LITTLE FALLS – In reality, the entire 2022 season for the Cazenovia field hockey team was a chance to learn about its capabilities and discover how much work remained for it to reclaim the glory of years past.
Without a single senior, the Lakers finished 6-8 in the regular season, but its chance at more action before the Section III Class C playoffs was thwarted when a scheduled Oct. 14 game against New York Mills got canceled.
Instead of getting valuable field time, Cazenovia had to wait nearly a week after tough closing losses to Cicero-North Syracuse and Clinton, the top sectional seeds in Class A and C, respectively.
Assigned the no. 5 seed, Cazenovia took on no. 4 seed Little Falls in Wednesday’s opening round, the winner getting to face Clinton in the semifinals early next week.
And it was the Mounties prevailing 3-0, getting all of its production in the second half after neither side was able to get on the board early.
To its credit, Cazenovia’s young defense kept the game 0-0 in the first two quarters. Grace Kingsley, Lucile Hagan, Zosia Synborski and Olivia Franks all broke up Little Falls attacks, and goalie Maddy Rothfeld was on her way to six saves.
Ultimately, though, it was Avery McLaughlin who allowed the Mounties to take charge, having a part in all her team’s scoring plays – two in the third quarter and another in the final period.
Not only did McLaughlin get a goal, she assisted on tallies by Grace Taylor and Makyla Mowers, while her teammates bottled up Cazenovia’s best attackers and limited the Lakers to three shots overall.
In all, 14 juniors were on the Lakers’ roster, and if all of them return in 2023, Cazenovia will have as experienced a lineup as any in Central New York, with a chance at producing something special.
