In the most technical of terms, the Baldwinsville girls soccer team repeated as Section III Class AA champions – but won’t get a chance to reach the state title game again.
A combination of strong opposition and bad luck left the Bees no choice but to share the sectional title with Liverpool after last Saturday night’s final at SUNY-Cortland ended 0-0 following 80 minutes of regulation and 30 minutes of overtime that did not yield a resolution.
With the sectional title shared, the two neighbors and rivals, who were meeting in the final for the second year in a row, had to go to penalty kicks to see who would advance into the state tournament and play in this Saturday’s regional final at Fulton against the winner of the Section II final between Bethlehem and Niskayuna.
B’ville missed on each of its first two opportunities and could not recover, Liverpool going four-for-four as the sister trio of Bri, Carli and Abby Kovarik all converted, with Abby putting the clinching shot past Bees goalie Mackenzie Hanna.
Thus ended a championship chase that covered most of the season. B’ville, who had risen to no. 7 in the state AA rankings, had twice met Liverpool in September and twice beat them, though the 2-1 margin of the second encounter at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium was far closer than the 3-0 romp at LHS Stadium two weeks earlier.
Combine that with the Bees having to grind out a 1-0 sectional semifinal victory over Fayetteville-Manlius last Tuesday at CBA’s Alibrandi Stadium as Liverpool was blasting Rome Free Academy 6-0 in the other semifinal at Chittenango High School, and the Warriors had reason to think it could conquer B’ville.
The final would showcase this newfound confidence on the Warriors’ part. Fueled by Bri Kovarik’s long runs, Liverpool got early opportunities, only to see B’ville gradually build up its pressure as the first half went on.
At times, the Bees were just unlucky. Moments after Warriors goalie Megan Merrifield mishandled a shot that turned into a corner kick, B’ville, in the 33rd minute, converted on that corner, only to see the goal disallowed due to a foul amid the scramble in front of the net, leaving it at 0-0 going to the break.
The second half mirrored the first, with Liverpool getting early runs and B’ville proving more durable. Still, both sides nearly scored in a frantic sequence where the Bees’ Simone Neivel hit the post and, seconds later, Bri Kovarik’s shot from a tough left angle went inches wide right.
To a degree, the Warriors packed in its defense, surrounding Merrifield and forcing B’ville into longer shot that had a lower percentage. That strategy worked as 80 minutes of regulation didn’t settle matters, nor did 20 minutes of mandatory overtime and 10 minutes of sudden death, so the battle went to penalty kicks.
Liverpool went first, and though Hanna guessed right, Bri Kovarik still converted. Then B’ville’s Carolyn Brussel missed the net. In the second round, Lynsey Roth was successful, but the Bees’ Addison Hornsey hit the crossbar.
Up 2-0 in the shoot-out, the Warriors needed two more, and after Carli Kovarik scored and Mackenzie Shaffner finally got B’ville on the board, Abby Kovarik sent the last shot past Hanna.
A dozen seniors populated this year’s B’ville roster, including Hanna, Schaffner, Gabby George, Julia George, Shannon Lauko, Adrianna Sposato, Abby Smith and Katie Weaver. So a lot of key defensive players will need to get replaced, though the likes of Schaffner, Hornsey, Brussel, Neivel, Katie Pascale, Gabby Piontkowski, Leah Burrer, and Laura Kick all should come back next fall.
