For the second time in as many weeks, the Marcellus girls soccer team got a serious threat to its run at a perfect regular season from a bunch of Lakers.
Cazenovia provided the first scare, on Sept. 24 — and last Tuesday night, Skaneateles offered the challenge, keeping the game scoreless for a long time before the Mustangs pulled out a 1-0 decision over one of its biggest rivals.
No matter what the records say, whenever Marcellus and Skaneateles meet each other, the battle tends to be intense, and this chapter was no exception.
Unlike so many other opponents, the Lakers stood right up to the Marcellus attack and pulled off a rare first-half shutout. The Skaneateles defense, led by seniors Kelsey Nangle and Laura Trenti, never let forwards like Rachel Farneti or Deana Melnyczuk unleash their full arsenal, so goalkeeper Kelsey Bennett, while she made 11 saves, did not face a constant barrage.
By that same token, the Mustangs’ defense, led by Stephanie Raven, Emily Garrant and Lindsay Forte, showed that the absence of sweeper Kellie Walter (she’s out for the season with a torn ACL) might not be a deterrent to future success. Skaneateles managed just five shots, all of them scooped up by Lauren Fletcher.
Staying patient, Marcellus finally got the goal it needed in the second half, as junior reserve Kelsey Cavaretta found the net off a feed from Sarah Holden.
Relieved to get out of that close call, the Mustangs went to Phoenix Thursday and completely flattened the Firebirds, winning by a score of 8-1.
Marcellus unleashed its wide variety of offensive weapons, starting with Holden, who anchored the show with two goals and two assists.
Chelsea Tarolli also scored twice, as Farneti, Melnyczuk, Brittany Buza and Jenna Sniffen also put in goals. Farneti, Buza and Stephanie Raven each had one assist.
At home on Friday afternoon, Skanetaeles met defending Class B champion Westhill and this time got that big win it was looking for, toppling the Warriors 2-1.
Amanda Gray scored to put the Lakers up 1-0 at halftime, only to see Westhill tie it on Laura Zimmerman’s unassisted tally early in the second half.
Unfazed by this, Skaneateles reclaimed the lead when Gray’s pass fed it to Devin Kerr, whose header found the net. Bennett would preserve that slim margin, making 13 saves on the day.
As the Lakers meet Bishop Ludden, Phoenix and Homer this week, the Mustangs defend its perfect mark Wednesday at Solvay before a Saturday trip to Ludden.
