One team is back in the state quartefinals for the first time in 26 years while the other squad makes its third Far West Regional appearance in school history and second in the past three years. The Section V Class C victors Kendall Eagles (No. 4 NYSSWA) go head-to-head with the champions of Section VI Gowanda Panthers (No. 5 NYSSWA) for the NYSPHSAA Class C Far West Regional crown. Here’s the breakdown:
KENDALL EAGLES (23-1 / Genesee Region)
vs.
GOWANDA PANTHERS (20-3 / CCAA III)
Saturday, June 7th, Dwyer Stadium, 11:00 a.m.
How they arrived here: After a first round bye, top-seeded Kendall started its playoff run with an 11-0 shutout win over No. 8 Perry in the quarterfinals and pulled out a 3-2 victory over No. 5 Oakfield-Alabama in the semifinals. The Eagles then took care of business during a two-day trip in the Class C2 title game with a 6-0 victory against No. 2 Genesee Valley-Belfast and walked it off 5-4 against the Class C1 champs Geneseo to qualify for the Far West Regional. Gowanda cruised to an 11-1 victory in the quarterfinals against No. 7 Chautauqua Lake to start its postseason and carried that momentum into the semifinals with an 8-1 win over No. 6 Portville. The Panthers then delivered a 3-0 shutout to upset No. 1 Frewsburg in the Class C sectional championship to advance to the regional.
Tempos and trends: Kendall scores 9.17 runs a a game while allowing just 1.63 runs against. The Eagles roll into the regional on a 16-game winning streak while outscoring opponents 161-30 in that span. During this streak, Kendall has scored 10-plus runs on 10 different occasions with six victories coming by double-digits. To go along with that, the Eagles have shut out opponents five times during this streak and have allowed more than three runs three times. On the season, Kendall has scored 10 runs or more 14 times, shut out opponents nine times and have outscored opponents 220-39. In games decided by one run this season, the Eagles are 5-1.
Gowanda enters the Far West Regional on a seven-game win streak with three shutouts and four 10-plus runs outings. In that span, the Panthers have outscored opponents 71-5 and have allowed more than one run once. Gowanda scored 10 or more runs 12 times this season including 35-2 and 32-2 victories to start the month of May while shutting out opponents on nine different occasions. On the season, the Panthers outscore opponents 271-34 and have allowed more than two runs five times.
Players to watch for Kendall: Gavin Braun Sr.; Michael Colucci Jr.; Nic Cole Jr.; Jonny Conte Jr.; Sam Conte Fr.; Charles D’Agostino So.; Vinnie D’Agostino Jr.; Colby Hughes Sr.; Jonas Rhodes Jr.
Gowanda: Kyan Austin So. OF/P, 3-0, 16.0 IP, 15 Ks, 1.750 ERA, .200 BAA, 11 HA, four RA, 11 BBs, .386 AVG, .551 OBP, 22 hits, 25 RBI, 23 runs; Carter Capozzi Jr. SS/P, 4-2, 38.0 IP, 55 Ks, 1.842 ERA, .209 BAA, 31 HA, 12 RA, seven BBs, .345 AVG, .545 OBP, 20 hits, 22 RBI, 25 runs; Jayden Fish So. C/IF, .345 AVG, .473 OBP, 20 hits, 19 RBI, 16 runs; Seth Geiger Jr. IF/P, 3-0, 20.0 IP, 27 Ks, .700 ERA, .186 BAA, 13 HA, five RA, 15 BBs .328 AVG, .442 OBP, 21 hits, 17 RBI, 16 runs; Blake Herman Sr. C/P/IF, 10-1, 48.1 IP, 86 Ks, .579 ERA, .087 BAA, 14 HA, nine RA, 16 BBs, .548 AVG, .692 OBP, 34 hits, 32 RBI, 48 runs, four HR; Drew Kota So. Utility/P, .311 AVG, .436 OBP, 14 hits, 10 RBI, 18 runs; Madden Lay Sr. 1B/P, .245 AVG, .413 OBP, 12 hits, 18 RBI, 14 runs; Logan Ruff Sr. 3B/P, .258 AVG, .360 OBP, 16 hits, 28 RBI, 20 runs, two HR; Brayden Smith Sr. OF/P, .333 AVG, .592 OBP, 15 hits, 20 RBI, 32 runs
Coaches: Tige Noni (Kendall), Tim Smith (Gowanda)
History 101: Kendall is back in the Far West Regional for the second time in program history with its first appearance in 1999. Kendall looks to stay undefeated in regionals as the Eagles defeated Frewsburg 4-0 26 years ago. Gowanda is in the regional for the third time in school history with its most recent appearance coming in 2023 when the Panthers defeated Notre Dame Batavia 6-5. Gowanda is 1-1 in regional appearances as the Panthers fell in its first ever Far West Regional in 2008 2-1 to Haverling.
What’s at stake: A spot in the NYS Class C semifinals against either Bishop Grimes (III) or Deposit-Hancock (IV).
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