These two squads have been on top of the Class C1 standings for most of the season.
Top-seeded Gananda has won 16 straight games. The Blue Panthers have only lost once in Section V play and have shut out their opponents ten times. Second-seeded Notre Dame Batavia has also only lost once in Section V action and has scored 10 or more runs in 11 games this year.
It’s a clash of Wayne County and Genesee County powers on Friday night. Here’s the breakdown:
No. 1 seed GANANDA BLUE PANTHERS (18-2/Wayne County/No. 12 NYSSWA Class C)
vs.
No. 2 seed NOTRE DAME BATAVIA FIGHTING IRISH (20-1/Genesee County II/No. 4 NYSSWA Class C)
Friday, Colburn Park, 5:30 pm
How they arrived here: Gananda opened up its post-season run with a 10-0 win over No. 9 seed Canisteo-Greenwood before taking down fourth-seeded Pembroke 1-0 in the semifinals. Notre Dame Batavia picked up a walk-off 4-3 win in the quarterfinals against No. 10 seed Williamson before taking down No. 6 seed Pavilion/York 9-2 in the following round to clinch a trip to the title game.
VIEW MORE PHOTOS FROM STEVEN TWARDZIK.
Scoring offense: Gananda (8.8 RPG), Notre Dame Batavia (9.9 RPG)
Scoring defense: Gananda (1.2 RPG), Notre Dame Batavia (2.6 RPG)
Trends: Gananda has not lost in over a month and a half. The Blue Panthers have pitched shutouts in six of their past seven outings. Notre Dame Batavia has picked up 11 consecutive wins, and is outscoring opponents 101-32 over that span.
Players to watch for Gananda: Henry Shutts Sr. P/INF (.567 BA, 34 H, 11 2B, 21 RBI, 35 R, 39.0 IP, 0.00 ERA, 5-0 record, four saves, 78 Ks), Maddox Stoughton Jr. P/INF (.517 BA, 31 H, 15 XBH, three HR, 32 RBI, 20 R, 27.0 IP, 2.33 ERA, 4-1 record, 47 Ks), Will Schneemann Jr. P/OF (.222 BA, 12 H, four XBH, nine RBI, 15 R, 46.2 IP, 0.45 ERA, 7-1 record, 84 Ks), Brady Wadsworth Jr. OF (.421 BA, eight H, one 2B, four RBI, seven R), Peter Jacob Sr. 3B (.235 BA, 12 H, three XBH, 11 RBI, 17 R), Anthony D’Agostino Jr. 1B (.222 BA, 12 H, seven XBH, 12 RBI, 15 R)
Players to watch for Notre Dame Batavia: Chase Antinore Sr. P/UTIL (.558 BA, 43 H, 13 XBH, two HR, 22 RBI, 37 R, 38.2 IP, 1.62 ERA, 6-0 record, 40 Ks), Evan Fitzpatrick Jr. P/INF (.431 BA, 28 H, 10 XBH, two HR, 29 RBI, 28 R, 50.0 IP, 1.68 ERA, 7-0 record, 86 Ks), Finn Davies Jr. P/1B (.303 BA, 20 H, six XBH, 17 RBI, 23 R, 27.1 IP, 2.30 ERA, 3-1 record, 37 Ks) Adyn Horzempa Sr. INF (.425 BA, 31 H, nine XBH, one HR, 28 RBI, 29 R), Drew Beachel Fr. LF (.381 BA, 24 H, one 2B, 12 RBI, 31 R), Eli Grice Sr. OF (.343 BA, 23 H, nine XBH, one HR, 24 RBI, 15 R)
Coaches: Bill McClare (Gananda), Rick Rapone (Notre Dame Batavia)
History 101: It’s the first championship appearance for Gananda since 2019, which is also the last time it won a sectional title. A victory would be the third Section V title in program history for the Blue Panthers. Notre Dame Batavia has brought home 11 sectional titles in its history and last won in 2023. A victory Friday would move the Fighting Irish into a tie for the third-most Section V championships.
What’s at stake: A spot in the NYS Class C Far West Regional Qualifier against the winner of Kendall and Genesee Valley-Belfast.
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