Leading off today: Buffalo Nichols improved to 9-0 on Monday with a 2-1 girls soccer victory aqainst Aquinas. Nichols is ranked fourth in Class B and Aquinas is No. 2 in Class AA in the New York State Sportswriters Association ratings.

   Nichols’ Bri Smith scored the team's second goal of the day and her 30th of the season on a header for the winner. Kaitlin Donahoe also scored for the winners. Lauren Frank connected for Aquinas (7-1-1), which will host a rematch Oct. 3.

   "It was two totally different halves," Nichols coach Larry Desautels told The Buffalo News. "In the first half we brought the play to them, and in the second we started to play more like we were protecting the (1-0) lead. We were fortunate to get the second goal. I think we were tired. They’re a lot deeper than we are."

   Goalkeeper Adele Jackson-Gibson made six saves in her season debut after being sidelined by an ankle injury.

   More girls soccer: Kierra Moore's second goal of the game carried Holy Names (7-1), No. 11 in Class A, to a 4-3 win in overtime over Ravena, No. 14 in Class B.

   Alexa Veeder scored twice for the winners. Ravena (7-2-1, 4-1) goalie Teagan Waddingham was called on to make 16 saves.

   Junior Taryn VanThof scored one goal and assisted on the other as Livonia, No. 3 in Class B, beat Class A No. 1 Victor (8-1), 2-0. Junior Kaylie Ewers also scored, and Sydney DeVito and Hannah Conine combined to make 18 saves for the shutout.

   Two hurdles left for wrestling proposal: The NYSPHSAA's wrestling committee voted yesterday in favor of a new state tournament format that would add a round of regional qualifying tournaments to the process.

   The new format would replace the system in which champions from each section are supplemented with wildcards from across the state. The system allocates regional berths to each section to more closely reflect the number of participating schools. State tournament fields will remain at 16 competitors per weight class in each of two divisions.

   The proposal was supported by eight of the 11 sectional representatives, with the dissenting votes coming from sections 3, 7 and 8. The proposal goes to NYSPHSAA’s Championship Advisory Committee on Oct. 7. An approval there would send it to the NYSPHSAA Executive Committee meeting Oct. 20.

   The earliest that a new format could be put in place would be for the 2010 tournament.

   Mets make impression in Buffalo: As part of yesterday's announcement that the Buffalo Bisons will be the Triple-A baseball affiliate of the New York Mets in 2009, Mets executive Jeff Wilpon presented a check for $25,000 to Buffalo School District Superintendent James Williams for the high school baseball program.

   "I thought it was extraordinary that the first thing they did when they got to town was donate $25,000 for inner city baseball — it looks like they mean to stay for a while,” said Dave Thomas, the district's AD.

   The Bisons stepped to the plate in April 2007 by helping

to fund various upgrades to equipment and uniforms plus other expenses. The Bisons and New Era Cap Co. teamed up on most of the $2.5 million in renovations at Johnnie B. Wiley Stadium.

   Former wrestler sentenced: A former Section 10 wrestling standout will spend the next seven years in state prison for sexually molesting three young boys, WWNY-TV reported.

   Christopher Rickett, 19, was sentenced in St. Lawrence County Court in an agreement that had him plead guilty in July to three felony counts of first-degree attempted coerced criminal sexual conduct against a child. Rickett admitted to having oral and anal sex with three boys between the ages of 5 and 7 between February 2005 and December 2006.

   Rickett won the Section 10 Division I championship at 215 pounds in 2006 and went on the place fifth at the New York State Public High School Athletic Association championships.

   Soccer fight punishment: CHSAA league chairman Ralph Dalton said multiple soccer players will be suspended for one game this week following a bench-clearing brawl last Thursday between St. John the Baptist and St. Anthony's.

   Dalton, also the AD at St. John the Baptist, confirmed that seven players were red-carded during the game, drawing automatic one-game suspensions. He also said additional players from both schools were suspended for their involvement in the brawl late in St. Anthony's 2-1 victory. The players were also suspended an additional five days from their teams.

   Officials of the two schools met yesterday to review the incident.

   "Neither school is taking this lightly," Dalton told Newsday. "This was a serious matter that we want to make sure never happens again. I was very pleased with the outcome of our meeting."

   St. Anthony's AD Donal Buckley was in agreement with Dalton that the penalties will get the message across."

   "We took a hard stand against the people involved," Buckley said. "This is not the way we want people to perceive our soccer program. We met with the entire program, freshman, JV, and varsity players, and we wanted them to understand the seriousness of this issue and the penalties imposed."

   A peek at prep school: The Staten Island Advance took a brief look at Milford Academy in New Berlin over the weekend to help readers get their hands around the topic of prep schools.

   Tenth-year coach Bill Chaplick has sent dozens of players onto Division I schools. The schedule consists of games against other preps, junior colleges and freshman squads from four-year schools.

   "Basically, every kid has a different situation," said Chaplick, who played for Boston College. "You might be (a player with talent) who goes to a high school in a lesser league or program; you might be trying to improve on your SATs or grade point average or you may even be a player that hasn't grown into your body yet."

   Chaplick said approximately 98 percent of his players -- about 15 a year -- go to college, many on scholarships.

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