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Softball: Victor, Canandaigua, Honeoye among local contenders for Section V titles

bob chavez, mpnnow
·4 min read
Ariana Buchiere and the Canandaigua softball team are the No. 3 seed in Class A1.
Ariana Buchiere and the Canandaigua softball team are the No. 3 seed in Class A1.

The 2022 Section V softball tournament is underway and a few local teams are expecting to have their say before it’s all said and done.

Victor in Class AA has an eye on returning to the top for the first time since 2019, Canandaigua Academy is a No. 3 seed in Class A1 following one of its best seasons in recent memory and Honeoye is the No. 1 seed in Class D1.

Of course, seeding positions mean little because the games still need to played so let’s check in with the local teams to see what they’re bringing into the 2022 tournament.

More: High school sports results for 2022 spring season

Class AA

No. 2 Victor (12-6) opens at home on Tuesday against No. 7 Greece Athena/Odyssey (6-13) and the question for the Blue Devils is which team will show? Victor has sparkled in several wins behind solid pitching from sophomore Carrie Sidare and freshman Olivia Steinorth. But the Blue Devils have also lost games in which they’ve allowed 9, 10, 12 and 19 runs.

The Victor offense is deep but sophomore infielder Joelle Jay is probably the most consistent. Sidare, eighth-grader Audrey Steinorth and juniors Makenna Hobson and Marissa Mancini are among the regular contributors.

Olivia Steinorth and Victor take the No. 2 seed into the Class AA Tournament.
Olivia Steinorth and Victor take the No. 2 seed into the Class AA Tournament.

No. 3 Rush-Henrietta and No. 6 Hilton are the potential semifinal opponents for Victor, teams it beat handily during the regular season. But if a championship game against No. 1 Fairport unfolds, the Blue Devils will be eager for redemption after Fairport’s double-header sweep of Victor on April 29.

Class A1

Canandaigua (14-5) put together one of its best seasons in years and opens as the No. 3 seed at home on Tuesday against No. 6 Bishop Kearney and make no mistake, this is a competitive bracket. But the Braves also played a tough schedule with losses to Pittsford Sutherland and Pittsford Mendon, the top two seeds in Class A2.

Juniors Kathryn Cywinski and Currin Rosato along with sophomore Ariana Buchiere are among the leaders for a young CA team that has just four seniors.

A win likely sends CA to No. 2 seed Webster Thomas for the semifinals.

Class B1

No. 3 Midlakes (8-9) opens at home on Monday against a familiar foe in No. 6 Palmyra-Macedon (5-12), a team the Screaming Eagles defeated twice this season by a combined 32-10.

Catelin Couillard, left, and Midlakes open their Class B1 Tournament on Monday against FL East opponent Palmyra-Macedon.
Catelin Couillard, left, and Midlakes open their Class B1 Tournament on Monday against FL East opponent Palmyra-Macedon.

Senior Maggie Mahoney is the pitcher in charge for the Screaming Eagles, who won three of their first four games but won consecutive games just once over their final 13 games. Senior Morganne Miles, sophomore Catelin Couillard and juniors Grace Murphy and Hanna Godkin are the most consistent batters for Midlakes.

The winner of this game will most likely see another familiar team in the semifinals as No. 2 Waterloo, a Finger Lakes East opponent, is on the other side of the bracket to play No. 7 Aquinas.

Class C1

The No. 2 seed is Bloomfield (19-0), which opens on Monday against No. 7 Alexander (13-7). The Bombers, who won eight games by shutout and four more in which they allowed two runs or less, are eager for a return trip to the championship game. They lost there last spring to Avon (15-1), which is the No. 1 seed again this season.

Calla McCombs and the Bloomfield softball team are hoping for a return trip to the Section V championship.
Calla McCombs and the Bloomfield softball team are hoping for a return trip to the Section V championship.

Bloomfield is solid all over the field but freshman pitcher Ashlyn Wright is the catalyst. Sophomore Brynn Westlake, eighth-grader Calla McCombs and freshmen Brianna Leitten and Abby O’Brien are consistent batters who know how to get on base and advance.

No. 12 seed Marcus Whitman (0-18) opened on Friday with a loss to No. 5 Addison in a first-round game.

Class C3

No. 11 Red Jacket (7-12) opened its tournament at No. 6 Harley Allendale Columbia (11-6) on Saturday and ended its season with a 2-0 loss.

Class D1

Honeoye (15-4) is the top seed in this class and got there with an offense that can score 15-plus runs like it did in 11 games this season along with crisp defense and deep pitching.

Alexa Colon and the Honeoye Bulldogs are the No. 1 seed in Class D1.
Alexa Colon and the Honeoye Bulldogs are the No. 1 seed in Class D1.

Juniors Alexis Johnson and Alexa Colon split the pitching duties and are active on offense too. They’re joined by senior Sarah Jarosinski, junior Olivia Dibble and sophomore Ava Higgins as sparkplugs for an offense that will lead the Bulldogs into Tuesday’s home opener against No. 8 Belfast/Genesee Valley (8-11).

No. 13 Naples (2-17) ended its season with a 19-4 loss to No. 4 Fillmore (10-7) on Saturday.

This article originally appeared on MPNnow: Softball: Victor, Canandaigua, Honeoye among local contenders for Section V titles