Top Stories of 2011: #8 – One school stands between athletes and sectional titles
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Two three-sport Quakers frustrated by power of Clarence
Originally published on June 10, 2011 in the Orchard Park Press
When the Orchard Park baseball team lost to Clarence in the Section VI Class AA championship on June 1, it was the third straight season the Quakers were eliminated by the Red Devils and the second consecutive loss in the title game.
The loss was especially hard to take for two of the athletes.
A dejected Ryan Lindquist was forced to endure another post-season loss to Clarence when the OP baseball team fell in the sectional championship on June 1. A three-sport athlete, Lindquist earned seven varsity letters but no section titles, while losing to Clarence in six out of nine post-seasons.
Seniors Kyle Witkowski and Ryan Lindquist, who have both played three sports, each earned seven varsity letters but have won no sectional titles thanks to a handful of post-season losses to Clarence.
Both standouts, Witkowski and Lindquist are members of the varsity basketball and baseball teams. Witkowski was the starting quarterback for the football team and Lindquist was a starting midfielder on the soccer team.
In their respective fall sports, each had their seasons ended by Clarence in the sectional championship.
“It is extremely frustrating with all the chances I have had,” Witkowski said. “You would have thought we would have won one of them.”
Witkowski has been a member of the varsity baseball team for three seasons. In his sophomore season, he was on the mound when Clarence defeated the Quakers in extra innings to end Orchard Park’s run.
The Orchard Park football team narrowly lost to Clarence in the Class AA section championship at Ralph Wilson Stadium, 31-28. The Red Devils handed the 8-2 Quakers their only two losses of the season.
“Every time you play Clarence it seems like it’s the game everyone wants to show up,” Witkowski said of Orchard Park’s growing rivalry. “That’s the team you really want to beat.”
As members of the Orchard Park basketball team, Witkowski and Lindquist suffered an overtime loss to Clarence in the Class AA semifinal at Buffalo State that ended their junior season campaign.
“I can’t stand losing to them and I’ve never been able to beat them in the big game,” said Lindquist, who as a member of the soccer team was eliminated from the playoffs by Clarence the last two seasons, including a 2-1 loss in this past fall’s sectional championship. “They are always so strong. It’s demoralizing to lose time and time again.”
Lindquist, who has experience nine post-seasons, has been eliminated by Clarence six times. He said the rivalry with Clarence is frustrating, but helps the schools challenge each other.
“We’ve been pushing them hard the past few years and I think they responded in the past two,” he said. “Now they are pushing us and I have absolute faith in our athletic programs that we will respond to that in a positive way. It’s the back and forth that really creates a strong rivalry.”
Orchard Park teams advanced to six sectional championships this year. They lost all six. Four of the losses came to Clarence – in football, boys soccer, baseball and boys lacrosse.
Baseball, Basketball, Football, Soccer, Top Stories of 2011 | James Goller | February 4, 2012 | 
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