
Albion 50, Holley 19
The Albion JV Eagles put together a dominant performance on both sides of the ball, defeating Holley 50-19 behind a balanced rushing attack and two defensive touchdowns.

Jayce Torres led the Albion offense with a huge game, rushing for 150 yards, adding 27 receiving yards and scoring three total touchdowns. Cayden Farrell added 66 rushing yards and a touchdown while also throwing a touchdown pass. Jaidyn Harper also found the end zone with a rushing score.

Albion received contributions throughout the backfield, with Arkell Lewis rushing for 28 yards, Greyson Roberts 18, Jai’Kaih Drisdom 15, Moses Taylor 14 and Christopher Swan 10.

The Eagles’ defense also made its presence felt. Parker Gardner led the team with seven tackles, followed by Kairo Bennett and Kaydence Russaw with six each. Kyle Schomske and Harrison Froman recorded five tackles apiece, Conor Murphy had four, and Harper and Taylor each added three.

Lewis, Mason Cornick, Wyatt Purnell, Zeus Vallejo, Drisdom and Khrystopher Wilston-Jones each finished with two tackles. Farrell, Torres, Elijah Warren, Owen Marritt, Matthew Swan, Zion Richardson and Kaynon Reamer also contributed tackles.

Albion’s defense provided two of the biggest plays of the game. Russaw scooped up a fumble and returned it 52 yards for a touchdown, while Gardner intercepted a pass and took it 32 yards to the end zone for a pick-six.

Varsity Division
Albion 33, Barker/Roy-Hart 19
The Albion Varsity Eagles earned a 33-19 victory over Barker/Roy-Hart behind a strong rushing attack.

Jeramiah Hildreth led Albion with 147 rushing yards and three touchdowns. AJ Lewis added 101 yards and a touchdown, while Camden Holt rushed for 73 yards and a score. Damareon Shine added 20 yards.

Defensively, Holt led the Eagles with nine tackles, followed by Lewis with four and Brady Graham and Hildreth with three each. Hudson Armer, Cooper Traxler, Ryan Gardner, Roman Allport and Shine each recorded two tackles, while Jace Wright, Parker McDaniels, Matthew Colmenero and Liam Saporito also contributed.

Allport added an interception to help seal Albion’s 33-19 victory.

Photos by Cheryl Wertman – Albion/Medina’s quartet of players and their counterparts from the other 61 football teams in Section VI had the opportunity to tour the new Highmark Stadium during Wednesday’s Media Day. The OC Rivals foursome are shown here on the sideline of the field as quarterback Preston Woodworth practices a handoff to Jayzon Wills as Jackson Snook, left, and Logan Kast block.

With the first day of fall practice rapidly approaching this coming Monday, Section VI took the opportunity to put the spotlight on football at a Media Day held on Wednesday at the new Highmark Stadium.

All 62 Section VI football teams were represented at the Media Day which was broken up into morning and afternoon sessions.

Albion/Medina was represented by the foursome of Preston Woodworth, Jackson Snook, Jayzon Wills and Logan Kast.

Barker/Roy-Hart was represented by the quarter of RJ Townsend, Ashton Ark, Max Townsend and Carter DerSarkissian.

The players went through a variety of stations for interviews and photos and then had the opportunity to get a sideline view of the field.

The only downside of  the day for the players is that for the first time the football sectionals will not be held at a Highmark Stadium. The sectionals were always played at the old Highmark Stadium because it had an artificial turf field. Since the new Highmark Stadium has a natural grass field the high school teams will not be able to play there. Instead the sectional finals are now scheduled to be played at the University at Buffalo.

Albion/Medina is scheduled to open the season at Akron on Thursday September 3 while Barker/Roy-Hart will host Newfane on Friday September 4.

Barker/Roy-Hart was represnted by this quartet of Max Townsend, RJ Townsend, Carter DerSarkissian and Ashton Ark shown on the sideline.

A panoramic view of the stadium from the sideline.

The scoreboards at either end of the stadium promoted the Section VI Football Media Day.

The size and height of the new stadium is an eye catcher from up close.

Photos by Cheryl Wertman – Kendall All State honorees Jonny Conte, left, and Vinnie D’Agostino.

Kendall, which reached the state championship game for the first time, has placed four players on the Class C All State Baseball squad.

The Eagles are represented on the first team by senior third baseman/pitcher Vinnie D’Agostino, on the third team by senior second baseman Jonny Conte, on the fourth team by junior first baseman/ pitcher CJ D’Agostino and on the fifth team by senior pitcher Nic Cole.

Vinnie D’Agostino hit .505 with 12 doubles, 4 triples, 3 home runs and 36 RBIs. On the mound he notched 80 strikeouts in 51.1 innings of work with a 0.955 era.

Conte hit .419 with 8 doubles and 22 RBIs.

CJ D’Agostino hit .452 with 9 doubles, 5 triples, 2 home runs and 24 RBIs. He also registered 56 strikeouts in 34 innings of work on the mound with a 1.835 era.

Cole notched 95 strikeouts in 62.2 innings of work and had a 0.894 era. At the plate he had 4 doubles and 22 RBIs.

Compiling a 24-3 record, Kendall captured Genesee Region League and Section V Class C titles, a regional win and a state semifinal victory before dropping a 4-1 decision to Saratoga Catholic in the state championship game.

In addition, Notre Dame has two Class C All-State honorees in junior Chase Antinore, who is a first team selection and junior Evan Fitzpatrick who is a second team honoree.

Pembroke senior Brayden Lange is a Class C Honorable Mention selection.

Eagles All State honorees Nic Cole, left, and CJ D’Agostino.

Photos by Cheryl Wertman – Medina Class B All-State honorees Aidan Papaj, left, and Preston Woodworth.

State finalist Medina has placed three players on the Class B All State baseball squad.

Medina, which reached the state championship game for the first time, is represented by junior shortstop/pitcher Aidan Papaj who has been named Co-Player of the Year, junior pitcher/shortstop Preston Woodworth who is a first team honoree and senior outfielder Vinny Gray who is a 6th team selection.

Papaj and Woodworth are both repeat All-State honorees.

In addition, Roy-Hart has two Class B All-State honorees in senior second baseman/pitcher Isaac Smith who is a second team honoree and senior outfielder/pitcher Gavin Heideman who is a 6th team selection.

Papaj hit .507 for the season with 6 doubles, 2 triples, 30 RBIs and 41 stolen bases. On the mound he registered 112 strikeouts in 59.2 innings of work.

Woodworth notched 132 strikeouts in 69.1 innings of work on the mound. At the plate, he hit .400 with 14 doubles and 29 RBIs.

Gray hit .299 with 4 doubles, 2 triples, 15 RBIs and 30 stolen bases.

Compiling a 22-3 overall record, Medina captured both Niagara-Orleans League and Section VI titles for the third straight year and went on to win both regional and state semifinal contests before dropping a 3-0 decision to Chester in the state championship game.

Smith hit. 429 with 8 doubles, 1 triple, 4 home runs and 32 RBIs. on the mound he registered 41 strikeouts.

Heideman hit .259 with 2 doubles, 1 triple, 1 home run and 11RBIs. He notched 70 strikeouts on the mound.

NOTE – THE LOCAL STATE CLASS C HONOREES WILL BE POSTED ON WEDNESDAY.

Class B All-State honorees, from left, Isaac Smith (Roy-Hart), Vinny Gray (Medina) and Gavin Heideman (Roy-Hart).

Photos by Cheryl Wertman – Jr. Wilson shortstop Sara Flansburg makes a throw to first for an out during Monday evening’s playoff action. Connie Heschke of Banes is at second base,

Jr. Wilson and Banes both scored victories Monday evening to advance to next week’s Medina Women’s Softball ‘A’ League playoff finals.

Jr. Wilson downed Banes 14-10 in the winners bracket final.

Banes rebounded to outlast Katys/Parkitects by a football like score of 28-21  in the losers bracket final to also advance to the finals.

The championship round is scheduled to begin at 6 p.m. next Monday at the Jr. Wilson fields.

Earlier in the evening Parkitects ousted White Birch 11-0.

Jr. Wilson 14, Banes 10
Sparking the Jr. Wilson attack was Lizzy Hazel who had a RBI double in the first inning along with Alyssa Ramarge who hit a home run and grand slam.

Sharon Korzelius also chipped in a double, while Jenn Thom, Connie Hornquist, Jodi Zacher, Jaclyn Rodriguez, and Sara Flansburg all had hits for Junior Wilson.

Lindsey Chatt, Sue Seefeldt and Amy Lavender each had 3 hits for Banes as Connie Heschke, Jami Chatt, Morgan Allis, Rileigh McCae and Teri Scharlau each had 2.

Banes 28, Parkitects 21
Allis had 5 hits and Lindsey Chatt 4 to lead the offense for Banes as Heschke, Jami Chatt, Cathy Riggs, Seefeldt and Lavender each had 3 and Sophia Goyette, McCabe and Scharlau each had 2.

Lorelei Sanders, Alisha Foss, Bree Smith and Kennedy Clark each had 3 hits for Parkitects.

Parkitects 11, White Birch 0
Parkitects banged out 16 hits including a double and single by Smith and a double by Haley Shaffer. Kim White, Jen Masse, Sanders, Robin Blaun and Kristen Ball all had two singles. Foss and Clark both had one single.

White Birch, which played with oly 9 players, had eight hits including a double and single by Rebekah Hoffee, two singles by Kenzie Muck and one single each by Ella Lewis, Anna Lewis, Maddy Boyle and Mallory Albone.

Bsnes outfielder Morgan Allis stretches to make a catch in deep centerfield.

Photo by Cheryl Wertman – Tyler Ribbeck in goal has anchored the defense for the Medina Mustangs FC over the past four very successful years.

Success and consistency are two words that well describe the Medina Mustangs FC’s strong run in Buffalo & District Soccer League competition over the past four years.

During that stretch Medina FC has won two regular season titles and one playoff crown and reached the playoff final in the other year.

That success has earned the Mustangs a promotion to a higher division three times during that brief stretch.

The Medina FC run began in 2023 when the Mustangs captured the 3rd Division playoff championship with a 2-1 win over top seeded Ukraine in the finals. The Mustangs went 9-1 to close the season and finished with a 10-2-1 overall record.

That title earned Medina FC a promotion to the 2nd Division for the 2024 season.

The Mustangs made the most of the opportunity and captured the regular season 2nd Division championship with an 8-3 record.

Again, that title earned Medina FC a promotion to the 1st Division for the 2025 season.

The Mustangs again made the most of the opportunity capturing the regular season Division 1 championship with a near perfect 9-0-1 record.

And for the third year in a row that success earned the Mustangs a promotion this time to the Championship Division for the 2026 season. The Championship Division is the second highest in the league behind only the Premier Division.

Once again Medina FC proved it was very competitive at a higher level.

Rebounding from an 0-3 start when the team was shorthanded, the Mustangs closed the regular season with a 4-1-2 record to make the playoffs. A 2-2 tie with undefeated (9-0) champion Buffalo Italia capped off that big regular season run.

Keeping the momentum, the No. 6 seed Mustangs then advanced to the playoff finals defeating No. 3 Revolution FC 2-0 in the quarterfinals and top seeded Buffalo Italia 1-0 in the semifinals. However, that strong nine game stretch of 6-1-2 ended on Sunday with a narrow 2-1 loss in the championship game to the No. 5 seed Sporting Cavs .

However, overall  three championships and three divisional promotions has made for a very successful four year run for the Medina  FC and the Mustangs are already looking forward to another very competitive year in 2027.