The long bus ride was worth it.

Behind a pair of close victories, including a one-point win over the hosts in the championship game, the Cardinals improved their record to 7-0 which strengthened their spot as the top-ranked Class C team in the third week of the New York State Sportswriters Association polls.

The defending state champions are one of five Chautauqua-Cattaraugus Athletic Association teams to find themselves in the Class C rankings. The others are Westfield (8-1) at No. 2, Panama (4-1) at No. 10, and Gowanda (5-2) and Maple Grove (5-1) at honorable mention.

Those programs aren’t the only ones who find themselves recognized by the NYSSWA.

Jadyn Trocki and the Frewsburg Bears are ranked No. 3 in Class C by the New York State Sportswriters Association. P-J file photo by Matt Spielman

In Class B, Fredonia (5-3) is No. 12, Salamanca (4-3) is No. 13 and Allegany-Limestone (4-5) and Falconer (5-2) are honorable mentions. Marcellus of Section III (9-1) is No. 1.

In Class AA, Jamestown (7-1), which plays in Division 1 of the Erie County Interscholastic Conference, is honorable mention in Class AA where Bishop Timon-St. Jude (7-0) of the Monsignor Martin Association is No. 1. The Red Raiders travel to Lancaster (6-0) for a showdown tonight. The Legends are honorable mention in Class AAA.

Other Section VI Class AA schools in the polls are No. 18 Frontier (6-0), No. 25 Health Sciences (4-2) and honorable-mention Orchard Park (5-0).

In Class D, Clymer (2-4) and Sherman (2-4) are honorable mentions. South Kortwright/Andes (9-1) of Section IV is No. 1.

Niagara Falls (6-2) is No. 17 and Long Island Lutheran (9-1), out of the AIS, is No. 1 in Class AA; Amherst (4-3) is No. 16 and Grand Island is No. 18 in Class A where Lancaster St. Mary’s (4-3) and Pioneer (6-2) are honorable mentions. Poly Prep (8-0) of the AIS is No. 1.

GIRLS

A number of local girls teams are ranked this week.

Clymer (6-1) is No. 2 and Sherman (7-3) is No. 4 in Class D where Hermon-DeKalb (7-0) of Section X is No. 1; Frewsburg (6-2) is No. 3, Randolph (5-4) is No. 8 and Cassadaga Valley (5-2) is No. 24 in Class C where Gananda (5-0) of Section V is No. 1; and Portville (7-0) is No. 4 and Salamanca (7-1) is No. 18 in Class B where Hornell (4-1) of Section V is No. 1.

Other Western New York teams in this week’s poll are No. 11 Lancaster (6-1) in Class AAA where Long Island Lutheran (9-1) of the AIS is No. 1; No. 5 Lancaster St. Mary’s (8-2), No. 6 Starpoint (6-0), No. 16 Clarence (5-2) and No. 25 Kenmore West (6-1) in Class AA where Albert Magnus (7-0) of Section I is No. 1; and No. 4 Lewiston Porter (7-0), No. 17, Williamsville South (5-1), No. 20 Pioneer (4-2) and No. 21 Iroquois (7-1) in Class A where Dalton School (10-0) of the AIS is No. 1.