Congratulations to Tom Vasey who was voted "Coach of the Year" for Section V Class AA. Vasey, ably assisted by Paul Petersen, is in his first year at the helm of the Monarchs, and has led Mercy to a 16-2 record and the top seed in the Section V girls AA tournament. It is believed to be the first time in school history that the Monarchs have been the #1 seed for the Section V basketball tournament.

Greece Arcadia, Fairport and Mercy - the top three teams in the Democrat and Chronicle large-school coaches poll - headline the nine top seeds in the Section V girls basketball tournament.

Pairings were announced today during a luncheon at RIT Inn & Conference Center in Henrietta. Look for full analysis and all of the brackets in Friday's editions.

Fairport, a semifinal loser to eventual champion Penfield last year, is No. 1 in Class AAA, while Mercy is No. 1 in AA and Greece Arcadia is the top seed in A.

Other top seeds: Finger Lakes East runner-up Palmyra-Macedon (Class BB), defending Class C state champion Nazareth Academy (B), Gananda (CC), Keshequa (C), Section V's only unbeaten Elba (DD) and Canaseraga (D).

Rochester D&C Story Link

1 2 3 4 Total
12 11 15 8 46
21 14 16 24 75

NYS Section V Class AA quarterfinals

Greta Buerman scored a career-high 31 points on 11-for-17 shooting and added seven rebounds and five steals for Mercy (17-2).

Mary Kate Tierney had 16 points, 7 rebounds, 7 assists and 7 steals and Katie Strong added 11 points for the Monarchs.

Tara Caples scored 17 for Spencerport (2-17).
Mercy advances to play Canandaigua in the Sectional semifinals at 8:00 PM Saturday at Gates-Chili.

SPENCERPORT: Shannon Martin 0, Chelsea Buoye 0, Sam Sullivan 6, Molly Campion 2, Emily Potter 4, Candice Brinson 6, Kelly Peer 2, Amanda Kubitz 7, Tara Caples 17, Emily Leone 2, Ashley Alvarez 0, Lindsay Justice 0.

MERCY: Liz Geen 2, Addie Cunningham 2, Kelsey Bullis 2, Sarah Hasenauer 6, Caitlyn Schiano 0, Katie Strong 11, Mary Kate Tierney 16, Ellen Fedick 2, Victoria Tucci 0, Greta Buerman 31, Tylar Guerrieri 0, Danielle Fuss 3.

3-point goals: Sullivan 2, Brinson, Kubitz, Hasenauer, Tierney 2, Buerman.

1 2 3 4 Total
13 9 7 10 39
3 20 12 19 54

Mary Kate Tierney scored 16 points with 16 rebounds, Sarah Hasenauer added 14 points and four three-pointers and Greta Buerman chipped in with 13 points for the Monarchs (18-2).
Mercy will play Greece Athena for the Section V AA Championship on Thursday, March 4 at Gates Chili @ 8:00 PM.
Ashley Zahn scored 23 points for Canandaigua (11-9).

CANANDAIGUA: Janae Guy 5, Stacy Wade 0, Lauren Hanggi 0, Marissa Congdon 0, Jackie Corbett 3, Mackenzey Tallman 0, Meaghan McCarthy 0, Ashley Zahn 23, Bailey Knapton 4, Kelly Broderick 2, Bailey Crapton 4.

MERCY: Liz Geen 0, Kelsey Bullis 0, Sarah Hasenauer 14, Caitlyn Schiano 0, Katie Strong 9, Mary Kate Tierney 16, Ellen Fedick 2, Greta Buerman 13, Tylar Guerrieri 0, Danielle Fuss 0.
3-point goals: Hasenauer 4, Tierney 2, Guy, Corbett, Zahn 4.


D&C Game Story & Photos

(Class AA final)
1 2 3 4 Total
14 12 9 8 43
11 10 16 20 57



GATES — They talked about it in gym class Thursday morning, the Mercy Monarchs did, not that they haven't been talking all season about winning a Section V basketball title again.

"Trust me, we looked up at the banner — 1996," point guard Mary Kate Tierney said, naming the last championship. But the wait is over for the all-girls school that was a perennial power in the 1990s, when Mercy vs. Greece Athena for a sectional patch seemed like an annual ritual in basketball and soccer.

Tierney scored 10 of her 15 points to spark an 18-4 surge early in the fourth quarter that snapped a tie at 35 and sent the top-seeded Monarchs on to a 57-43 victory over No. 2 Athena in the Class AA title game at Gates Chili High. Mercy (19-2) will play Fairport or Gates Chili in the state qualifier.

"This is a great feeling," Tierney said.

The tournament MVP added 10 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 steals. Senior guards Kelsey Bullis (11 points) and Sarah Hasenauer (nine) made big baskets as Athena (15-6) kept close tabs on Tierney and Greta Buerman (six).

The Trojans, who beat Mercy in the 2005 title game as part of their run of four straight that ended last year, were led by forward Samantha Garbacz.

"She killed us in the first half," Tierney said.


Garbacz scored 14 of her 18 points before halftime, but then the Monarchs focused on limiting the senior's touches.

"They went matchup zone and we were a little confused. We weren't attacking gaps. We were slow to move the ball," said Athena coach Mike Butler, whose club led 26-21 at half. "We don't throw the ball away 12 to 15 times we'd have been OK."

Tierney's driving layup closed the third quarter with Mercy ahead, 37-35. Then Hasenauer drilled a 3-pointer just 26 seconds into the fourth, Tierney converted a three-point play and then stole a crosscourt pass and sank a pull-up jumper in transition for a 45-37 lead.

"I was feeling it tonight," Hasenauer said.

Garbacz scored to try to settle Athena, but then Hasenauer knocked down her third 3-pointer and Tierney sank a long 3 right after that. Suddenly, Mercy was up 51-39 with 4:43 remaining and the emotion of the moment sent Tierney high-stepping back on defense.

"I think the turning point was she really carried us on defense in the fourth quarter, getting after rebounds and securing them," first-year coach Tom Vasey said.

He moved the 5-foot-11, All-Greater Rochester pick to point guard early in the season because Mercy needed a leader. She still averages about 21 points and 15 rebounds.

"I appreciate the opportunity I've had to coach this team. Having seven seniors made the transition easy," Vasey said.


JDIVERON@DemocratandChronicle.com


ATHENA: Nina Korn 2, Emily Shoemaker 0, Stephanie Imon 2, Brie Capezzuto 0, Stephanie Orago 0, Abby Beigeman 0, Emily Suemaker 0, Dana Cohan 8, Brittany Quataert 7, Brittany Brown 2, Christina Leonardo 0, Shannon Kirkpatrick 4, Samantha Garbacz 18, Lauren Kelley 0, Talia Pringle 0, Keri Kephart 0.

MERCY: Liz Geen 4, Addie Cunningham 0, Kelsey Bullis 11, Sarah Hasenauer 9, Caitlyn Schiano 4, Katie Strong 7, Mary Kate Tierney 15, Ellen Fedick 0, Victoria Tucci 0, Greta Buerman 6, Tylar Guerrieri 0, Danielle Fuss 1.

3-point goals: Cohan, Bullis, Hasenauer 3, Tierney. Fouled out: Cohan.

D&C Game Story & Photos

Fairport 68, Mercy 60 (Class AA state qualifier)
1 2 3 4 Total
14 13 10 23 60
11 15 9 33 68

Fairport (20-2) outscored Mercy (19-3) 18-10 in overtime to advance.

MERCY: Mary Kate Tierney 29, Greta Buerman 2, Kelsey Bullis 8, Sarah Hasenauer 5, Katie Strong 7, Tylar Guerrieri 2, Ellen Fedick 2, Caitlyn Schiano 2, Danielle Fuss 3.

FAIRPORT: Allyson DiMagno 27, Renee Metzger 4, Jordan Harrington 14, Caroline Dalton 9, Lindsay McKinnon 9, Rebecca Navarro 0, Kyra Horne 5, Taylor Hartley 0.

3-point goals: Fuss, Tierney 3, Hasenauer, McKinnon 3, Harrington 2, Dalton. Fouled out: Horne, Buerman, Hasenauer.


JEFF DIVERONICA • D&C STAFF WRITER • MARCH 8, 2010

GATES – Down seven points with one minute, 27 seconds left in regulation, the Fairport girls basketball team rallied to force overtime, as star forward Allyson DiMagno made three free throws with 3.3 seconds left, and went on to beat Mercy 68-60 in the Class AA state tournament qualifier game at Gates Chili High School.

Fairport (20-2) will play Section VI champion Lockport in Saturday’s 4 p.m. state quarterfinals back at Gates Chili. Mercy, which was led by Mary Kate Tierney’s 29 points, finished 19-3. The Monarchs had beaten Fairport, 54-44 on Dec. 11.

The Red Raiders were led by DiMagno’s 27 points and career-high 29 rebounds. The senior forward bound for Cornell also had 7 steals and 6 assists.

Jordan Harrington’s 3-pointer with 22 seconds left tied it at 47 for Fairport. Katie Strong converted a 3-point play off a pass from Tierney with eight seconds left to give Mercy the edge, but then DiMagno was fouled shooting a 3-pointer with :03.3 on the clock.

She had just missed a free throw on ther last trip, but this time she made all three to force OT.

Fairport never trailed in the extra session, as Lindsay McKinnon and then freshman Caroline Dalton hit 3-pointers to make it 62-54.

Both teams traded runs in the first half, which ended on a momentum-stealing 3-pointer at the horn by Fairport point guard Lindsay McKinnon. Mercy led 27-26 at the break, but Fairport scored seven straight points over the final 90 seconds. The Monarchs had used an 8-2 spurt to take a 27-19 lead, as Tierney pumped in 13 points.

The senior scored five points early as Mercy shot out to a 7-1 lead, but the Red Raiders answered with an 8-0 run capped by DiMagno’s 3-point play. Fairport got open shots against the Monarchs’ 2-3 zone, but they didn’t consistently fall.

Mercy led 19-14 and 23-17, as Fairport played the final 4½ minutes of the half without freshman forward Caroline Dalton (three fouls).

The teams went back and forth more in the third quarter, as the lead changed hands three times and the Monarchs led 37-35 headed to the fourth.