Through 10 games, the Baldwinsville field hockey team only had a mark of 5-5, in large part because it struggled to produce goes against familiar opposition.
And no one has frustrated the Bees more than defending Section III Class A champion Cicero-North Syracuse, who again topped B’ville 1-0 when these sides met last Thursday night at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium.
Three weeks earlier, it had gone to overtime at Bragman Stadium, with the Bees robbed early in the extra period by Northstars goalie Allie Wagner and then seeing C-NS put in the game-winning goal a few minutes later.
Here, the decisive tally came early. The Northstars applied pressure and then saw freshman forward Christina Wagner take a pass from Emily Colgiovanni and direct a shot past Bees goalie Claire Vredenburg.
From there, B’ville kept the Northstars quiet, Vredenburg earning six saves, and had plenty of its own opportunities to get in front.
However, C-NS’s defense turned them all away and Ally Wagner, constantly challenged, came up with nine total saves to earn the shutout.
Without any rest, B’ville would host defending sectional Class B champion Holland Patent 24 hours later, and again the Bees were shut out, this time 2-0 by the Golden Knights.
Neither side got on the board in the first half. Vredenburg was sensational, recording 14 saves, but HP got to her in the second half as Haley Acevedo and Maja Helmer earned the goals, with Maggie Cummings adding an assist. The Bees were held to just three shots.
Following Monday’s game against visiting Liverpool, the Bees (5-6) would get a much-need respite, not playing again for more than a week before hosting East Syracuse Minoa on Oct. 8.
