by TYLER HATHAWAY
The seven-game regular season draws to a close this weekend in Class A1 football, and much of the teams’ fates are left to be decided. Most teams’ seeding has not been locked up yet, and home-field advantage in the first round for a handful of teams is still up for grabs.
As it stands now, Webster Thomas, with wins over Hilton (4-2), Fairport (3-3), Victor (3-3), and Webster Schroeder (3-3), holds the top position in A1 with 46 sectional points, and a win on Friday would secure a home-game for the Titans in the opening round of sectionals.
Brighton won the Class A sectional title last year and qualified for the state semifinals. It has overcome injuries throughout its entire offense and a lack of experience to enter Week 7 with only one loss.
“I think our team has been pretty resilient, said head coach Steve Lian. “We were a very young team going into the season, and last week was the first time all of our linemen were healthy. We still have one starter out that we’ll get back in the first round of sectionals. As the year has gone on, those injuries and different guys in and out of the lineups have given the opportunity for a lot of people to gain experience as we’re heading towards the end of the season.”
The Bruins have had a home playoff game in the first round in each of the past four seasons. A win on the road against Webster Schroeder Friday would give them a great chance of earning another.
“It’s really big,” Lian said of the advantage that home playoff games provide. “We’ve been fortunate enough to host in the first round these past several years. As you get into the playoffs you gotta deal with things like weather, and the different elements. When you don’t have to travel and you have the comfort and routines of your own home, that certainly plays a part and definitely gives you an advantage.”
Sophomore quarterback Ethan Bialaszewski has completed 63 percent of his passes for 779 yards through the air and six touchdowns. Junior running backs Justin Medina and Zach Rossignol have run for 521 and 412 rushing yards respectively, combining for 15 touchdowns. Defensively, senior Matthew Heininger leads the Bruins with 40 tackles.
Hilton started off the season with consecutive double-digit losses, but has since put together a four-game winning streak.
“We had some issues earlier in the year just stopping the teams we were playing”, said head coach Rich Lipani. “We didn’t do a great job. Just went back to the drawing board, got some things straightened out, and now we seem to be playing a little bit better.”
The strength of the Cadets during the winning streak has been the defense. Hilton has held teams to less than seven points per game during the span and has turned in a pair of shutouts, including a 22-0 win over Brighton to give the Bruins their first loss of the season.
“We’re not perfect by any means but we’ve been running to the ball much better, getting more guys to the ball,” Lipani explained. “We’ve been tackling better and cutting down on the amount of big plays we’ve allowed. It’s never anything more than just improving on the fundamentals, getting guys in the right places, and making some plays.”
Junior tailback Tyler Reger leads the Cadets with 560 rushing yards and a dozen touchdowns while averaging over five yards per carry. Matthew Kosiorek, another junior, has completed 61 percent of his passes for 541 yards and five scores. Junior linebackers Luca Auriuso and Calvin Starwald lead the defense with 65 tackles each.
For Churchville-Chili, Friday night’s game against Irondequoit presents the opportunity for the Saints to earn their first home playoff game in 15 years.
“It would be huge,” said head coach Dennis Pynn. “Just to have your natural surroundings, to have your home crowd, it brings a lot of energy. We have a great atmosphere at our games, it would be a really big deal to have a home playoff game.”
The Saints lost their starting quarterback to injury in the first series of their 28-7 Week 1 loss to Brockport. But the Saints have fought through the adversity to win five straight games, averaging 39.4 points as an offense over that span.
“I was really happy with the resilience of our guys after that loss,” said Pynn. “Jaxon Leonard stepped in, he hadn’t planned on being the quarterback and has done an amazing job. The offensive line has come together and gelled, multiple backs that have been doing a really good job. I’ve been really pleased with the work ethic of this group.”
Leonard, a senior, has picked up 364 yards through the air and another 216 yards on the ground while totaling five touchdowns. The Saints have run for a total of 1,558 yards so far this season, with sophomore Ocean Minor tallying 455 yards and junior Jayden Jager turning in 429 yards. Each back has six touchdowns. Junior Andrew Jeffers leads the defense with 36 tackles, two interceptions, and a forced fumble.
The Saints opponent this Friday, Irondequoit, is one of only three teams in Section V to be undefeated through six games. The Eagles offense is averaging 41.2 points per game and has an average margin of victory of 25.7 points.
“It’s the belief in the system that we have,” head coach Daniel Fichter said about his offense’s success this year. “That’s what it is. We’ve been running it for the past three years now, and it’s all they know. They don’t know how to screw it up.”
The Eagles are coming off their closest win of the season, a 20-14 home win over Brockport in which they overcame four turnovers to hold off a late rally.
“I mean, that win gives you character,” Fichter said after the win. “It builds wins in sectionals. That’s where you have to come from behind, and you have to play uncomfortable.”
Senior Cooper Moore leads an Eagles’ offense that has accrued over 2,000 rushing yards with 545 yards and eight touchdowns on the ground. Junior Eric Torres III touts a 59 percent completion percentage with 573 yards and nine touchdowns. Junior Josh Barr has caught 17 passes for 223 yards and six touchdowns. Senior linebacker Sam Thore leads the defense with 65 tackles.
Webster Schroeder has overcome a 1-3 start and won its past two games. The offense scored 56 points in its win against Greece Olympia/Odyssey and 37 points in a road win over Spencerport.
“Our skill guys have been doing what they need to do, but more importantly our offensive line has been able to protect,” head coach Mike Stumpf says has been the difference. “Earlier in the season we weren’t always clean up front, and were giving up a lot of pressure. Most important thing no matter if you are running or throwing the ball, it always starts up front. If you can protect your quarterback or create holes up front for your running backs to run the ball, that’s the key to the game.”
Even with a win its unlikely that the Warriors can get a first-round home game. However, Stumpf believes this week’s season finale against Brighton provides a litmus test for his team before sectionals.
“They’re the defending sectional champs,” said Stumpf. “We’re gonna get a really good football team coming to Webster on Friday night. It’s gonna be an incredible test to see where we are, if we are indeed improving.”
Junior Kalin Watkins has thrown for 1,346 yards and 13 touchdowns while completing 61 percent of his passes. Senior Anthony Amico has provided the Warriors with 27 receptions, 642 yards, and six touchdowns. Senior running back Liam Torpey leads the team in rushing with 211 yards and four touchdowns. Senior linebacker Nathan Vasquez is the team’s leading tackler with 47 tackles.
The full Class A1 football schedule this week is listed below. Each game is scheduled for Friday night.
Rush-Henrietta (5-1) at Greece Olympia/Odyssey (0-6) at 6:00 pm
Spencerport (2-4) at Webster Thomas (5-1) at 7:00 pm
Brighton (5-1) at Webster Schroeder (3-3) at 7:00 pm
Hilton (4-2) at Victor (3-3) at 7:00 pm
Irondequoit (6-0) at Churchville-Chili (5-1) at 7:30 pm.
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