The Hornell Red Raiders battled back from a 12-point deficit in the first quarter to beat the Livonia Bulldogs 68-66 on the road Friday night.
Livonia’s Connor Feehan hit two big 3s and scored 10 of his 14 points in the first quarter to help the Bulldogs jump to a big 22-10 lead at the end of the first quarter. The Red Raiders were able to make some adjustments to outscore the Bulldogs in the second quarter 24-17, but two more big 3s from Nicholas Coyle and 9 points from Thomas Stewart kept the Bulldogs in the lead 39-34 going into halftime.
The Raiders continued to chip away at the scoring deficit and took the 46-45 lead with about 3 minutes left in the third quarter, a lead they held the rest of the game. In true Hornell-Livonia fashion, the two teams battled it out until the final seconds of play. Hornell led by as much as 8 points in the 4th quarter, but were trailing by just one point, 65-64 with 28 seconds remaining in the game. With 5 seconds on the shot clock, Gennaro Picco hit a clutch 3 to put the Raiders up by 4 with about 22 seconds to play. A Hornell foul sent Livonia’s Thomas Stewart to the line, and his 2 free throws put the Bulldogs within 2 points with 8 seconds remaining. Nick Coyle intercepted Hornell’s inbound pass and found Connor Feehan in the corner for a three-point shot. The ball bounced off the rim, and Coyle grabbed the rebound for the final 3-pointer of the game, but Hornell’s Gennaro Picco flew through the air just in time to block the shot before the final buzzer sounded.
Hornell coach, Kirk Scholes was glad to come out with the win. “Tonight, we found a way to win on a night where we didn’t play our ‘A’ game,” said Scholes. “We had some defensive lapses and didn’t rebound the ball nearly well enough. Credit to Livonia for knocking down some shots and playing tough all night.”
Hornell senior, Gennaro Picco, had one of the best performances of his career, scoring a season-high 40 points on the night. Picco shot an impressive 15 for 23 from the field and was 6 for 7 from the free throw line. He also led his team with 9 rebounds and 6 assists. “Gennaro was an absolute monster,” said coach Scholes. “He took over the game offensively. He’s as special of a player that I’ve ever coached. Tonight, as good as he was offensively, I loved his defense. I also thought he read what the defense gave him, and his efficiency was through the roof.”
The Red Raiders also saw junior, Austyn Gollnitz take the court for the first time this season. After a severe leg injury during a football game sidelined him since October, Gollnitz checked in to grab a bucket and take a charge in the second half to help his team in the win. “I thought Austyn and Marco (Picco) gave us a lift off the bench,” continued Scholes. “Both were in the game when we made the run to get back in the game and made big plays during that stretch.” Marco added 5 points for Hornell.
PJ Picco scored 9 points for the Raiders, and Aaron McInerney and Wyatt Evingham also added 5 points each. Xzaiver Patrick scored a bucket and had 5 rebounds for the Red Raiders.
The Bulldogs had four scorers in double-digits. Thomas Stewart led his team with 17 points and also led all players with 13 rebounds on the night for a double-double. Connor Feehan had 14 points and 6 assists. Jackson Cook and Nicholas Coye added 15 and 10 points respectively.
As the Red Raiders head into the final 5 games of the season, coach Scholes reflected, “We know that it’s going to take a group effort to get where we want to go. Everyone is going to have to raise their level. In those stressful moments, we need to stay composed, value the ball, and get stops as a group.”
The Red Raiders have two road games this week, traveling to Dansville on Wednesday and Wayland-Cohocton on Friday. Tune into Peish Sports on YouTube for live coverage of Hornell athletics.
