Even a second-place finish in the Sept. 28-29 Finger Lakes Cup did not prevent the Skaneateles boys soccer team from leaping all the way to no. 5 in the first state Class B rankings of October.
Now the Lakers had to justify that lofty status, and no game meant as much as last Friday’s Laker clash with Cazenovia, where Skaneateles used a pair of corner kicks to go in front, and defense to hang on for a 2-1 victory.
The game had started on Wednesday at Cazenovia’s Sean Googin Sports Complex, but heavy rains had caused standing water on the field and, eight minutes into it, the game was stopped.
Two days later, they resumed at Jamesville-DeWitt’s Lyndon complex, and the pace was intense right from the restart as both sides squandered many chances in the game’s first half-hour.
Then, in the 31st minute, Skaneateles earned a corner kick that Tylar Moss sent to the middle and Andrew Moss converted with a strong header to the top of the net.
Just 25 seconds before halftime, another corner kick made it 2-0. This time, Tylar Moss sent his cross through several players to the feet of Tommy Reed, whose low shot eluded Cazenovia goalie Ray Satchwell’s dive.
Still, given Cazenovia’s chances, Skaneateles could not feel safe – and the margin was cut to one early in the second half as Brian Pezzi’s hard shot off a long pass from Jack Aronson soared into the top left corner of the net.
Now it was all on the Skaneateles back line to hang on, especially after a possible third goal was disallowed with 12:10 left. The back line had to withstand a free kick and corner kick in the last two minutes, and then goalie Yorvin Solis stopped Nick Schug point-blank with 30 seconds to play.
This followed, by 24 hours, Skaneateles unloading on Blessed Virgin Mary at Hyatt Stadium as a stunning barrage midway through the first half helped the Lakers hammer the Saints 8-0.
It was still 0-0 when Skaneateles, applying lots of pressure, got a pair of corner kicks and converted both of them, Will Pinckney getting each of the goals on headers.
Before BVM could recover, Sam Gadjo made it 3-0, pouncing on the rebound of an Andrew Moss shot that went off the post. Then Tommy Reed, on a solo breakaway, scored less than 60 seconds later.
All told, it amounted to four goals in a four-minute span, and it didn’t stop there as Levi Carvalho scored in the 26th minute and Gajdo converted a second goal just before halftime.
Not to get left out, Thomas Reed and Owen Cheney put in second-half goals as Tylar Moss earned three assists, with single assists going to Gajdo and Andrew Moss.
Skaneateles hosted Bishop Kearney (Section V) last Monday at Hyatt Stadium, relying on an early offensive surge and late defensive prowess to conquer the Kings 2-1.
First-half goals by Tylar Moss and Alex Arfayev negated Kearney’s lone tally from T.J. Tytler. Then, in the second half, both sides turned stingy, the Lakers’ back line making proper adjustments and preventing many shots from getting to Yorvin Solis, who only had to make three saves.
Another big rival, Marcellus, would await the Lakers in Tuesday’s regular-season finale at Hyatt Stadium, followed by a full week to rest up for the Section III Class B playoffs.
