Photo by Steve Garvey Brailyn Paladino follows through after attempting a kick during a Cassadaga Valley/Falconer football game earlier this season.

Cassadaga Valley/Falconer head football coach Dan Greco entered the 2021 season fully prepared for his team to attempt two-point conversions in favor of extra-point kicks after scoring.

“We were planning this season to go for two,” he said. “We had a young man from Cassadaga who worked with us last fall. We thought for sure he was going to be the kicker, but he did not come out and play, so we were all set to go for two. Brailyn (Paladino) was dropped in our lap and we have been happy with it ever since.”

Thinking he was in for a season of conversions, Greco found his sophomore kicker ready to go at the 11th hour.

“We had no idea she was out there and interested until possibly a day, maybe two, into the spring season,” Greco said. “Her dad (Joe) is one of our modified coaches. He came to me and asked me if I would be interested in watching Brailyn kick, and maybe she could possibly make the team. Well, it didn’t take long. We just listened to the sound of her kicks and it was immediate. We knew immediately that this girl could step right in and do the job.”

Because of the last-second roster addition, Paladino was unavailable for Cassadaga Valley/Falconer’s season opener against Chautauqua Lake.

The sophomore first took to the field in pads for a Week 2 matchup against Fredonia, and what a performance it was.

Paladino collected four of her team’s 10 points, going 1-for-1 on extra points and booting a 22-yard field goal.

“She kicked a field goal at then end of the first half to give us a 3-0 lead. The boys got all excited and it was fun to see,” Greco said. “Then she scored her fourth point of the night on the only extra point that she was offered. So she scores four points in her opening game.”

In addition to working with her father, Paladino has also had the opportunity to train with former Jamestown kicker Michael Baker, who helped the Red Raiders to a state title in 2000 and eventually went on to kick at the University at Buffalo.

“(Baker) came down one day and worked with Brailyn on the field,” Greco said. “I don’t know if he has worked with her more than that one time. He was quite impressed himself. He did not change much. He would tweak a little bit and give her a little suggestion. She is extremely coachable. She took to the few suggestions that he gave her.”

In the second game of her career, Paladino faced a real challenge from the weather in a Week 3 matchup against Springville.

“It was a pretty bad night,” Greco said. “Just constant drizzle and mist in the air. The wind was blowing about 10, 12, 14 miles an hour all night, and it was in the upper 30s.”

In the harsh conditions, Paladino went 1-for-3 on extra points.

“It really was not a good night for snapping and holding and kicking,” Greco said. “I thought she did a pretty good job. We gave her a very difficult night to kick on and she responded fairly well.”

One thing is for certain after three games for the Golden Cougars, they have found their kicker.

Paladino is now one of three starting female kickers in the county, joining the ranks of Jamestown’s Ella Propheter and Tyra Clark of Frewsburg.

“She’s only a sophomore and I don’t see us looking for other kickers in the next couple of years,” Greco said. “She has a strong leg, good range, and she has presence. She is not intimidated by being on the field with the boys. We rush her intentionally in practice with extra players, and still it doesn’t affect her. She kicks very well in practice, and I am expecting this to be kind of an every-week thing from here on out.”