Prep Talk

East Aurora softball player goes south

Felicia Hulslander has plenty of softball ahead of her. The East Aurora High School graduate leaves next month for Division II West Liberty University in West Virginia. She will major in athletic training after signing a national letter of intent to play for the Hilltoppers.

Hulslander played for three seasons on the Blue Devils varsity. "She played a phenomenal first base her sophomore and junior seasons. When the team needed a shortstop this season, she stepped up and made the switch," said coach Dan Edholm.

Despite facing more difficult pitching after moving up to ECIC III, Hulslander had a big senior year. She led the team in batting (.380), hits (27), doubles (3), triples (4), home runs (2), walks (10) and assists (43). He made only 5 errors in 97 chances while playing shortstop.

She leaves EA having rewritten the softball record books. She ranks first in her career in the following categories: batting avg. (.444), hits (87), triples (11), home runs (5), runs batted in (47), and runs scored (57). She ranks second in doubles (13), stolen bases (35), walks (23), and putouts (302). She is tied for third all-time in assists (58). She was also a two-year captain.

--- Mary Jo Monnin

Wayne's most memorable at-bat

Alexis Wayne had 417 at-bats in her five-year high school softball career, but there's one she'll never forget.

The Depew senior, named Western New York's Player of the Year, hit a walkoff home run in the bottom of the ninth to beat rival Lancaster. The score was tied 2-2 when Wayne stepped to the plate.

"I figured I'm a senior, I'm a captain, and I've got to step up," Wayne said. "It was like [tied] 1-1, and I just went after the pitch, and it just happened to go over [the fence] and we won. They're supposed to be the better school, the bigger school. We knew it would be a really big win if we came out on top. We knew we would have to play our best."

Wayne leaves Depew having achieved many milestones. The 46 hits she had a sophomore broke the school record of 43 held by Ellie Hanover since 1993. She batted over .500 in her sophomore and junior years and finished with a career average of .427.

Wayne will attend Niagara University in the fall on a partial athletic scholarship.

Wayne was one of 14 players named to the All-Western New York softball team that appears in today's editions of The Buffalo News.

---Mary Jo Monnin

More from the state diamonds

It just wasn't meant to be for Fredonia softball.

The third straight loss in a state championship game is especially painful for T'ana Abt and her senior classmates. Many of them won regional and district Little League titles together. They had hoped to go out together as high school state champions by winning the one trophy that had slipped through their grasps. Instead, they were denied by a Mechanicville team devoid of seniors.

"It feels like a family breaking up," said senior Mary Kate Bongiovanni. "When we look back at this when we're older, we're going to realize we had so much fun -- and that not too many teams can say they've been to the state finals three years in a row."

"[The loss] hurts the girls but they're a great bunch," Hillbillies coach Dave Polechetti said. "I've been very fortunate to coach a great group of girls. I thanked them during the awards ceremony for taking me on a great ride the past few years."

This marks the third straight year Section VI has failed to win a state softball title.

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Frewsburg baseball coach Jay Grann loved the way his pitchers got the Bears to a 3-0 victory over Seton Catholic in the Class C semifinals.

"They were phenomenal," Grann said of his pitchers. "They were able to make plays, and they trust their defense to do that for them."

---Miguel Rodriguez and Dan Scotchmer

Live from the state softball final four: Fredonia drops final; Randolph loses in semi

WATERLOO -- We're coming to you live from the state softball championships at Waterloo High School with the Class B semifinal between Fredonia and Section IV champion Chenango Valley.

10:16 a.m. Fredonia leads 1-0 through four innings. Hillbillies took 1-0 lead in top of third inning on Katie Bartkowiak's two-out single to center that scored Mary Kate Bongiovanni, who worked a two-out walk and reached second on Anne Wasik's single to center. Good at-bat by Barkowiak, who fell into an 0-2 hole.

In top of fifth with one out, Hillbillies' Bongiovanni singles, steals second and moves to third on Wasik single to right. Wasik took second on throw home while Bongiovanni stayed at third. Bongiovanni scores on ball four wild pitch. Wasik to third while batter Bartkowiak moves to second. Fredonia leads 2-0.

Bunt single by T'ana Abt loads bases. Erin Pantano RBI single off pitcher's glove makes it 3-0, then Julie Arnold gets hit by pitcher to force in Bartkowiak. Hillbillies lead, 4-0. Marge Wronski safe on fielder's choice grounder but Abt forced out at home for second out. Throwing error by CV catcher lobbing ball back to pitcher enables Pantano to score to make it 5-0. Chrissy Ortolano safe on fielding error. Pinch hitter Katrina Johnston comes to plate as 10th batter of inning for Fredonia, and she strikes out to end inning. Fredonia leads 5-0.

10:25 a.m. Caitlin Roberts of CV leads off bottom of fifth with single, moves to second on wild pitch, takes third on fly out and scores with two outs on another wild pitch. After five innings, Fredonia leads, 5-1.

Through six innings, Fredonia leads, 5-1. Heading into bottom of seventh, it is still 5-1 Fredonia as Hillbillies went down in order in top half of inning.

10:47 a.m. FINAL SCORE: Fredonia beats Chenango Valley in Class B semifinal, 5-1.

The Hillbillies will face Section II's Mechanicville for the title this afternoon at 1:30 on field two.

It is the third straight state semifinal for the Hillbillies.

Anne Wasik and Erin Pantano each had two hits, while Mary Kate Bongiovanni scored two runs in the triumph. Fredonia pitcher Marah Dahn was solid, limiting CV to three hits with no walks and five strikeouts.

It will be a little crazy with Class B final and Randolph's Class C semifinal going on at the same time but we'll do our best to provide status reports. See you later.

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12:33 p.m. Randolph trails Section IV champion Tioga, 5-2, in the Class C semifinal with Randolph batting in the top of the fourth. The Cardinals scored two in the first but Tioga answered with four in the bottom of the inning. Tioga added a run on an error in the third.

1:10 p.m. It's a FINAL SCORE: Tioga 5, Randolph 2 in Class C semifinal.

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1:35 p.m. Class B final to start in 25 minutes or so.

2:54 p.m. Mechanicville leads Fredonia, 1-0, after four innings. Kelsey Hines with an RBI double.

3:04 p.m. Fredonia leaves the bases loaded in the fifth.

3:16 p.m. A two-run triple by Alysa Russell gives Mechanicville a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the fifth.

3:29 p.m. Mechanicville's lead is 3-0 after six innings. Last chance for the Hillbillies.

3:32 p.m. We have a FINAL SCORE: Mechanicville beats Fredonia, 3-1, in the Class B state championship game. Fredonia falls in state final for third straight year. MaryKate Bongiovanni had an RBI triple in the seventh.

---Miguel Rodriguez

Who has the best shot at a state title?

Saturday could be a very big day for Section VI. It certainly could be a big day for any number of teams.

In and around Binghamton, Clarence (Class AA), Fredonia (B) and Frewsburg (C) will participate in the baseball state final four. At Waterloo, Fredonia (B) and Randolph (C) will play in the softball final four. At downtown Rochester's Marina Auto Stadium (formerly Paetec Park), the Orchard Park boys lacrosse team will try and win Section VI's first state championship in that sport.

poll by twiigs.com

Orchard Park lacrosse might have an advantage in having to only play one game (the baseball and softball teams have to win a semifinal and a final for a state title), but the Quakers are charged with reversing decades of history in the sport.

What's your pick? Let us know how you voted in the comment space below. I'll have my pick as we get started on Saturday.

---Keith McShea

Mapping out the states

Check out a cool page of maps put together in the home office by copy editor Fletcher Doyle.

They show exactly where local teams are headed for state tournament action in baseball, softball and lacrosse over the next few days.

---Keith McShea

Softball regionals: Fredonia, Randolph win; Will North, WSE, Forestville fall

The Fredonia softball team is headed to its third straight state final four.

The Hillbillies beat Section V (Rochester area) champion Wayland-Cohocton, 10-2, to win its third straight Class B Far West Regional Tuesday evening at Brockport State. Fredonia, which has lost in the last two state championship games, took an 8-0 lead after two innings.

Williamsville North tied the game in the top of the seventh, but Fairport scored on a two-out error in the bottom of the inning for a 2-1 victory in the Class AA Far West Regionals.

West Seneca East lost the Class A game, 4-1, to Victor, which scored one in the first, led by 3-0 after four and added a home run in the sixth.

That's according to text messages from correspondent Miguel Rodriguez, who is at today's tripleheader at Brockport State.

Randolph won its Far West Regional softball game in Class C with a 10-4 victory over Perry at Olean High School Tuesday evening, according to a text message from News Sports Reporter Tyler Dunne, one of our summer interns.

Forestville lost,1-0, to private school Batavia Notre Dame in the Class D game in which there was a no-hitter thrown by Tricia Pikes.

The winners of today's regionals advance to the state semifinals this weekend at Waterloo H.S.

---Keith McShea

How many Section VI teams will win on the diamonds?

Four of the five Far West Regionals in baseball are scheduled for today:

CLASS AA at Diethrick Park
Clarence (20-6) vs. V-Penfield (19-5), 7 p.m. today

CLASS A at Dwyer Stadium, Batavia
Grand Island (17-7) vs. V-Aquinas (20-5), 7 p.m. today

CLASS B at Diethrick Park
Fredonia (21-7) vs. V-Bath-Haverling (19-2), 5 p.m. Tuesday

CLASS C at Diethrick Park
Frewsburg (21-4) vs. V-Oakfield-Alabama, 4 p.m. today

CLASS D at Dwyer Stadium, Batavia
North Collins (18-5) vs. V-Arkport (18-2), 4:30 p.m. today

poll by twiigs.com

The softball regionals will be played Tuesday:

CLASS AA at Brockport State
Williamsville North (21-5) vs. V-Fairport (23-2), 2 p.m.

CLASS A at Brockport State
W. Seneca East (18-4) vs. V-Victor (26-2), 4 p.m.

CLASS B at Brockport State
Fredonia (22-4) vs. V-Wayland-Cohocton (22-2), 6 p.m.

CLASS C at Olean H.S.
Randolph (17-1) vs. V-Perry (17-1), 4 p.m.

CLASS D at Olean H.S.
Forestville (17-2) vs. V-Batavia Notre Dame (17-3), 6 p.m.

poll by twiigs.com

Let us know why you voted the way you did in the comments space below. How did I vote? I'll tell you right before the games.

---Keith McShea

Live from the Section VI softball finals: Will North, WSE, Fredonia win

Hello from the Amherst Pepsi Center's softball complex, where the Class AA, A and B championship games for Section VI are being held.

Class A: 1-West Seneca East (17-4) vs. 2-Amherst (19-3-1), 3 p.m.
Class B: 4-Fredonia (22-4) vs. 7-Olean (18-9), 4 p.m.
Class AA: 2-Williamsville North (20-5) vs. 1-Clarence (22-1), 5:30 p.m.

3:33 p.m. We are up and running from behind the plate and West Seneca East has a 1-0 lead after 2-1/2 innings. East scored in its first turn at bat as Lauren Bujnicki singled up the middle, moved to second on a nice sacrifice bunt by Jenna Yates and came around on a double by Tina Schwartzmeyer. Schwartzmeyer banged the ball to the right center and it rolled all the way to the wall.

3:55 p.m. First chance to update after putting up a baseball post ... West Seneca East is up, 4-0, after four innings thanks to a crucial two-out rally. The big hit was Meagan Lewis' triple, which she ripped down the third-base line to score two runs. Yates started the rally with a sharp single to left; Schwartzmeyer followed by grounding a single to left, and Dustin's sharp single the other way to right scored Yates. Dustin advanced to second after an error to put runners on second and third for Lewis.

Randolph, Forestville win Section VI softball titles

It was a day for the second seeds, and not a day for the defending champions in Section VI softball Friday.

Second-seeded Randolph dethroned top-seeded and defending champion Cassadaga Valley, 3-0, in the Class C championship at Dunkirk's Promenshankle Stadium according to a text message from correspondent Dan Scotchmer.

Scotchmer updated later that in the Class D final, the second game of the doubleheader, second-seeded Forestville beat top-seeded and defending champion Ripley, 7-2.

Randolph and Forestville (17-2) will advance to the Far West Regionals next week. 

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Both winning teams scored first, and both winning coaches said that was a major factor.

Randolph coach Robin Maycock: "I think that was the key to the game. I really thought whoever scored that first run would carry that momentum since I thought it would be a tight game."

Forestville coach Kerry Murphy: "That's huge, to score the first run, that puts them on their heels. We came to play. We put them in a defensive position all night long."

"We play good defense and we play basic softball. We have a lot of fun doing it. That is what Forestville is about."

Check the News and the high school home page on Saturday for Scotchmer's story on the games.

---Keith McShea