Mike Wertman/Staff First team members of the Niagara-Orleans All-League baseball squad. Click on photo for larger image

Kurtz, Pierce named to N-O First Team

Thursday, June 10, 2026

Fresh off their 2004 state runner-up finish, two Newfane baseball players have been named to the Niagara-Orleans League all-star First Team.

Senior pitcher Tony Kurtz and senior shortstop Jeff Pierce received their league’s highest post-season accolades, along with five Albion players and three from Medina.

Meanwhile, all other local N-O schools, Barker, Roy-Hart, Starpoint and Wilson all placed girls on the league’s First Team all-star softball squad.

Newfane’s baseball Panthers, coached by veteran Jim Conley, posted a 10-4 N-O record but went on to win the Section VI and West Regional titles, placing second in the state Class B playoffs last week.

Pierce hit .396 with two home runs and 10 RBIs and had a fielding average of .960. He also picked up three wins on the mound with an .era of 2.44.

Kurtz went 6-1 on the mound with 68 strikeouts in 39 innings of work. He had two shutouts and one no hitter. At the plate, he hit .367 with one home run and 11 RBIs.

Albion, which claimed the N-O crown for the sixth time in the last seven years with a 13-1 record, is represented by senior pitcher Matt Beach, junior catcher Bobby Warne, senior outfielder Derek Kinder, junior outfielder Pete Lusk and senior first baseman Kyle Piccirilli.

Medina, which finished 11-3, placed the trio of junior shortstop Jacob Rosenbeck, junior second baseman Ryan Hodgins and senior designated hitter Paul Osborne.

Rounding out the first team is Akron senior outfielder Charlie Hake.

Roy-Hart featured a trio of Second Team selections. They are senior designated hitter Justin Jerge, junior outfielder Jason Phipps and senior outfielder Greg Donnelly.

A trio of pitcher/catcher batteries headed the N-O’s sotball First Team.

Those batteries are as follows: from league champion Starpoint, senior pitcher Erica Zak and junior catcher Lisa Batt; from runner-up Barker, pitcher Missy Flint and catcher Sara Lewis, both seniors; and from Medina, junior pitcher Jennifer Biernacki and senior catcher Sara Dresser.

The first team also includes a fourth pitcher in Wilson sophomore Amber Kraft.

Rounding out the first team is a quintet of infielders including Starpoint senior Mallory Boron, Wilson senior Jessica Horvath, Roy-Hart junior Megan Boyle, Albion junior Ashlee Salisbury and Akron senior Tricia McKeon,

Biernacki, Dresser, Zak, Flint, Boron and McKeon are all repeat selections while Salisbury was a second team pick last year.

Also for the Roy-Hart Lady Rams, senior Ashley Cain earned Second Team honors and senior Holly Corser was an honorable mention selection.

The second team also included Wilson seniors Eric Zastrow and Michelle Murphy along with junior Melissa Moore and senior Kristi Brown from Barker, senior Samantha Poodry and junior Megan Farrell from Akron, senior Sara Bush and junior Stephanie Meyer from Starpoint and Newfane senior Jessica Steel.

Flint posted a 10-3 record on the mound striking out 133 in 82 innings with an .era of 0.683. At the plate, she hit .292.

“Missy is an awesome player, team leader and an honor student. She is what every coach hopes for,” said Barker coach George Teague. “She threw two no-hitters this year and was a tremendous influence on the team.”

Horvath hit. 359 and had a fielding average of .961 for Wilson while McKeon hit .410 with four doubles, a triple and 13 RBIs and a fielding average of .993 for Akron.
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