SUNY Niagara (formerly NCCC) will host the annual Niagara-Orleans League vs. Genesee Region League Boys Basketball Challenge this weekend involving a total of seven games over two days.

Friday evening’s opening doubleheader will have Roy-Hart vs. Attica at 6 p.m. followed by Wilson vs. Wheatland-Chili at 7:45 p.m.

Saturday’s slate of five games will begin with Newfane vs. Byron-Bergen at 12:45 followed by Akron vs. Alexander at 2:30 p.m.. Albion vs. Holley at 4:15 p.m., Barker vs. Kendall at 6 p.m. and Medina vs. Oakfield-Alabama at 7:45 p.m.

At least three of the contests are re-matches of earlier season contests. In those earlier games Roy-Hart downed Attica 68-51, Barker topped Kendall 67-55 and Oakfield-Alabama bested Medina 82-71.

In previous years the boys challenge series had been held at Genesee Community College.

GCC will host the N-O vs. G-R Girls Basketball Challenge on February 14 and 15.

Oakfield-Alabama downed Holley 71-56 and Byron-Bergen topped Lyndonville 64-40 in Genesee Region League boys basketball games this evening.

Vinny Golisano and Destin Kuyal both scored 15 and Josh Silpoch 12 for Holley.

Leading by a narrow 29-28 margin at the half, Byron-Bergen used a big 22-6 third period scoring edge to key the win over Lyndonville.

Cody Carlson scored 22 to lead the Bees and Lane Woodworth 22 to pace the Tigers.

Building up a 33-24 half-time advantage, Akron went on to down visiting Medina 71-47 in a Niagara-Orleans League girls basketball game this evening.

Lexie Ground scored 19, Abbie Gerstung 12 and Gracie Leiker 11 for Akron which improves to 6-2.

Honesty Hill took game high honors with 21 and Sam Heschke had 11 for Medina which slips to 2-6.

Oakfield-Alabama 58, Holley 27
Oakfield-Alabama defeated Holley 58-27 in a Genesee Region League game.

Zoey Wolf had 10 points and 7 rebounds, Alivia Wolf 8 points and 5 rebounds and Hanna Ostrom 6 points and 6 rebounds for Holley.

Photos by Cheryl Wertman – Akron’s Derren Brooks (34) and Ben Gerstung (11) go up to block a shot attempt by Medina’s Jayzon Wills during the Tigers key win over the host Mustangs this evening.

Maintaining a hold on first place, Akron trimmed host Medina 55-50 in a key Niagara-Orleans League boys basketball game this evening.

Improving to 8-1, Akron maintains a game and a half lead over runner-up Wilson (6-2) and a two and a half game lead over third place Albion (5-3). The loss drops Medina into fourth place at 4-4.

Brayden Lamont scored a game high 20 points for Akron, including 9 in the decisive fourth quarter. Derren Brooks added 17, Ben Gerstung 13, Coy Patterson 3 and Blake Gerstung 2 for the Tigers.

Medina’s Kolton Fletcher puts up an off balance shot.

Jerrell Nealy scored 13 and Preston Woodworth 11 to pace Medina. Christian Moss added 9, Cole Callard and Kolton Fletcher 5 each, Jayzon Wills 4 and Avion Johnson 3 for the Mustangs.

Breaking away from a 37-37 deadlock, Akron opened the final period with a 7-1 run, including baskets by Lamont and Ben Gerstung, to take a 44-37 lead.

Medina answered back with a 9-2 run to take what proved to be the Mustangs last lead at 47-46 with 2:20 remaining. Back-to-back layups off steals by Fletcher and Wills highlighted that rally which also included buckets by Moss and Nealy.

However, the last scoring surge and the victory belonged to Akron.

The Tigers countered with a win clinching 9-0 run highlighted by a three and a layup off a steal by Lamont to go up 55-47 with only 22 seconds remaining. The rally also included a bucket by Brooks and a pair of free throws by Blake Gerstung.

Akron also jumped out to a 12-9 first quarter lead a Brooks scored 6 and Ben Gerstung 4.

Medina battled back to take a 20-16 lead midway through the second period as back-to-back threes by Woodworth sparked a 9-0 run.

The Tigers though countered with a 12-0 run to close the period and regain a 28-20 lead at the half. A three by Patterson ignited that uprising which also included a pair of baskets by Ben Gerstung.

The teams traded scores for much of the third period which finished tied at 37-37 setting the stage for the decisive final period. Nealy and Moss both had three-point plays for the Mustangs in the third period while Brooks had a pair of baskets for the Tigers.

N-O Standings: Akron 8-1, Wilson 6-2, Albion 5-3, Medina 4-4, Roy-Hart 2-5, Barker 2-6, Newfane 1-7.

Akron’s Derren Brooks goes in for a shot as Jerrell Nealy defends for Medina.

Seven players contributed to the point production as Albion downed visiting Barker 59-16 in a Niagara-Orleans League girls basketball game this evening.

Melia Prince scored 14, Kenzi Snook 13 and Cami London 11 to lead Albion’s balanced attack as Leah Pawlak added 9, Julia Knight 6, Mia Standish 4 and Aubrey Gannon 2.

“It was a great team effort,: said Albion Coach Wil Prince. “Our defense was amazing. They did a great job.”

Elisa Monaco led Barker with 4 points and 6 rebounds.

Wilson 54, Newfane 37
Defending champion Wilson made a tight N-O title race even tighter by downing front-running rival Newfane 54-37.

Four trams are now deadlocked with two losses as Newfane is 7-2, Wilson 6-2 and Akron and Roy-Hart both 5-2.

Emily Phillips scored 16, Isabella Thrush 14, Rowan Simpson 9 and Kairi Beck 7 for Wilson.

N-O Standings: Newfane 7-2, Wilson 6-2, Akron 5-2, Roy-Hart 5-2, Medina 2-5, Albion 2-6, Barker 0-8

Kendall 55, Northstar 26
Ava LaMay had 20 points, 11 rebounds and 4 steals; Stella Kwiatek 10 rebounds, 6 steals and 4 points and Addy Kludt 10 points to lead Kendall to a 55-26 non league win over Norhstar.

Photos by Cheryl Wertman – Albion’s Seth Krenning and Barker’s Isaac Monaco battle for a rebound during the Purple Eagles narrow win over the host Bulldogs this evening.

In a tight sea-saw battle down the stretch, Albion nipped host Barker 62-61 in a Niagara-Orleans League boys basketball game this evening.

Isaiah Riley’s fifth three of the evening with 2:20 remaining provided the 62-61 margin of victory for Albion as neither team was able to find the range in the final two minutes.

Albion tied the game at 56-56 on a three-point play by Kyle Radder. Two tallies by his Purple Eagles teammate Tyler Cody then offset Barker scores by Owen Harris and Jackson Prynn before Riley hit what proved to be the game winning three.

Isaiah Riley finished with 17, Cody 15 and Radder 11 to lead the Purple Eagles as Wesley Olles added 7, Kwame Riley 5, Luke Bell 3 and Nate Gibson and Seth Krenning 2 each.

Anthony Taliaferro took game high honors with 19 for the Bulldogs as Isaac Monaco had 13, Harris 10, Prynn 8, Donovan Hefferon 5 and Michael Kalynycz and Maico Vazquez 3 each.

Albion jumped out to a 22-13 first quarter lead as three straight threes, two by Isaiah Riley and one by Kwame Riley, sparked a key 11-0 run.

Barker though answered with a big 23-10 second period scoring edge to rally into a 36-32 half-time advantage. Monaco scored 9 and Taliaferro 7 to lead that Bulldogs surge.

There were three ties and as many lead changes in the third period which finished deadlocked at 47-47.  Radder and Cody both scored 4 for the Purple Eagles during that stretch while Prynn and Monaco had threes for the Bulldogs.

Barker regained a five point, 53-48, lead at the outset of the final period on two baskets by Taliaferro and one by Hefferon.

Albion answered with buckets by Radder and Cody before the Bulldogs took what proved to be their last lead at 56-53 on a three by Hefferon.

Radder’s three point play quickly pulled Albion back even at 56-56 and the lead sea-sawed back and forth with each of the final five scores capped off by Isaiah Riley’s game winning three.

Albion improves to 5-3 in N-O and Barker slips to 2-6.

Barker’s Owen Harris puts up an off balanced shot as Kwame Riley and Nate Gibson move in for Albion.

Wilson 56, Newfane 33
Runner-up Wilson improved to 6-2 in N-O action with a 56-33 win over rival Newfane which slips to 1-7.

Aidan Neumann poured in 29 points and Ryan Hough added 11 to lead the Lakemen.

Medina vs. Akron ppd. until tomorrow
The Akron at Medina game was postponed as the Medina schools were closed due to the weather.

The Mustangs will now host the N-O leading Tigers at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday.

N-O Standings: Akron 7-1, Wilson 6-2, Albion 5-3, Medina 4-3, Roy-Hart 2-5, Barker 2-6, Newfane 1-7.

Albion’s Tyler Cody grabs a rebound away from Barker’s Anthony Taliaferro.

Photo by Cheryl Wertman – Jerrell Nealy and his Medina teammates will host league leading Akron in a key contest Tuesday.

Looking to snap a two game losing streak, Medina faces a must win test as the Mustangs host front-running Akron in a key Niagara-Orleans League boys basketball game Tuesday at 6:30 p.m..

Battling to stay in the title chase, Medina is currently at 4-3 and tied with Albion for third place two games behind 7-1 Akron in the loss column. Wilson is in the runner-up spot a game off the pace at 5-2.

Albion will visit Barker and Wilson will host rival Newfane in Tuesday’s other games.

The Tigers downed the Mustangs 70-55 in the earlier season meeting at Akron.

Akron is led by the trio of Ben Gerstung, who is averaging 17.1 points, Blake Gerstung (14.3 ave.) and Derren Brooks (13.2 ave. and 106 rebounds).

Jerrell Nealy is averaging 19.8 and Preston Woodworth 18.7 for Medina. Nealy has also grabbed off 109 rebounds.

Aidan Neumann is averaging 19.4 and Ryan Hough 15-3 for Wilson while Tyler Cody and Kyle Radder are both averaging 11 for Albion.

N-O girls have tight 4 way race.

The race for the Niagara-Orleans League girls basketball title is a tight four-way battle.

Newfane is currently in first place at 7-1 followed by the trio of Akron, Roy-Hart and Wilson all at 5-2.

Wilson will visit rival Newfane, Medina will travel to Akron and Albion will host Barker on Tuesday. Akron will also face Roy-Hart on Friday.

N-O Standing
Boys – Akron 7-1, Wilson 5-2, Albion 4-3, Medina 4-3, Barker 2-4, Roy-Hart 2-4, Newfane 1-6
Girls – Newfane 7-1, Akron 5-2, Roy-Hart 5-2, Wilson 5-2, Medina 2-5, Albion 1-6, Barker 0-7

The Niagara-Orleans League swim season will conclude this week with the annual All League meets.

Akron will host the boys All-League meet on Tuesday at 5 p.m. and Newfane will host the girls All League meet on Thursday at 5 p.m.

The boys’ meet will have two returning champions in the Newfane duo of Noah Kneeland who captured both the 500 Freestyle and 100 Breaststroke at last year’s All League meet, and Dylan Lamont who won the 200 Individual Medley.

The girls’ meet will have a quartet of defending champions. That foursome includes Albion’s Keira Sidari who won both the 200 Individual Medley and 100 Butterfly and Akron’s Audrey Garverick who doubled in the 200 Free and 500 Free, along with the Newfane duo of Lauren Enderton who won the 100 Backstroke, and Kimberly Schmitt who took the 100 Breaststroke.

The N-O girls teams will then face the Genesee Region League girls squads in the annual cross-over meet at Gates-Chili on Friday at 6 p.m.

The regular season saw the Newfane boys team go undefeated at 8-0 to capture the Panthers first title while Roy-Hart/Barker and Newfane shared the girls title at 7-1.

The title is the third straight for the Roy-Hart/Barker girls and the first for the Newfane girls since the 2016-17 season.

The Newfane boys completed an undefeated season by downing Akron 116-47 in a make up meet on Friday. The Panthers had Kneeland double in the 50 Free and 100 Free and Lamont in the 100 Butterfly and 100 Breaststroke.

The Newfane girls earned a share of the title by downing Akron 103-65 Friday. The Lady Panthers had a trio of individual event double winners in Enderton (200 Free, 100 Backstroke), Schmitt (50 Free, 100 Breaststroke) and Avery Stevenson (200 Individual Medley, 100 Free).

Final N-O Standings
Boys: Newfane 8-0, Roy-Hart/Barker 5-3, Medina 4-4, Albion 2-6, Akron 1-7.
Girls: Roy-Hart/Barker 7-1, Newfane 7-1, Akron 4-4, Albion 2-6, Medina 0-8

Monday
Boys Basketball – Lyndonville at Northstar, 6:30 p.m.; Red Jacket at Holley, Kendall at Attica, 7 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Kendall at Spencerport, 7 p.m.

Tuesday
Boys Basketball – Newfane at Wilson, 6 p.m.; Akron at Medina, Albion at Barker, 6:30 p.m.; Holley at Perry, 7 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Northstar at Kendall, 6 p.m.; Medina at Akron, Barker at Albion, Wilson at Newfane, 6:30 p.m.; Lyndonville at Byron-Bergen, Oakfield-Alabama at Holley,
Swimming – N-O All-League Girls meet at Akron, 5 p.m.

Wednesday
Boys Basketball – Byron-Bergen at Lyndonville, Holley at Oakfield-Alabama, 7 p.m.
Wrestling – Salamanca at Roy-Hart/Barker, 4 p.m.

Thursday
Girls Basketball – Holley at School of the Arts, 5:30 p.m.; Lyndonville at Roy-Hart, 6:30 p.m.; Byron-Bergen at Kendall, 7 p.m.
Swimming – N-O All-League Boys meet at Newfane, 5 p.m.
Wrestling – Alexander vs. Roy-Hart/Barker at Barker, 6 p.m.

Friday
Boys Basketball – N-O vs. G-R Crossover games at SUNY Niagara (formerly NCCC): Roy-Hart vs. Attica, 6 p.m.; Wilson vs. Wheatland-Chili, 7:45 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Albion at Wilson, 6 p.m.; Newfane at Medina, Akron at Roy-Hart, 6:30 p.m.; Pembroke at Holley, 7 p.m.
Wrestling – Lyndonville at Alden, 6 p.m.
Swimming – N-O vs. G-R Girls meet at Gates-Chili, 6 p.m.

Saturday
Boys Basketball – N-O vs. G-R Crossover games at SUNY Niagara (formerly NCCC): Newfane vs. Byron-Bergen, 12:45 p.m.; Akron vs. Alexander, 2:30 p.m.; Albion vs. Holley, 4:15 p.m.; Barker vs. Kendall, 6 p.m.; Medina vs. Oakfield-Alabama, 7:45 p.m.
Girls Basketball – Lyndonville at Medina, 11 a.m.

Photos by Cheryl Wertman:

Justin Mengs (Albion) works towards a pin over Ayden Alvarez (Spencerport)

Hunter Pachia (Holley/Kendall) tries to gain control over Gauge Minch (Canisteo)

Ty Holmes (Lyndonville) in his match against Carl Nicodemus (Greece)

Luke Duffina (Medina) gets the Major Decision over Joey Robertson (Hilton)

Brenden Eichas (Holley/Kendall) decisions Maddox Megalo (Hilton)

Four mats filled the gym with wrestlers at Medina today