Gridiron Notes: Penn Yan’s ‘Will’-power and Arcadia’s Shonitsky

BY PAUL LIOTTI

Notes from around the Section after Week 5.

Oh the Drama

There were 36½ games played this past weekend, and several finished with a flair for the dramatic:

• After 2½ weeks the East Wilson game resumed. While not a Week 5 game it should be included. After slugfest 2-quarters and Wilson maintaining its 12-6 lead, the Eagles converted a 2-31 down the when Anthony Gilbert hit Mike Maxwell down the sideline with 1:15 left, then hit Malik McCray on a 19-yard slant on the next play for the tying score. McCray calmly kicked the point after try and East wins 13-12. READ MORE
• HFL coach John Russ dialed up a hook-and-ladder play with 10 seconds left against Odessa Montoursville from the 15-yard line on 4^th QB Turner Wilson passed to WR Derek Childs who then lateralled to RB Mason Ferrara who took it in untouched as time expired. HFL won 20-19. What’s lost in the shuffle was the Cougars’ 19-7 deficit with 3 minutes left. HFL drove 80 yards in the last minute to set up the dramatic finish.
• Penn Yan scored 2 TDs in the last 3 minutes to stun Newark. Trailing 30-19, PY QB Will Rogers (more on him later) tossed a 40-yard TD to Brennan Prather. After recovering the onsides kick, Rogers hit Prather again from 48 yards to take the 34-30 lead with 2 minutes left. Not to be undone, the Reds drove all the way to the Penn Yan 9 yard line but turned it over on downs with less than a minute remaining.
• Churchville-Chili recovered a fumble and scored with less than :30 left in the game against Greece Olympia/Greece Odyssey, but then the Spartans scored in Overtime and held the Saints to win 26-20. It was the Spartans 2^nd straight win after dropping their previous 22.
• Aquinas wasn’t as successful in its overtime session, as Friendship Collegiate (Washington DC) scored first and the Irish fumbled on their first play to lose 34-27.
• Pembroke was up 19-14 and Notre Dame was driving very late in the game when Trevor Vaughn picked off his FOURTH pass of the game with seconds left to preserve the win.

Dundee held off Red Jacket, stopping the Indians on the last play of the game to preserve a 28-20 win over its Finger Lakes West rival.

 

 

Thy Will Be Done

Tulsa, Oklahoma, named its airport after the famous Oklahoma humorist Will Rogers.

Penn Yan should think about doing something similar for its senior QB Will Rogers.

As noted above, the Mustangs are never out of any game with the 6-3, 187-pounder under center. For the game, he finished with 23-33 for 249 yards and 3 TDs. He also led the team in rushing against the Reds with 51 yards and another 2 TDs. He is also the team’s leading rusher:

He is on pace to shatter Jake Zembiec’s Section V passing record of 3030 passing yards and 37 touchdowns. Through 5 games, here are his lines:

• 132-for-181 (72.9%), 1,628 yards, 19 TDs, 8 Ints, 116.9 QBR (325 yards/3.8 TDs per game)
• 56-308 yards (5.5 avg), 4 TDs

At this rate, if PY gets to the Class C Finals, he would finish with 3,255 yards and 38 touchdowns.

And it’s great to be a Mustang receiver: The 2 top receivers are at or more than 100 yards per game:

• Connor Fingar 55-557 yards (111.4/gm) and 7 TDs
• Kyle Berna 36-491 yards (98.2/gm) and 3 TDs

 

Jayden Watch

Jayden Castrechini is at the top of the Section V rushing heap after his 26-carry, 186-yard performance in a hard-fought win over Geneva Saturday. Castrechini now has 1,042 yards on 144 carries (7.2 avg) and 12 TDs. He has added another 155 yards and 4 TDs through the air for 1,197 totals yards from scrimmage. This comes on top of his 2,023 yard performance last season. Back-to-back 2,000-yard rushing seasons is not out of the question.

BY THE NUMBERS

Demolition Men

We all knew 8-man football would put up the points. Here are the top scoring offenses in Section V:

Team	Div	C	GP	PF	Avg
Oakfield/Elba	IND	8m	3	174	58.0
Alexander	LC 4	D	5	256	51.2
Marcus Whitman	IND	8m	3	142	47.3
Wayne	FLE	B	5	227	45.4
McQuaid Jesuit	RCAC	AA	5	208	41.6
Batavia	LC 1	B	5	204	40.8
Aquinas	IND	AA	5	202	40.4
Wilson	RCAC	A	4	153	38.3
Finney/Northstar	IND	8m	3	112	37.3

Shutting the Door

Stingiest defenses in Section V:

Team	Div	C	GP	PA	Avg
East	RCAC	A	5	25	5.0
Alexander	LC 4	D	5	41	8.2
Fairport	MC I	AA	5	47	9.4
Letch/Warsaw	LC 2	C	5	53	10.6
Notre Dame	LC 4	D	4	44	11.0
Wilson	RCAC	A	5	58	11.6
Canandaigua	MCIII	A	5	58	11.6
Victor	MC II	A	5	58	11.6
Batavia	LC 1	B	5	60	12.0

Longest Active Win Streaks:

8 – East (last 4 in 2017 + 4 in 2018) – pending conclusion of today’s action.

5 – Alexander

5 – Batavia

5 – Canandaigua

5 – Greece Arcadia

5 – Irondequoit

5 – McQuaid

5 – Wayne

Streak Busters

This week was Pal-Mac’s turn to get off the schneid. The Red Raiders, had lost their previous 12 games but best Midlakes 14-7. Midlakes now owns the longest losing streak at 10.

Back to a Familiar Place

Dundee, which lost 8-straight games coming into this season and dropped its first 2 to start the year, is back where this storied program is used to. After beating NYSSWA Class D #5 Red Jacket this past weekend, the Scots are 3-2 and tied for the Finger Lakes West lead with Mynderse. The win sets up a winner-take-all as Dundee travels to Mynderse Friday night.

 Defenders of the Universe

• Pembroke’s Trevor Vaughn picked off 4 passes, including the game-sealing pass against Notre Dame.
• Connor Fingar logged his second-consecutive 17-tackle game. He has had 4 games where he’s had 17 or more tackles.

Just Give Me The Ball

• Batavia’s Ray Leach continues to be unstoppable, as he gained 312 yards from scrimmage — 280 rushing and 32 receiving — and crossed the goal line 4 times.
• Chris McClinic had 268 all-purpose yards (202 rushing/68 receiving) and 4 TDs for Alexander in the Trojans’ 36-14 win over Buffalo’s Bishop Timon.
• BK/Roc Prep’s Nate Carter carried the ball 20 times for 255 yards and 3 TDs in a 34-20 loss to Hornell.
• Gates-Chili’s Traylan McCray returned a kickoff 89 yards to the house. Not to be outdone, Canandaigua’s Mitch Pfeiffer did the same from 81 yards. Canadaigua won 42-7
• Irondequoit’s QB Freddy June Jr. accounted for 214 all purpose yards and 3 TDs in IQ’s 34-13 win over Rush Henrietta.
• East’s Freddie Brock averaged 10+ yards per carry with his 15 carries for 151 yards as the Eagles handed UPrep its first loss of the year 20-0.
• ER-Gananda’s Jayden Castrechini accounted for 203 total yards and 2 TDs in a 24-20 win over Geneva.
• Cal-Mum/BBergen’s Bryce Yockel scored all 3 touchdowns as part of his 34-carry, 271 yard night in a 20-14 win over Avon.
• Newark RB Tajh Greene carried the ball 10 times for 106 yards and 1 TD in a 34-30 loss to Penn Yan.
• Red Jacket RB Adam Borst had just 7 carries, but gained 144 yards (20.1 yards per rush) and 1 TD

 

 

 Arms Race

• Greece Arcadia freshman QB Brian Shonitsky had 200-all purpose yards and 2 TDs as the Titans beat Greece Athena 43-20.
• Red Jacket’s Matt Record was 12-20 for 217 yards and 2 TDs in a 28-20 loss to Dundee
• Aquinas QB Tyler Szalkowski finished the day with 15-of-32 for 246 yards and 2 TDs.
• Newark QB Nic Bernardi finished 17-for-23 for 178 yards and 2 TDs
• York/Pavilion QB was perfect on the day at 5-for-5 for 91 yards and a TD in a 44-14 win over Cuba-Rushford
• Geneva’s Wyatt Patchett completed 11-of-27 passes for 194 yards and 2 TDs in a 24-20 loss to ER/Gananda.

Better to Receive

• BK/Roc Prep’s Kidtrell Blocker caught 6 passes for 155 yards.
• Geneva’s Javon Loucks caught 4 passes for 126 yards and 1 score.
• AQ’s Kobe McNair grabbed 5 passes for 141 yards and 1 TD in an overtime loss to Friendship Collegiate out of Washington DC.

 

 

Must See Games

As the season starts to wind down, league titles, Sectional positioning and bragging rights are on the line.

Friday

• Victor @ Canandaigua, 7 pm. Canandaigua puts its undefeated season on the line. A win by Victor gives the Blue Devils the MC II crown. A win by Canandaigua keeps pace in the MC III title race. Game will go a long way to determining Class A seeding.
• Dundee @ Mynderse, 7 pm. Winner claims the Finger Lakes West title.
• Webster Schroeder @ Webster Thomas, 7:30 pm. Toss out any records. It’s for Webster Bragging Rights.
• Wilson @ University Prep, 5 pm, @ Marina Auto Stadium. Wilson needs this win to keep it Class A playoff hopes alive.
• Notre Dame-Batavia @ Alexander, 7:30 pm. Winner seals up the Livingston County I title or the Livingston County IV title.
• Greece Arcadia @ Honeoye Falls-Lima, 7 pm. Arcadia is a surprising 5-0. HFL has won its 4th straight game.

Saturday

• Wayne @ Penn Yan, 1 pm. Both teams state-ranked. Both vying for top seeds in their respective classes. Both teams score at will. What will give?
• McQuaid @ Aquinas, 3 pm. Nothing more is needed to say.

FRIDAY
Monroe County
Pittsford @ Gates-Chili @ East, 5 pm
Churchville-Chili @ Brockport, 7 pm
Eastridge @ Spencerport, 7 pm
Greece Athena @ Hilton, 7 pm
Irondequoit @ Brighton, 7 pm
Victor @ Canandaigua, 7 pm
Webster Schroeder @ Webster Thomas, 7:30 pm
RCAC
Wilson @ University Prep, 5 pm, @ Marina Auto Stadium
Livingston County
Avon @ Attica, 7:30 pm
Batavia @ Wellsville, 7:30 pm
Hornell @ Letchworth/Warsaw, 7:30 pm
Le Roy @ Bath-Haverling, 7:30 pm
Livonia @ Cal-Mum/Byron-Bergen, 7:30 pm
Notre Dame-Batavia @ Alexander, 7:30 pm
Pembroke @ Canisteo-Greenwood, 7:30 pm
Perry/Mt. Morris @ Cuba-Rushford, 7:30 pm
York/Pavilion @ Geneseo, 7:30 pm
Finger Lakes
Dundee @ Mynderse, 7 pm
Lyons @ S.Seneca/Romulus/Trumansburg, 7 pm
Midlakes @ East Rochester-Gananda, 7 pm
Palmyra-Macedon @ Waterloo, 7 pm
Red Jacket @ Wayland-Cohocton, 7 pm
Non-Conference
Greece Arcadia @ Honeoye Falls-Lima, 7 pm
St. Mary’s (VI) @ Dansville, 7:30 pm
8-man
Holley @ Marcus Whitman, 7 pm

SATURDAY
Monroe County
Fairport @ Greece Olympia/Odyssey, 2 pm
Penfield @ Rush-Henrietta, 2 pm
RCAC
Edison Tech @ Monroe, 3 pm
Leadership @ East, 3 pm
Livingston County
Bolivar-Richburg @ BK/Rochester Prep, 12 pm
Finger Lakes
Wayne @ Penn Yan, 1 pm
Clyde-Savannah @ Thomas Edison Elmira (IV), 1:30 pm
Newark @ Geneva, 7 pm
Non-Conference
McQuaid @ Aquinas, 3 pm
8-man
Oakfield-Alabama/Elba @ Finney/Northstar, 1:30 pm