Experience can matter a lot in post-season play – especially when that experience involves getting to the brink of a state title.
That’s what the Marcellus girls soccer team carries into what it expects to be a lone sojourn into the Section III Class A playoffs. But the no. 3 seed Mustangs had to count on that experience and poise to survive an upset bid from no. 6 seed Carthage and prevail, 2-1, in last Thursday night’s quarterfinal game.
Dealing with high winds, chilly temperatures and spotty rain, Marcellus, well-rested after a first-round bye, stayed patient in the first half and then, in the 22nd minute, moved out in front when Shannon White, off a terrific pass from Madison Belvito, put in the game’s first goal.
Thanks to goalie Becky Brandal’s 11 saves, the Comets kept it 1-0 deep into the second half, and then caught a break in the 57th minute when the Mustangs were whistled for a foul inside the 18-yard box. Cassie Birth converted the ensuing penalty kick.
So it was 1-1, and heading toward overtime despite all-out pressure from Marcellus, when, with 1:07 to play, Belvito charged toward the net and got tackled.
Since a clear scoring opportunity was obstructed, the Mustangs were awarded a penalty kick. Belvito, accustomed to this pressure, took the shot – and beat Brandal for the game-winner.
This sets up, for the Mustangs, a Class A semifinal against no. 7 seed East Syracuse-Minoa, who surprised no. 2 seed Watertown 2-0 in its quarterfinal, but lost 3-0 to the Mustangs on Oct. 14. The winner of the rematch gets Jamesville-DeWitt or Whitesboro in the title game later in the week.
West Genesee was in a far better position to advance as a no. 4 seed in the eight-team sectional Class AA bracket than it did as a no. 8 seed a season ago.
Not only did the Wildcats get its sectional quarterfinal game at home, it did so against an opponent – no. 5 seed Rome Free Academy – that hadn’t faced many AA teams this fall. Battle-toughened by its schedule, WG would outclass the Black Knights in a 2-0 decision.
Patience helped the Wildcats on this night. The raw conditions slowed things down for both teams during a 0-0 first half, but WG had the bulk of the opportunities, only to get turned away.
Determined not to let things get too interesting, the Wildcats forced a free kick and, just five minutes into the second half, seized a 1-0 lead when Brianna Wieszczynski’s shot flew into the net.
In order to hold on, WG maintained its pressure, waiting for another opportunity, and then seizing it when Olivia Price put in the insurance goal with nine minutes left, assisted by Grace Walker.
But this leads straight into the AA semifinals against top seed and defending Cicero-North Syracuse, who not only eliminated WG a year ago, but also remembers that it got pushed to overtime by the Wildcats on Oct. 14 before a trio of overtime goals created a deceptive 3-0 margin. Whoever wins here gets to the sectional final against Baldwinsville or Liverpool.
Bishop Ludden, assigned the no. 5 seed in the Class C sectional bracket, started out last Thursday night in the opening round with a fast start that led to a 2-0 win over no. 12 seed Cooperstown.
Before the Hawkeyes could get settled down in the wake of a long bus ride, the Gaelic Knights had scored both of its goals. Morgan Beamish assisted on both of them, as her passes set up Danielle Rauch and Aubrie Murray for scoring plays.
Ludden’s defense did the rest, holding Cooperstown to five shots, all stopped by Kara Beamish, and setting up the Gaelic Knights for a tough quarterfinal against no. 4 seed and defending champion Beaver River.
Here, Ludden nearly got to penalty kicks, only to get thwarted late in the final extra period of a 2-1 defeat to the Beavers that proved frustrating on so many levels.
Murray needed just three minutes to give the Gaelic Knights a 1-0 lead, her goal assisted by Kara Beamish, but for the rest of the game Ludden could not add to that total, giving Beaver River ample time to catch up.
With all-out pressure, the Beavers forced a Gaelic Knights foul inside its 18-yard box in the 65th minute, and Raegen Becker converted the penalty kick, tying it 1-1 and ultimately sending the game to overtime.
Through 20 minutes of mandatory OT and one five-minute sudden-victory period, Kara Beamish kept out everything Beaver River sent to her, running her total to 18 saves, and Ludden had to like its chance of prevailing in a penalty-kick shoot-out, if it got that far.
But midway through the last sudden-victory period, one more Beavers attack unfolded. Kristen Ebersol’s pass found Kaylee Olmstead, and the Beaver River forward fit it past Kara Beamish for the game-winner, ending Ludden’s season with a 12-4-1 mark.
