MANLIUS – After all the time Fayetteville-Manlius had spent chasing Baldwinsville in Thursday night’s clash of unbeaten boys lacrosse powerhouses, the Hornets finally pulled in front when it counted the most.
Anthony Darin’s goal with 5.3 seconds left gave F-M a 9-8 victory over the Bees in a game where the momentum swayed back and forth all night and neither side led by more than two goals.
Ultimately, it came down to the Hornets’ defense, led by George LaCombe, Luke Stratton and Jack Nucerino, making a key stop on B’ville inside the final minute, setting up one last possession in regulation.
Twice, F-M called time-out, the latter of them with 9.9 seconds remaining after a shot flew wide left. When the game resumed, Isaac Frechette had the ball, ready to charge to the net.
And that’s what Frechette did, beating his defender and passing it to DaRin, who flew a shot past Bees goalie Cooper Foote for the game-winner.
It was the first time F-M led since the second quarter, when it was up 2-1 thanks to early goals from Frechette and Josh Michel.
Then, in a 17-second span, Victor Ianno and Keegan Lynch both converted to give B’ville the lead. Pratt Reynolds answered, but Luke Hoskin countered and B’ville took a 4-3 advantage to halftime.
But even though it would keep that lead in the third quarter with Hoskin hitting on his third and fourth goals of the night, the Bees missed many other chances to extend that margin, whether it was F-M killing penalties or having four different shots clang off the post.
DaRin and T.J. Conley both scored late in the period to send the game to the fourth quarter 7-7, where it held until Trey Ordway, with 5:55 left, put B’ville back in front.
For the fifth time, the Hornets caught up, Reynolds tying it again with his fourth goal with 4:10 to play. A tense homestretch followed, one that didn’t resolve itself until DaRin, with help from Frechette, won it
These teams aren’t done with each other, of course. F-M and B’ville will have two more meetings on May 25 and June 1, both at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium.
Without much time to relax, F-M would be back on the field Saturday afternoon for a rematch with Cicero-North Syracuse, whom it beat 16-10 the week before.
Proving again its quality, the Hornets were even more convincing against the Northstars the second time around, rolling to a 14-6 victory with nine different players netting goals by game’s end.
Frechette finished with three goals and one assist. Caden Yancey, held without a goal by B’ville, scored twice here and added a trio of assists as Reynolds and John Angelicola also had two-goal outings.
Ty Teelin and Connor Aspinall both earned one goal and one assist, with goals also credited to Conley and Joe Hathron as George LaCombe contributed a goal from the back line. Between them, Matt LaCombe and Alex Duggleby made nine saves.
F-M plays three more times next week, all on the road, going to Liverpool Tuesday, West Genesee Thursday and a showdown with Jamesville-DeWitt on Saturday morning at 9:30 a.m.
