Large Schools
1. Orchard Park (AA) - Improved to 4-0 on the season with a 45-point win over West Seneca West, heading into a big week in ECIC I with Lancaster, Clarence, & Hamburg on the schedule.
2. Canisius (A) - Took care of business against Timon on Monday, jumping out to an early 17-point lead and then knocked off O'Hara two nights later, with both wins coming by double figures. They'll welcome their rivals in on Wednesday night and then pack for Erie, with a weekend at the BK Classic ahead that starts with a battle against the event hosts from Cathedral Prep.
3. Amherst (A2) - After I predicted the Tigers wouldn't lose again in the regular season, they jumped all over Williamsville South, racing out to a 42-7 lead at halftime that included a 22-2 second quarter. No more Battle of Main Street talk. Amherst will look to sweep Williamsville East this week and then take their first of two with Iroquois.
4. St. Francis (A) - Bounced back from a loss at Nichols on Friday night that felt like a kick in the gut, with a big road win at Syracuse CBA. The Red Raiders are looking to get another win streak going with games against O'Hara, St. Mary's, and Corcoran this week.
5. St. Joe's (A) - Played in a pair of hard fought battles last week, dropping the best game I've watched this season to Timon on a '3' with three seconds left, before knocking off Health Sciences in overtime on Saturday. It's rivalry week and the Marauders head into Canisius on Wednesday...a team they now own a win streak over.
6. Health Sciences (A2) - The Falcons lost their second game of the year on Saturday when St. Joe's clipped them in OT. They'll look to get back on track against Global Concepts before a Friday night visit to rival Tapestry.
7. Jamestown (AA) - Took down Frontier last week and look to do so again on Monday night. The also have a date at Lancaster on Wednesday and a game with West Seneca West on Saturday afternoon.
8. Niagara Falls (AA) - Took the frustration of cancelations out on CSAT where they won on Saturday afternoon. A battle for first place in the NFL is coming on Tuesday night when Niagara Wheatfield swings by the Cataract City.
9. McKinley (A1) - Defeated East in their only action last week. They visit South Park this week and take on Bishop Kearney in the MLK Classic on Saturday at City Honors.
10. Niagara Wheatfield (A1) - The Falcons improved to 5-0 in the NFL by shooting the lights out at Lockport, getting six 3-pointers apiece from TJ Robinson & Xander Fletcher. The win sets up the biggest game of the early season in the NFL - a battle for first place with defending league & Class AA champion Niagara Falls.
Small Schools
1. Timon (B) - Took a loss at Canisius on Monday and were on the ropes in danger of dropping a third game in four contests at St. Joe’s, when Jaiden Harrison found Jacob Humphrey for a game-winning 3-pointer. Not bad for a pair of sophomores. The Tigers knocked off Bishop Grimes on Saturday and will look for a third straight victory when they visit Nichols on Tuesday night.
2. Olean (B1) - One of three remaining undefeated teams in WNY, the Huskies won for the second time at Allegany-Limestone on Thursday night. Olean, who hasn't allowed an opponent over 58 points this season, can up their mark to 9-0 with wins over Fredonia & Southwestern this week.
3. Nichols (B) - Despite a one-point loss at Tapestry in December, I'm sliding the Vikings up a spot after earning a double-digit win at St. Mary's and then defeating Top 5 large school St. Francis on Friday. Nichols takes a swing at the #1 small school on Tuesday night in their gym when Timon rolls in.
4. Tapestry (B2) - Earned a 20-point win at Medina last week to improve to 5-4 on the season with games against Maritime and rival Health Sciences coming up.
5. Salamanca (C) - The Warriors made it five straight wins with their finest performance of the season - a 32-point win over previously ranked Fredonia. They visit Southwestern and host Dunkirk this week, ahead of a big rematch with Randolph, where they'll try to raise their record to 9-1 while raising money for Cystic Fibrosis.
6. St. Mary's (B) - The Lancers took down Pembroke on the road last week, but found out first hand how explosive Nichols can be in a 19-point loss. They have another tough opponent visiting this Thursday when St. Francis makes the trip to Lancaster.
7. Randolph (C) - Rolled Portville by 39 points last week and then scored a big nonleague victory over Allegany-Limestone on Saturday night. They visit Frewsburg this week and then get a rematch with the only team to beat them this season - Salamanca.
8. Lackawanna (B1) - On Saturday afternoon, the Steelers kept the scoreboard operator busy by hanging 106 points on Holland. Cleveland Hill & Eden visit this week.
9. Westfield (D) - The Wolverines are now 9-1 this season and the lone loss came at Olean to start the season. They just took a trip to Buffalo last week and came home with a 25-point win over Burgard.
10. Riverside (B1) - The undefeated Frontiers own a victory at Lew-Port this season and that result looks stronger than ever with the recent success of the Lancers in NFL play (wins over Lockport, CSAT, & NT). So welcome to my Top 10 Riverside. They are at City Honors this Tuesday.
-centercourt
Hey CC, great job as always! I really appreciate your coverage and all of your hard work. I sent you an email a couple weeks back, but I'm not sure if you got it. Keep up the good work!
Posted by: Andrew Webster | Monday, January 10, 2022 at 12:46 PM
I totally agree, great job as always CC. Also, I am wondering if there are any attendance issues that you are aware of for upcoming games, such as they had for last weeks game when St. Francis played at Nichols ("special pass from the school") and I also encountered at Amherst for their game vs Will South (family only).
Posted by: Nelson Adams | Monday, January 10, 2022 at 03:35 PM