Geneva 36, Penn Yan/Dundee 0
In their first game without former head coach Larry Guererri, Geneva shut out Penn Yan in convincing fashion.
Guererri passed away unexpectedly earlier this spring. Former Geneva great Colin Cooper took over the reins as the new Panthers head coach.
Panthers quarterback Rey DeJesus had an impressive night with 112 total yards and three rushing touchdowns. Senior running back Quadere Lawson, who is also one of Guererri’s three sons on the team, finished with 132 rushing yards and two scores on just six carries.
De’Sean Bruce snagged two interceptions including a 40-yard pick six while Xavier Praylor recorded an interception as well. Gianni Velazquez had eight tackles with two TFL’s.
Geneva (1-0) will head back home to face Rochester Prep next Friday night. Penn Yan (0-1) will look to get back on track on the road at Hornell on Saturday, September 9th at 1:30 pm.
Fairport 21, Penfield 17
The Red Raider defense held the Patriots scoreless and the offense registered the final 14 points of the game to give Fairport a comeback win.
The Red Raiders led 7-3 at the half, but the Patriots quickly took the lead as Elijah Sanchez returned the second-half kickoff for a touchdown. On the ensuing drive, Anthony Theodorakakos forced the Fairport QB into a bad throw which Brodie Joyce intercepted and took 56 yards for a pick-six, giving Penfield a 17-7 lead.
However, the Red Raiders did not blink. Bailey Frank ran 47 yards for a touchdown on their next time out to make it 17-14. After the Fairport defense forced a punt, Jackson Rucker connected with his tight end Marques Garrett for a 38-yard touchdown to give the Red Raiders a 21-17 lead heading into the fourth quarter.
The Fairport defense remained strong and the offense was able to run out the clock for the win.
Rucker completed 25 of his 35 attempts for 225 yards and two touchdowns. Sam Pucci caught 13 passes for 148 yards and a beautiful touchdown in the first half.
Fairport (1-0) will take on Hilton next week in their home opener next Friday night while Penfield (1-0) will head to Rush-Henrietta on Saturday afternoon.
Hilton 21, Pittsford 6
Behind an exceptional performance from Robert Lowry, the Cadets defended homefield in their season opener.
The senior running back finished with 207 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Lowry had touchdown runs of 80, 78, and 14 yards in the contest.
Hilton is moving back up to Class AA this season after winning the Class A sectional title last year. The Cadets made it all the way to the state semifinals in 2022.
Jaxon Bernas scored the only touchdown for Pittsford.
Hilton (1-0) will hit the road next week to take on Fairport on Friday, September 8th. Pittsford (0-1) will have their home opener against McQuaid the same night.
UPrep 33, Aquinas 7
The Griffins scored the final 33 points of the game to secure an impressive Week One victory.
Aquinas got on the board first as freshman quarterback Trent Buttles connected with Noah Collins-Howard for a touchdown. From there, it was all Griffins.
UPrep junior QB Tavion Byrd connected with Tyrell Simmons for two touchdowns in the first half to make it 13-7 at the break.
Byrd opened the second half with an impressive 86-yard touchdown to make it 19-7. Simmons got it done on defense as well, as he forced a fumble on a scrambling Buttles which was caught in the air by Jaylen Singleton and returned 44 yards for a touchdown.
C.J. Robinson concluded the scoring, running in a touchdown in the fourth quarter on his former team.
Robinson finished with 120 yards on 15 carries while Simmons had 65 yards on five receptions.
The game was the first for Section V great Maurice Jackson as head coach of the Li’l Irish
UPrep (1-0) will play Class A powerhouse Canandaigua in their home opener next Friday. Aquinas (0-1) will try and bounce back next week as they head on the road to take on Edison Tech on Saturday afternoon.
Canandaigua 27, Spencerport 3
Canandaigua scored 27 unanswered points to kick their season off on a high note.
Spencerport’s Joshua Winton nailed a 16-yard field late in the first half to give the Rangers the lead. On the ensuing drive, Drew Williamee connected with Sean Olvany on a ten-yard touchdown pass to make it 7-3 into the half.
In the third quarter, Dominic Gullace returned a 75-yard punt return to the house to extend the lead. Sam Clark later added a rushing score of his own to put the game out of reach.
Williamee ended up with 146 passing yards and two touchdowns while Clark finished with 76 yards on the ground.
Canandaigua (1-0) will face a stiff test next Friday as they take on UPrep at the Rochester Community Sports Complex. Spencerport (0-1) will look to turn things around the same night against Arcadia at home.
East 45, Churchville-Chili 14
Senior Ervin Wiggins got it done in all three phases of the game, leading the Eagles to a dominant home victory.
Wiggins returned a kickoff 76 yards for a touchdown, took an interception 46 yards to the house, and had seven receptions for 117 yards and a touchdown in an impressive performance.
Senior quarterback Zymier Jackson completed 17 of his 27 passes for 245 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score. Anthony Diaz also had an interception on defense.
The Saints best play of the day was when Ricardo Lagares returned a kickoff 93 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter.
The Eagles (1-0) will head to Gates Chili next Friday while Churchville-Chili (1-0) will welcome in Athena for their home opener on the same evening.
Arcadia 28, Gates Chili 27 F/OT
The Titans stopped a two-point conversion from the Spartans in overtime to secure a win on opening night.
Arcadia trailed 21-13 late in the fourth and needed a game-winning drive to have any chance at a win. Deshaun Caesar found Mykel Whitfield in the end zone to pull the Titans within two points. On the two-point conversion, Caesar found a wide-open Ethan Alia to tie the game up at 21 and send the game into overtime.
In OT, Dashaun McClemmon scored from three yards out to put the Titans back on top. Conner Viele nailed the PAT to make it 28-21.
On the ensuing possession for Gates Chili, Jonathan Vance scored on a QB sneak on fourth and goal to pull within one point. The Spartans elected to go for two points to win the game, but they were stopped short of the goal line.
Arcadia (1-0) will face Spencerport next Friday night while Gates Chili (0-1) will take on East at home the same night.
McQuaid 55, Edison Tech 0
The Knights led 28-0 after the first quarter and 49-0 at the half as they opened their quest for an unprecedented fifth straight Class AA title with a convincing victory.
Allen Nesmith had a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter on the ground while Matt Wilson returned an interception for a touchdown in the opening frame.
McQuaid (1-0) will travel to Pittsford to take on the Panthers next Friday night while Edison Tech (0-1) will host Aquinas on Saturday evening.
Pembroke 55, Red Jacket 28
The defending 8-man champs picked up right where they left with a statement win over Red Jacket Friday afternoon.
Pembroke stormed out the gates as they held a commanding 27-6 lead late in the second quarter and never looked back.
Red Jacket’s Micah Harshfield did his part with 183 rushing yards and two scores. Matt Allen pitched in 76 yards and a touchdown of his own.
Pembroke (1-0) will take on Caledonia Mumford/Byron-Bergen next Friday night. Red Jacket (0-1) will face Allegany-Limestone the following night.