A glimpse of the future for the Baldwinsville girls lacrosse team came far sooner than anyone had planned.
Right before the Bees faced off with Fayetteville-Manlius last Tuesday afternoon, word got out that head coach Doug Rowe, who is stepping down at season’s end, would sit out two games as the result of an agreement with the school district.
Thus, long-time assistant coach Lionel Brown got a chance to lead B’ville at a time where it needed good results – but instead, all of the distractions, combined with a determined and angry opponent, led to a 17-5 defeat to F-M.
Clearly, the Hornets were still in a bad mood after a 16-2 drubbing by state no. 3-ranked West Genesee on April 28, and it also remembered the close nature of its earlier meeting with B’ville, though F-M had pulled it out 11-9.
With all that as a backdrop, the Hornets bolted out to a 9-3 halftime lead and refused to let up, even with a running clock. No one on the Bees’ attack could get rolling as Glory Johnson got held to two goals, with Julia Pelcher, Hannah Johnson and Emma States adding one goal apiece. Sara Goodwin picked up an assist.
Meanwhile, B’ville’s defense got peppered as six different Hornets managed multiple goals. Mary Trop scored four times, with Jane Cote getting two goals and four assists. Amanda Cramer and Kiera Shanley each had three goals as Allison Macrae had two goals and two assists and Gemma Addonizio also found the net twice.
Brown had one more head coaching assignment on Thursday, at Liverpool, where the Bees, staring at the real possibility of missing the sectional playoffs, made a courageous stand and earned a 9-6 victory over the Warriors.
During a fast-paced first half, B’ville, who lost at home to Liverpool 11-8 on April 19, inched in front, 6-5. Then, when it extended its lead in the second half, the Bees did a superb job possessing the ball and then making defensive stops to make sure the Warriors didn’t catch up.
Also, the attack diversified, with Anna Mazurkiewicz joining Glory Johnson, each of them netting three goals. Goodwin had a goal and two assists, while Maria Henwood got one goal and one assist and Alex Leo also scored. Curtis finished with seven saves.
B’ville would get Rowe back on the sidelines for Monday’s game against Auburn and, more importantly, for Thursday’s visit from West Genesee, who sits at no. 3 in the state Class A rankings, yet had to work to beat the Bees 10-7 in early April at Mike Messere Field. The regular season ends May 18 against Brighton.
