ON TAP TODAY: 'RUSTY RAIL' RIVALRY HEADLINES 'FOOTBALL FRIDAY;' WAVERLY GIRLS PLAY FOR BERTH IN SECTION IV TITLE GAME (2024-10-25)

Valley Sports Report
THE VALLEY — The "Rusty Rail" rivalry, and a pair of games with playoff implications highlight "Football Friday," while the Waverly girls play for a spot in the Section IV, Class B girls soccer title game.

FOOTBALL
Sayre (1-8) at Athens (4-5), 7 p.m. @ Alumni Stadium:  The Redskins are coming off a 55-13 loss at Canton, while the Wildcats dropped a 63-26 decision at Muncy.

This is the 23rd edition of the "Rusty Rail" rivalry, which came to life as the senior project of then Sayre senior Luke Wheeler in 2000.

The Redskins won the initial game, but the Wildcats reeled off 17 straight wins before Sayre snapped the streak in 2018, and then added another win (21-14) in 2019. Athens won in 2020, 10-7, and again in 2021, 7-6.

After a year off in 2022, Athens won last year's battle, 42-14, at the Lockhart Street Bowl.

This is the 123rd meeting in the storied rivalry, with Sayre holding a 62-50-10 edge.

Waverly (6-1 overall, 2-0 Div. V) at Lansing (5-2, 2-0), 7 p.m.: The Wolverines, ranked No. 1 in Class C in New York State, are coming off a 50-6 win over Tioga, while the Bobcats blanked Whitney Point, 21-0.

Waverly is outscoring its opponents by an average of 45.1 to 10.3 points per game, while Lansing has outscored its opponents by an average of 34.8 to 23.3 points per game.

Lansing has played three Class D schools, including a 55-54 loss to Deposit-Hancock two weeks ago.

The winner takes command of the Division V title chase, and virtually assures itself of a playoff berth.

Deposit-Hancock (7-0, 1-0, Div. VII) at Tioga (4-3, 1-0), 7 op.m. @ Haggerty Field: The Tigers are coming off a 50-6 loss to state-ranked Waverly, while Deposit-Hancock rolled to a 49-12 win over state-ranked Bainbridge-Guilford.

D-H enters the contest ranked 5th in Class D, while Tioga is 14th.

Tioga has outscored it opponents by an average of 22.6 to 22.3 points per game this season, while D-H has outscored its foes by an average of 50.1 to 17.1 points per game.

Tioga's three losses are to teams with a combined record of 17-4 — Waverly (6-1), ranked No. 1 in Class C, Chenango Forks (6-1), ranked third in Class C, and Delhi (5-2), ranked 11th in Class D.

The winner clinches a spot in the upcoming Class D playoffs.

GIRLS SOCCER
Class B Playoffs
Semifinals
4-Lansing (10-4-2) at 1-Waverly (11-4), 6 p.m.: The Wolverines advanced to the semifinals with a 3-0 win over SVEC Tuesday, while the Bobcats advanced with a 2-1 win over Sidney.

The last two times these teams met in the postseason, Waverly won in shootouts, 4-2. The teams played 110 minutes scoreless soccer prior to the shootout.

The game will be remembered for an officiating error that resulted in Lansing returning to Memorial Stadium 72 hours after the original shootout for one kick. Makenzie Olmsted, then an 8th-grader, converted a penalty kick to seal the win.

VOLLEYBALL
Dryden (5-8) at Tioga (10-3), 4:15 p.m. JV start: The Tigers are coming off a 3-0 loss to Whitney Point, while the Purple Lions topped Watkins Glen, 3-1.

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