Mistakes plague Amherst; South not meeting expectations
by PATRICK J. NAGY Reporter

The message from Amherst coach Stefan Henn to his players is pretty clear.

"We need to make plays," Henn said.

The Tigers are 4-6 overall and 2-1 in Section VI Class B after dropping a 7-6 double overtime decision to West Seneca East on Monday, April 23 and a 10-8 non-league home game with Bishop Timon-St. Jude on Friday, April 27. Sandwiched in between both games was a 15-3 home win over Iroquois on Wednesday, April 25.

"It's really frustrating because if you look at all of our games, we should be 9-1," said Henn. "We're really poor in man-up situations and can't seem to hold on to the ball."

Amherst was 2 of 8 in extra-man offensive situations versus West Seneca East and 1 of 3 versus Iroquois. The Tigers also won only 9 of 17 faceoffs (60 percent) against West Seneca East but were 17 of 22 versus Iroquois.

The West Seneca East game was a disappointing loss. The Tigers saw a 6-4 lead slip away and the Trojans' final goal was a result of the team's inability to clear the ball out of their own zone.

Dan Lawson's four assists and Brent Doerflein's three goals led Amherst. Henn lauded the defensive work of Chris Brunetto. Goalie Matt Alwess made nine saves.

Lawson scored six times against Iroquois. Casey Rich also had six points with three goals and three assists. Doerflein assisted on five goals.

Henn did not have statistics from the Timon game, but said his team had at least five opportunities to score in transition and players dropped the lacrosse ball.

"We keep working on the same stuff in practice and we can't move ahead if we continue to do what we're doing," he added.

Henn again lauded the defensive work of Brunetto and liked the offensive work of Kurt Ebsary.

Amherst (4-6, 2-1) hosted Sweet Home on Tuesday but results were unavailable before The Bee went to press. They play at 7:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 3 at Williamsville South and host powerhouse Penn-Yann at 4 p.m. on Saturday, May 5. The Tigers are 0-4 lifetime against Penn- Yann.

Williamsville South

The Billies had high hopes for this season and so far are not achieving expectations.

South (2-4) is on a three-game losing streak after losses to Grand Island, 11-0, on April 23, West Seneca East, 14-2, on April 25 and 9-4 to Iroquois on April 27.

"We're taking more baby steps now than what I imagined but that's the way it's going right now," said coach John Szymendara. "We're a young team who is starting to see where individuals fit on the field… But the kids are working hard. You can't ask for anything else out of them."

Nick Brace, who was moved from long stick midfielder to help out on close defense, leads the team in ground balls with 54. Nick Leonard is not far behind with 50. Mike Quinlan has been playing solid in goal.

Szymendara hopes a turning point for his team came in the second half of the Iroquois game. Trailing 7-0 at halftime, South outscored the Chiefs, 4-2.

South's second win of the season came over Lake Shore, 10-8, on April 19.

Joe Glieco leads all South scorers with nine goals. Nick Frangos and Mike Glieco each has five. Gabe Gonzalez has scored four.

Besides the Amherst game, South played at Hamburg on Tuesday but results were unavailable before The Bee went to press.

e-mail: pnagy@beenews.com