The newly married Southtowns couple whose wedding reception ended in a brawl Saturday night are strong and will move beyond the violence that ruined their big day, a close friend said Tuesday. 
 
 “This girl tried very hard to make her day and her wedding a beautiful experience and alcohol fueled circumstances that ruined all those months of planning and hard-earned money,” said the friend, who has known the couple for several years. 
 
 “It is a shame,” the woman said, speaking on the condition her name be withheld. “I know they both worked hard to make it nice, but she is a very strong person. I know she has a good head on her shoulders and she will be OK. Her husband is the same way. They are a team.” 
 
 As the couple tries to move on, authorities continue their investigation into what happened Saturday night at the Orchard Park Country Club. 
 
 The State Liquor Authority has opened an investigation into the incident. Orchard Park police say it is unlikely that anyone will be criminally charged, and investigators are awaiting estimates on the damage from the country club, though it remains unknown if restitution will be sought. 
 
 The management at the country club would not comment Tuesday. 
 
 But a witness who was at the event said that, at one point during the brawl, as many as 10 people were on top of each other on the floor and against a wall in the banquet hall as other guests tried to pull the combatants apart. 
 
 Even after physical confrontations were halted, according to the witness, heated arguments persisted. 
 
 “There were young and old people, men and women, involved,” the witness said. “The groom was trying to get people to go home. The parents of the bride were trying to get people to go home. The police were trying to get people to go home. But people just wouldn’t leave, and when you finally thought it was over, another argument, shouting match, would start up.” 
 
 Orchard Park Police Chief Mark Pacholec said the situation could have turned out much worse and credited his officers for summoning assistance from six other area police agencies. 
 
 “With all the officers that arrived, we were able to bring it under control and resolve it peacefully,” Pacholec said Tuesday. “It could have been potentially much worse.” 
 
 With only two patrol units available shortly after 11 p.m., Pacholec said officers exercised good judgment in calling for assistance. 
 
 “Our first officer arrived and then our lieutenant showed up,” the chief said. “Two guys dealing with an angry crowd estimated at up to 100 is a recipe for disaster. There were people pushing and shoving. It is not unusual to call for additional help.” 
 
 And while Orchard Park Police Officer Joseph Kadie continues to investigate what provoked the brawl, Pacholec said the possibility of criminal charges appears unlikely. 
 
 “Unless someone is looking to press charges, I have nothing at this time,” Pacholec said. 
 
 Asked what might have caused the violence, the chief said, “It could be a lot of things. It could be someone was touched inappropriately. It could be a family issue. It could be an emotional issue.” 
 
 The guest who suffered a head injury and was taken to Erie County Medical Center received “a couple stitches,” according to Pacholec, who believes the individual was later released from the hospital. 
 
 SLA spokesman William Crowley said authority investigators are reviewing the incident because the country club has a liquor license. 
 
 “The Orchard Park police did reach out to our enforcement office and we are in contact with the Police Department,” Crowley said. 
 
 And the property damage at the club? 
 
 “We still are waiting for the damage estimates from management at the country club,” Pacholec said, “but it would be up to the country club to pursue restitution. That would be a civil issue.” 
 
 Criminal mischief charges could be pursued if witnesses identified people who destroyed property, the chief said. 
 
 Benny Chieffo of Jammin’ Sound, which provided music for the reception, described the couple as “excellent people” whose goal was to provide a joyful time for their wedding guests. 
 
 “It was a beautiful ceremony at the country club and an excellent reception that followed,” Chieffo said. “I just hope that the guests don’t forget about the beautiful wedding. It was a picture-perfect wedding except for that last half hour.” 
 
 The bride works as a nail technician and the groom works in construction, according to acquaintances. 
 
 Pacholec said he cannot recall his department being summoned to the country club or other wedding reception venues in Orchard Park for trouble at past wedding receptions. 
 
 “I feel sorry for the bride and groom. It was a day that was supposed to mark the start of their life and this is probably not the start they anticipated,” Pacholec said. “I feel sorry for the country club and the damage. From everything we heard, they didn’t see it coming. You can go from zero to 60 in no time flat.” 
 
 email: lmichel@buffnews.com ||||| Seven different police agencies were called to help break up a brawl that broke out at a country club wedding reception Saturday night that had family members screaming that they hated each other hours after witnessing a couple exchange their marriage vows. 
 
 “Things were said that can never be taken back,” said a shocked witness who watched the fight unfold. 
 
 A manager at the Orchard Park Country Club repeatedly denied Sunday afternoon that any incident had occurred, despite confirmed reports by Orchard Park police, witnesses at the event, and bystanders who saw town and state police cars in front of the building. 
 
 The fights took place at the end of an otherwise beautiful wedding and reception held at the Country Club for a couple who live in the town. A witness who worked at the event but asked not to be identified said roughly 200 guests attended, and the fracas unfolded after the official reception ended at 11 p.m. 
 
 “I’m telling you, there was blood everywhere,” he said. “There was holes punched in the walls. Words couldn’t describe it. Just when you thought it was over, another fight started.” 
 
 Lt. Patrick Fitzgerald, who was shift commander Saturday night, confirmed the witness’ statements and said that the later brawl followed a more minor incident earlier in the evening. Police were called at 10:18 p.m. regarding a member of the wedding party who was accused of touching a woman inappropriately and wound up getting punched in the face. 
 
 The aggressor was escorted off the premises, Fitzgerald said. 
 
 It wasn’t until the reception was over and people were preparing to leave, however, that a fight ensued that ultimately engulfed dozens of family members and other guests. 
 
 Orchard Park police reported that shortly after 11 p.m., police received multiple 911 calls regarding a large fight at the club. 
 
 When they responded, officers encountered “a large crowd inside and outside of the venue where the fighting was still ongoing.” Damage was reported throughout the building. 
 
 Because of the large scale nature of the brawl, Fitzgerald said, additional police assistance was requested, and officers from the Town of Hamburg, Town of West Seneca, Village of East Aurora, Town of Cheektowaga, Erie County Sheriff’s Office and State Police responded and assisted the Orchard Park police in breaking up the fights, treating the injured and removing people from the club. 
 
 The Orchard Park Fire Company and Orchard Park EMS also responded and treated several people. A 39-year-old man, whose name was not released, suffered a head injury and was taken to Erie County Medical Center. All others refused further medical assistance. 
 
 A manager at the Orchard Park Country Club, who declined to give his name, said Sunday afternoon that no incident of any kind occurred the night before and that no police were called. He also said he was upset that The Buffalo News was reporting unsubstantiated claims. 
 
 When informed that the police directly provided the information and that the report indicated damage to the club, the manager responded that he had no idea why the police would state such a thing. 
 
 “Look around,” he said. “Does it look like there was any damage?” 
 
 The club’s main lounge and dining areas showed no signs of any altercation. Chairs, tables, pillows and lounge furniture stood neatly and attractively arranged inside the single-story main building. 
 
 But the wedding reception was held in a side banquet room that was not viewed Sunday. Fitzgerald said damage included holes in walls, blood, broken crystal bowls and glasses and damage to property in the main banquet area, hallways and basement. 
 
 “For them to say nothing happened is 100 percent wrong,” he said. 
 
 What started out as a single fight wound up becoming multiple fights laced with screaming and profanity that engulfed dozens of people as more people jumped in to intercede and wound up being sucked into the fray. 
 
 A witness at the reception said employees at the club appeared helpless to keep the fighting among guests and bridal party members from escalating. 
 
 The bride was hustled outside to a back patio to shield her from the scene while the bridegroom remained inside, desperately yelling at everyone to leave, the witness said. 
 
 “No one was safe,” he said. 
 
 The main banquet manager, who had left the event shortly after the first dance, which is customary, returned to the scene after the police arrived and angrily demanded to know why she hadn’t been contacted right away. Fitzgerald said the general manager and his wife also showed up later that night to confer with police and find out what happened. 
 
 The witness also said he was shocked that he didn’t see police inside the banquet room until about half an hour after the fighting started. 
 
 Fitzgerald said police responded much sooner than that but initially focused their attention on a guest with a head injury who was in the basement and ultimately taken to Erie County Medical Center for treatment. The victim’s name was not released, but Fitzgerald said the injury did not appear to be severe. 
 
 Despite interviews with staff, police were unable to identify exactly who or what caused the fights, Fitzgerald said. No one was arrested, though Fitzgerald said police have offered to work with the general manager and review surveillance tapes to determine who might be held responsible for starting the fights. 
 
 He added that much of the physical fighting was quelled within the first 15 minutes of officers’ arrival, though verbal exchanges among intoxicated guests continued as police tried to usher people home. No names have yet been released regarding the incident. 
 
 “There were intoxicated individuals who were not helping us at all and had to be sent along with a sober individual,” Fitzgerald said. 
 
 Not unlike a Buffalo Bills game, he added, after reflecting on the other trouble makers the Orchard Park Police were busy dealing with Sunday. 
 
 “They were just a little better dressed, I guess,” he said. 
 
 email: stan@buffnews.com ||||| ORCHARD PARK (WIVB) – What started out as a celebration of two people starting their lives together ended with police pulling their family members apart. 
 
 Orchard Park Police say just after 11 p.m. Saturday night, they got a call about a large fight. When the first officer arrived at the country club, he saw more than 100 people fighting inside and outside the country club’s banquet hall. 
 
 Seven police departments, including Orchard Park Police, Town of Hamburg, Town of West Seneca, Village of East Aurora, Town of Cheektowaga, the Erie County Sheriff’s Office and New York State Police, showed up to put an end to the brawl. 
 
 POLICE REPORT | Review the police report from the incident here 
 
 There was some minor damage to the country clubs banquet hall and a 39-year-old man injured his head. He was taken to ECMC while police say others refused medical treatment. 
 
 Mark Pacholec, Chief of the Orchard Park Police Department, says they still don’t know what started it all. 
 
 “It was hard to sort it out who the instigators were. There was a lot of yelling and pushing and shoving going on. There was over 100 people there from what my officer described,” said Pacholec. “We’re still looking into the cause. There were some reports that someone grabbed someone inappropriately. We don’t know if it’s that or a family feud issue but we don’t know what the issue was.” 
 
 Investigators met with the country club management Monday morning. No charges have been filed yet. 
 
 A spokesperson from the country club would only say, “No comment.”
– The way you don't expect a wedding reception to be described: "I'm telling you, there was blood everywhere. There was holes punched in the walls." But that's exactly what transpired at a Saturday reception outside Buffalo, NY, according to an unidentified worker at the Orchard Park Country Club. The Buffalo News reports that seven police agencies were called to the scene after a massive fight broke out just after 11pm, as the reception ended and guests were readying to go home. "Things were said that can never be taken back," says one witness; the paper reports that family members were yelling of their hatred for each other. The worker says about 200 people attended the reception, and WIVB reports that an arriving officer saw at least 100 people fighting. The bride and groom reportedly weren't among them: She was taken to a back patio, while her new husband stayed inside and attempted to get his guests to exit. One man received stitches for a head injury, and a few others were treated on the scene. No arrests were made, and while the State Liquor Authority has opened an investigation into what transpired, police tell the News that criminal charges are unlikely. As for what caused the fracas, the police chief doesn't seem to know: "It could be someone was touched inappropriately. It could be a family issue. It could be an emotional issue." And someone actually was touched inappropriately, allegedly by a member of the wedding party who was then punched; police were previously called at 10:18pm to deal with that. (This fight seems small compared to one that happened this summer at a NJ wedding.)