Pioneer Weekly Update: Sept. 18 Edition

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Cross Country: Men 5th, Women 7th at Oswego Invitational

The men's cross country team finished 5th while the women finished 7th at the Oswego Invitational on Saturday afternoon.

Jacob Hanss (East Rochester) led the men's team in the 8k race. He finished 9th in a time of 27:12.8. Shawn Rutledge (Watkins Glen) was 36th in 28:31.2, and Eric Hulbert (Mexico) was 51st in 29:34.6. The Pioneers were 5th in the team standings with 149 points and finished ahead of six other teams that scored. A total 126 runners competed in race. 

Lindsey Thiel (Liverpool) led the women's team with a 21st place finish on the 5k course. She crossed the finish line in 21:16.8. Olivia Leonti (Port Byron) was 41st in 22:04.2 and Katherine Frascella was 77th in 24:31.7. The Pioneer women finished the event with a score of 184. 110 runners representing 14 teams completed the 5k course.

Football: 0-3

The University of Rochester put together two 4th quarter scoring drives to rally for a 14-7 victory over Alfred State on Saturday afternoon. The Yellowjackets accumulated 149 yards in the final quarter.

Neither offenses could get much going in the 1st half. With the U of R driving late in the 2nd quarter, Michael Zimmerman (Canandaigua) intercepted a tipped pass on the Yellowjackets 14 and returned it 31 yards. After a personal foul the Pioneers moved the ball to the Rochester 40. Three plays later Hunter Evingham (Bolivar Richburg) connected with Jalen Long (Rochester/Bishop Kearney) on a 29-yard pass play with only six seconds left in the half. The Zack Goodwin (Poughkeepsie/F.D. Roosevelt) gave the Pioneers a 7-0 lead at the half.

The Pioneers had the best opportunity to score in the 3rd quarter when they put together a 13-play drive that was stopped inside the Rochester 10 yard line when Konner Oakes intercepted a pass. Following the interception, Rochester tied it up with 12:16 remaining in the contest when Emanuel Calmar rushed in from five yards out to cap a 11-play, 92-yard drive. After forcing a three and out, Rochester would put together a seven-play 62-yard drive that was capped by a tip-toe catch by Daniel Bronson in the back of the endzone. The 24-yard pass from Matt Gallagher gave the Yellowjackets a lead they wouldn't give back up.

The Pioneers had two more offensive chances. They drove the ball all the way down to the Rochester 28 but the drive was stopped with 3:28 remaining. After forcing a Rochester punt in the final seconds, the Pioneers tried for some last second magic but were only able to advance 22 yards before time expired.

Evingham was 15 for 32 for 177 yards and a score. Long led the receivers with three catches for 75 yards while Chris Meadows (New Rochelle) led the rushing attack with 61 yards on 17 carries.

John Lauretti (Seaford) had a monster day on the defensive side of the ball for the Pioneers. He recorded 13 tackles (11 solo), a sack, and forced a fumble. Justin Espinal (Beacon) record seven tackles while Jamal Little (Brooklyn/Thomas Jefferson) and Austin Parker (Port Byron) each had six.

Men's Soccer: 1-4-1

The blue & gold were 0-1-1 this past week in a pair of tight contests. They tied Pitt Bradford 3-3 on Wednesday and lost 2-1 on Friday night following a late goal by D'Youville.

Brandon Holley (Livonia) scored a pair of goals in a back and forth affair at Pitt Bradford. The Pioneers had to rally from a one-goal deficit three times in the contest. Holley's second goal of the game with just over five minutes left in the contest tied it for good. Ryan Johnson (Sodus) also scored in the game while Vinny Biancuzzo (Genesee Valley) made six saves in net.

D'Youville scored in the 6th minute to take an early lead on Friday night but the Pioneers tied it up in the 80th minute on a goal by Abdou Mbaye (Bronx/Bayard Rustin). Mbaye scored after getting a lead pass from Holley. The Spartans scored the game winner with 2:49 remaining when Josh Hammer scored on a header off a corner kick by Alf Egge.

Women's Soccer: 4-2

The Pioneers went 2-1 during a busy week of action. The blue & gold defeated SUNY Poly 1-0 and Christendom 7-1 but lost a 1-0 decision at Penn State Abington.

Melissa Mineti (Livonia) scored the lone goal of the contest vs. SUNY Poly in the 11th minute. The Pioneers kept the Wildcats off the board the rest of way behind a solid defensive effort.

Michalya Salatel (Genseo) scored twice and had an assist in the victory over Christendom. Mineti, Darien Hooker (Canisteo Greenwood), and Sarah Williams (Cal Mum) all had a goal and an assist while Chloe Cox (Tucson, AZ) and Karley Trotta (Massapequa/Plainedge) both netted a goal.

Versus Abington, the blue & gold held a 14 to 8 shot advantage but could not find the back of the net. A Lion goal in the 66th minute proved to be the game-winner.

Allison Danielak (Brockport) was 2-1 and made 12 saves in net for the team in 225 minutes of action.

Volleyball 3-4

The volleyball team defeated Medaille 25-23, 25-23, and 25-19 in their only action of the week. In both of the first two sets, the Pioneers had to rally before winning while in the 3rd set the team led throughout.

Bryanna Godfrey (Tioga) led the Pioneers with 15 kills and five digs. Madison Webster (Corning) led the way with 16 digs, Sarah Raichlin(Chenango Valley) added 18 assists and 11 digs, and Samantha Tumolo (Manorville/Eastport South Manor) had 13 assists and four service aces. Kiara Perkins (Coudersport, PA) had six kills while Morgan Hungerford(Lyndonville) and Alyssa Martin (Portville) each had five. The Pioneers hit .206 on the game, collected 43 digs, and registered seven aces.

Garcia's Top Cut Player of the Week: John Lauretti (Football) and Melissa Mineti (Soccer)