Norwich tightens up on defense to win sectional opener
Boys’ Basketball
Norwich 50, Corning East 44
CONKLIN – Norwich made up a 10-point deficit in the first quarter, then shook off a six-point Trojans lead in the fourth quarter finishing the game on a 14-2 run to advance into the Section IV Class A semifinals at Oneonta Friday.
Josh Borfitz scored all seven of his points during the late-game run to key the Tornado surge, and Vaughn Labor along with Patrick Coates stepped in to take two critical charges in the final minute preserving the advantage.
“It seems like every game we have played them, it’s been a battle,” said Norwich coach Mark Abbott. “There were a lot of bodies on the floor, and I was really happy we showed the fortitude to come back.”
Corning East, the number five seed entering the tournament, raced to a 17-7 first-quarter lead behind two threes from Simon Bailor and another trifecta off the hands of Andrew Matson.
The Tornado’s biggest response to that early adversity was better defense. “We came out very flat and found ourselves in a hole,” Abbott said. “We went to our press, and that picked up our energy and enthusiasm. We got some steals, scored in transition, and got back in the game.”
Norwich seemed to take command in the third quarter, and led 36-30 late after two three balls from Coates. Bailor, who had five treys and 20 points in the game, kick-started his club’s 12-0 run putting the Trojans up 42-36 after two more threes with six minutes left in the fourth quarter.
A pair of free throws from Norwich’s Nate Foote and a single freebie from Justin Ballin pared the lead in half, and Borfitz scored his first points of the game burying a trifecta tying it at 42-42 with 4:27 to play.
Borfitz tied the game once more scoring in transition off a Timmy Clark pass, and he added his last bucket off another Clark feed making it 47-44 with 1 1/2 minutes to play.
Norwich sealed the game with two big step-ins for charges and three foul shots. “The last two possessions, Corning East was really focused on taking the ball to the basket hard,” Abbott said. “We had guys laying it on the line on defense at the end because we didn’t want our season to end. Coupled with the fact we lost a tough game to them last year, there was a lot of motivation to win.”
Coates had 11 points for NHS (15-5) and Clark had 10.
Corning East: Devin Bucie, 0; Andrew Matson, 2 1-2-7; Eric Garvey, 5 3-7-13; Max Applet, 2 0-0-4; Justin Patterson, 0; Simon Bailor, 6 3-4-20; Drey Simpson, 0; Corey Stonerack, 0 0-1-0; Brandon Griffin, 0. Totals: 15 7-14-44.
Norwich: Tim Clark, 4 2-2-10; Patrick Coates, 3 2-2-11; Corey Dietrich, 1 0-0-2; Nate Foote, 3 2-2-8; Josh Borfitz, 3 0-0-7; Vaughn Labor, 1 1-2-3; David Carson, 0 2-2-2; Brian Wightman, 0; Justin Ballin, 2 3-5-7; Cory Law, ; Craig Berg, 0. Totals: 17 12-15-50.
CEast 17 5 11 11–44
NHS 7 15 14 14–50
Fouled out: (CE) Matson. Three-point goals: (N) Coates 3, Borfitz, (CE) Bailor 5, Matson 2. Officials: Palmer, Klemahaga.
Watkins Glen 52, Greene 25
NEWFIELD – Greene scored just 14 points over the final three quarters, and fell in the Class B playoffs to Watkins Glen Tuesday.
The Senecas executed their offense well in the first half, and after holding the Trojans (10-11) to just two points in the second quarter, built a 20-point halftime lead. “We had a lot of chances on offense and missed some layups in the first half,” said Greene coach Jeff Paske. “They did a good job running their offense and getting good shots. They shot the ball well in the first half.”
The Trojans forced four turnovers on Watkins Glen’s first six possessions of the second half, but failed to score a point to make a dent in the deficit. “We did a good job on the defensive end, but weren’t able to come down and score,” Paske added.
Chris Engler led Greene with 10 points.
Greene: Mark Day, 0; Kinne, 0; Josh Fischer, 0 2-2-2; Dan Carlin, 1 0-0-2; Scott Gorton, 3 0-1-8; Chris Engler, 4 2-7-10; Ben Adams, 0; Mark McDermott, 0 1-2-1; Booker Davis, 1 0-1-2; Dustin Turner, 0 0-1-0. Totals: 9 5-14-25.
Watkins Glen: Juan Molina, 1 0-0-2; Jon Fazzary, 4 0-0-9; Alan McIlroy, 3 1-2-9; Joe Stanfield, 3 0-0-6; Chris Hong, 3 0-0-8; Mark Fraboni, 0; Justin DiDominic, 5 0-0-10; Nick Phoenix, 0; Thomas Cook, 0; Brendan Marvin, 1 0-0-2; Stewart Cook, 3 0-0-6. Totals: 23 1-2-52.
Gre. 11 2 6 6–25
WGl. 18 15 7 12–52
Fouled out: none. Team fouls: (G) 4, (WG) 16. Three-point goals: (G) Gorton 2, (W) Fazzary, McIlroy 2, Hong 2. Officials: Chalk, Titus.
Unadilla Valley 64, Newfield 52
NEW BERLIN – Raffi Perry scored 31 points for Unadilla Valley, who advanced to the second round of the Class C playoffs.
The contest was delayed two hours due to a Newfield travel mishap. A box score was not available at press time.
UV plays at Oxford Friday night.
Girls’ Basketball
Unadilla Valley 44, Union Springs 39
NEW BERLIN – Playing its first sectional playoff game in five seasons, Unadilla Valley was not ready for a quick departure.
The Storm evened their season log (10-10) getting 17 points and 11 rebounds from Hannah Johnson in Tuesday’s win over the Wolves. “We played the way we have all season: We got the ball inside, got the other team in foul trouble, and went to the line,” said UV coach Brandi Backus. “The seniors wanted this game really bad, the they played great in the fourth quarter.”
The spunky Wolves used a tenacious full-court press in the last quarter to stay in striking range. UV used its superior rebounding to hold on to the lead.
Cierra Izard scored on a short baseline jumper after Johnson grabbed an offensive rebound and passed out to the wide-open Izard. Katrina Benson, who had 12 rebounds, scored on a putback after her own miss to move UV up by six, and Izard hauled down a missed free throw attempt with under a minute to play that proved critical.
Benson added 15 points for the Storm, who play at number one seed Newfield Saturday at 7 p.m.
US: Jamie Jones, 1 0-0-2; Monica Sacco, 3 1-2-9; Alexa Schooley, 3 0-2-6; Melena Ott, 0; Jolene Hoskins, 2 0-0-5; Monica Clifford, 0; Deven Garry, 1 3-7-5; Casey Emmett, 2 6-8-10. Totals: 12 10-19-39.
UV: Katelyn Ross, 0 0-5-0; Hannah Johnson, 4 9-16-17; Jenna Rudnitsky, 0; Jessica Lorence, 1 0-0-2; Katrina Benson, 7 1-3-15; Cierra Izard, 2 3-6-7; Sarah Talbot, 1 0-0-2; Sally Hartwick, 0 1-2-1. Totals: 15 14-32-44.
U.S. 5 4 9 21–39
UVa. 6 9 11 18–44
Fouled out: (US) Schooley. Three-point goals: (US) Sacco 2. Officials: J. Miller, C. Miller.
Sherburne-Earlville 38, Herkimer 31
SHERBURNE – Survive and advance was the assertion Sherburne-Earlville coach Jeff Barry made after the Marauders’ hard-fought Class B sectional win over Herkimer Tuesday night. “Our defense has carried us all year whether we win ugly or win pretty,” Barry said. “The bottom line is that everyone starts zero and zero in the playoffs. If you win your first game, someone else is going home.”
The Marauders went 14-for-18 from the foul line to make up for a poor shooting night as a team. Courtney Kurtz led with 15 points to go with nine rebounds. Megan Record added 14 rebounds. “We didn’t play well offensively, but their defense had something to do with it,” Barry said. “It was a defensive battle, we just made more plays on defense than they did.”
Sherburne-Earlville (17-4) plays Bishop Ludden Friday at a neutral site to be determined.
Herkimer: Kayla Krenichyn, 0; Kaitlin Staring 1 0-0-2; Megan Doleck, 0; Nicole Cinelli, 0; Anna Murosek, 1 1-2-3; Hannah Riesel, 0; Sheilisa Moore, 5 0-0-10; Emily Dillard, 0; Leah Donnelly, 0; Dana Pohliy, 1 0-0-2; Shauna Mills, 0; Elizabeth Reardon, 5 3-4-14. Totals: 13 4-6-31.
S-E: Courtney VanAlthuis, 2 0-0-4; Courtney Kurtz, 3 7-9-15; Megan Welshko, 0; Brenda Hoefler, 2 0-1-4; Samantha Crandall, 0; Megan Record, 1 4-4-6; Katelin Fitzpatrick, 0; Danielle Green, 0 3-4-3; Karli Harris, 3 0-0-6. Totals: 11 14-18-38.
Herk. 14 6 9 2–31
S-E 18 6 8 6–38
Fouled out: none. Three-point goals: (SE) Kurtz 2, (H) Reardon. Officials: Dan Ewing, T. Davis.
Bowling
Norwich has off day at Class B tournament
Norwich rolled its third lowest team score of the season, and placed ninth out of 13 teams at the Section IV, Class B bowling tournament last weekend
Kyle Ewen’s 626 series led Norwich, and Dustin Jenkins added a 621. Jenkins and Ewen, eighth and tenth overall in Section IV average, continue their seasons at the state qualifier Feb. 23 at Midway Lanes. The top six scores will represent Section IV in the state tournament March 1-2.
Norwich 50, Corning East 44
CONKLIN – Norwich made up a 10-point deficit in the first quarter, then shook off a six-point Trojans lead in the fourth quarter finishing the game on a 14-2 run to advance into the Section IV Class A semifinals at Oneonta Friday.
Josh Borfitz scored all seven of his points during the late-game run to key the Tornado surge, and Vaughn Labor along with Patrick Coates stepped in to take two critical charges in the final minute preserving the advantage.
“It seems like every game we have played them, it’s been a battle,” said Norwich coach Mark Abbott. “There were a lot of bodies on the floor, and I was really happy we showed the fortitude to come back.”
Corning East, the number five seed entering the tournament, raced to a 17-7 first-quarter lead behind two threes from Simon Bailor and another trifecta off the hands of Andrew Matson.
The Tornado’s biggest response to that early adversity was better defense. “We came out very flat and found ourselves in a hole,” Abbott said. “We went to our press, and that picked up our energy and enthusiasm. We got some steals, scored in transition, and got back in the game.”
Norwich seemed to take command in the third quarter, and led 36-30 late after two three balls from Coates. Bailor, who had five treys and 20 points in the game, kick-started his club’s 12-0 run putting the Trojans up 42-36 after two more threes with six minutes left in the fourth quarter.
A pair of free throws from Norwich’s Nate Foote and a single freebie from Justin Ballin pared the lead in half, and Borfitz scored his first points of the game burying a trifecta tying it at 42-42 with 4:27 to play.
Borfitz tied the game once more scoring in transition off a Timmy Clark pass, and he added his last bucket off another Clark feed making it 47-44 with 1 1/2 minutes to play.
Norwich sealed the game with two big step-ins for charges and three foul shots. “The last two possessions, Corning East was really focused on taking the ball to the basket hard,” Abbott said. “We had guys laying it on the line on defense at the end because we didn’t want our season to end. Coupled with the fact we lost a tough game to them last year, there was a lot of motivation to win.”
Coates had 11 points for NHS (15-5) and Clark had 10.
Corning East: Devin Bucie, 0; Andrew Matson, 2 1-2-7; Eric Garvey, 5 3-7-13; Max Applet, 2 0-0-4; Justin Patterson, 0; Simon Bailor, 6 3-4-20; Drey Simpson, 0; Corey Stonerack, 0 0-1-0; Brandon Griffin, 0. Totals: 15 7-14-44.
Norwich: Tim Clark, 4 2-2-10; Patrick Coates, 3 2-2-11; Corey Dietrich, 1 0-0-2; Nate Foote, 3 2-2-8; Josh Borfitz, 3 0-0-7; Vaughn Labor, 1 1-2-3; David Carson, 0 2-2-2; Brian Wightman, 0; Justin Ballin, 2 3-5-7; Cory Law, ; Craig Berg, 0. Totals: 17 12-15-50.
CEast 17 5 11 11–44
NHS 7 15 14 14–50
Fouled out: (CE) Matson. Three-point goals: (N) Coates 3, Borfitz, (CE) Bailor 5, Matson 2. Officials: Palmer, Klemahaga.
Watkins Glen 52, Greene 25
NEWFIELD – Greene scored just 14 points over the final three quarters, and fell in the Class B playoffs to Watkins Glen Tuesday.
The Senecas executed their offense well in the first half, and after holding the Trojans (10-11) to just two points in the second quarter, built a 20-point halftime lead. “We had a lot of chances on offense and missed some layups in the first half,” said Greene coach Jeff Paske. “They did a good job running their offense and getting good shots. They shot the ball well in the first half.”
The Trojans forced four turnovers on Watkins Glen’s first six possessions of the second half, but failed to score a point to make a dent in the deficit. “We did a good job on the defensive end, but weren’t able to come down and score,” Paske added.
Chris Engler led Greene with 10 points.
Greene: Mark Day, 0; Kinne, 0; Josh Fischer, 0 2-2-2; Dan Carlin, 1 0-0-2; Scott Gorton, 3 0-1-8; Chris Engler, 4 2-7-10; Ben Adams, 0; Mark McDermott, 0 1-2-1; Booker Davis, 1 0-1-2; Dustin Turner, 0 0-1-0. Totals: 9 5-14-25.
Watkins Glen: Juan Molina, 1 0-0-2; Jon Fazzary, 4 0-0-9; Alan McIlroy, 3 1-2-9; Joe Stanfield, 3 0-0-6; Chris Hong, 3 0-0-8; Mark Fraboni, 0; Justin DiDominic, 5 0-0-10; Nick Phoenix, 0; Thomas Cook, 0; Brendan Marvin, 1 0-0-2; Stewart Cook, 3 0-0-6. Totals: 23 1-2-52.
Gre. 11 2 6 6–25
WGl. 18 15 7 12–52
Fouled out: none. Team fouls: (G) 4, (WG) 16. Three-point goals: (G) Gorton 2, (W) Fazzary, McIlroy 2, Hong 2. Officials: Chalk, Titus.
Unadilla Valley 64, Newfield 52
NEW BERLIN – Raffi Perry scored 31 points for Unadilla Valley, who advanced to the second round of the Class C playoffs.
The contest was delayed two hours due to a Newfield travel mishap. A box score was not available at press time.
UV plays at Oxford Friday night.
Girls’ Basketball
Unadilla Valley 44, Union Springs 39
NEW BERLIN – Playing its first sectional playoff game in five seasons, Unadilla Valley was not ready for a quick departure.
The Storm evened their season log (10-10) getting 17 points and 11 rebounds from Hannah Johnson in Tuesday’s win over the Wolves. “We played the way we have all season: We got the ball inside, got the other team in foul trouble, and went to the line,” said UV coach Brandi Backus. “The seniors wanted this game really bad, the they played great in the fourth quarter.”
The spunky Wolves used a tenacious full-court press in the last quarter to stay in striking range. UV used its superior rebounding to hold on to the lead.
Cierra Izard scored on a short baseline jumper after Johnson grabbed an offensive rebound and passed out to the wide-open Izard. Katrina Benson, who had 12 rebounds, scored on a putback after her own miss to move UV up by six, and Izard hauled down a missed free throw attempt with under a minute to play that proved critical.
Benson added 15 points for the Storm, who play at number one seed Newfield Saturday at 7 p.m.
US: Jamie Jones, 1 0-0-2; Monica Sacco, 3 1-2-9; Alexa Schooley, 3 0-2-6; Melena Ott, 0; Jolene Hoskins, 2 0-0-5; Monica Clifford, 0; Deven Garry, 1 3-7-5; Casey Emmett, 2 6-8-10. Totals: 12 10-19-39.
UV: Katelyn Ross, 0 0-5-0; Hannah Johnson, 4 9-16-17; Jenna Rudnitsky, 0; Jessica Lorence, 1 0-0-2; Katrina Benson, 7 1-3-15; Cierra Izard, 2 3-6-7; Sarah Talbot, 1 0-0-2; Sally Hartwick, 0 1-2-1. Totals: 15 14-32-44.
U.S. 5 4 9 21–39
UVa. 6 9 11 18–44
Fouled out: (US) Schooley. Three-point goals: (US) Sacco 2. Officials: J. Miller, C. Miller.
Sherburne-Earlville 38, Herkimer 31
SHERBURNE – Survive and advance was the assertion Sherburne-Earlville coach Jeff Barry made after the Marauders’ hard-fought Class B sectional win over Herkimer Tuesday night. “Our defense has carried us all year whether we win ugly or win pretty,” Barry said. “The bottom line is that everyone starts zero and zero in the playoffs. If you win your first game, someone else is going home.”
The Marauders went 14-for-18 from the foul line to make up for a poor shooting night as a team. Courtney Kurtz led with 15 points to go with nine rebounds. Megan Record added 14 rebounds. “We didn’t play well offensively, but their defense had something to do with it,” Barry said. “It was a defensive battle, we just made more plays on defense than they did.”
Sherburne-Earlville (17-4) plays Bishop Ludden Friday at a neutral site to be determined.
Herkimer: Kayla Krenichyn, 0; Kaitlin Staring 1 0-0-2; Megan Doleck, 0; Nicole Cinelli, 0; Anna Murosek, 1 1-2-3; Hannah Riesel, 0; Sheilisa Moore, 5 0-0-10; Emily Dillard, 0; Leah Donnelly, 0; Dana Pohliy, 1 0-0-2; Shauna Mills, 0; Elizabeth Reardon, 5 3-4-14. Totals: 13 4-6-31.
S-E: Courtney VanAlthuis, 2 0-0-4; Courtney Kurtz, 3 7-9-15; Megan Welshko, 0; Brenda Hoefler, 2 0-1-4; Samantha Crandall, 0; Megan Record, 1 4-4-6; Katelin Fitzpatrick, 0; Danielle Green, 0 3-4-3; Karli Harris, 3 0-0-6. Totals: 11 14-18-38.
Herk. 14 6 9 2–31
S-E 18 6 8 6–38
Fouled out: none. Three-point goals: (SE) Kurtz 2, (H) Reardon. Officials: Dan Ewing, T. Davis.
Bowling
Norwich has off day at Class B tournament
Norwich rolled its third lowest team score of the season, and placed ninth out of 13 teams at the Section IV, Class B bowling tournament last weekend
Kyle Ewen’s 626 series led Norwich, and Dustin Jenkins added a 621. Jenkins and Ewen, eighth and tenth overall in Section IV average, continue their seasons at the state qualifier Feb. 23 at Midway Lanes. The top six scores will represent Section IV in the state tournament March 1-2.
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