The Bishop Grimes girls soccer team ot off to a great start that included three wins in a span of three days, capped on Saturday by a hard-fought 1-0 overtime decision over its neighbors from Manlius-Pebble Hill.
Through 80 minutes of regulation and one 10-minute OT period, neither side could convert. Then, in the second OT, the Cobras got one more chance and Rhonee Shea Pal put it past Trojans goalie Hannah Warren for the game-winner.
This busy stretch began when Grimes olled to a 5-2 win over Pulaski on Thursday with a well-balanced attack led by Shea Pal’s goal and two assists. Katherine Murphy, Julia Gnade and Bella Marco also scored as McKenna Squier and Laura Murial gained single assists.
And Grimes continued to soar on Friday, handling Cato-Meridian 6-1 in large part due to a second half where it found the net five times to pull away from the Blue Devils.
Gnade and Abby Tweedale both scored twice, with Gnade adding an assist. Shea Pal and Murphy also were part of the charge with late-game goals as Caroline Wilkinson, in the net, stopped 10 of the 11 Cato shots she faced.
Before meeting Grimes, MPH lost 3-0 to Tully last Tuesday, the game scoreless until the second half, when the Black Knights’ defense wore the Trojans down, Emma Byrne notching two goals and Jade Dillenbeck the other.
It was closer Thursday, but MPH lost 2-1 to Onondaga, Mary Smorol’s goal not quite enough as Avianna Baker scored both of the Tigers’ goals, negating five saves from Warren.
Christian Brothers Academy underwent some severe tests at the outset of its season,, starting with a Sept. 1 game against West Genesee where it got overwhelmed by the Wildcats in a 4-0 defeat.
Abby Benware, playing in goal for the Brothers, got 12 saves, but WG went in front 3-0 by halftime, seeing Mia Sveen get two goals as Shannon Foster added a goal and assist. CBA was held to five shots all afternoon.
Then the Brothers found itself dealing with reigning state Class AA champion Baldwinsville last Thursday night, and it led briefly before getting overwhelmed in a 5-1 defeat.
Attacked hard from the outset, CBA managed a brief 1-0 lead when Mari Saya scored on a counter-attack in the 30th minute.
A few minutes later, though, defensive breakdowns up the middle allowed B’ville sophomore Hannah Mimas to break in and score two goals 47 seconds apart. Simone Neivel added a goal late in the half.
Trailing 3-1, the Brothers kept the Bees quiet for most of the second half, but could not convert on a series of set pieces, watching as Kelsey Delola tacked on two goals in the last five minutes to double B’ville’s margin.
In between those games, CBA blanked Homer 2-0 last Tuesday to get into the win column. Both goals came in the first half, each of them assisted by Kennedy Paciaga as Tate Kohlbrenner and Mari Saya converted. Benware stopped all five shots she faced.
Back in action on Saturday, the Brothers beat Mexico 3-1. Grace Molesburger’s goal in the first half helped the Tigers forge a 1-1 tie, but CBA would convert twice in the second half to pull away.
Cristina Barnaba led the Brothers, notching one goal and assisting on the other two, by Paciga and Katy Stanard.
