Long after most of its rivals took the field, the Liverpool boys lacrosse team finally got the chance to open its 2010 season eight days into April.
The Warriors, who will play all of its home games at Solvay’s Earl Hadley Stadium, started on the road last Thursday, going to Oswego and getting a career effort from Devin Clegg in a 15-9 victory over the Buccaneers.
Liverpool is coming off a solid season where, last spring, it went 13-7 and advanced to the Section III Class A semifinals before falling to eventual champion West Genesee.
With lots of talent back, head coach Jay Graham had the Warriors well-prepared for its first test, as Liverpool raced out to a 5-2 lead by the end of the first quarter.
In the game’s middle stages, the Bucs stayed close, matching Liverpool, but in the final period another 5-2 spurt allowed the Warriors to get clear.
Through all this, Clegg kept on torturing Oswego defenders, putting in seven goals and getting ample help. Matt Savlov had four goals and three assists, while Matt DiMarco finished with two goals and four assists.
Nick Kline and Joe Corapi each scored, too, while Chris Spencer had two assists and Mike Mahardy one assist. In goal, Jamie Campagna had 12 saves.
The first “home” game at Solvay came on Saturday, against Essex (Vermont), the Warriors used a big second half to earn a 13-6 victory.
Essex, who had made trips to Central New York in years past (and suffered one-sided defeats) showed its improvement in the first half, overcoming a 4-2 deficit by blanking Liverpool in the second quarter and tying it, 4-4.
However, The Warriors regained control with four unanswered goals in the third period. Austin Hope stepped up with three goals and two assists, matching Savlov’s total as Clegg backed up his two goals with four assists. Pat Brosnan also found the net twice as Corapi, DiMarco and Kline each had one goal and one assist.
All this leads to Liverpool’s encounter Tuesday with West Genesee, always the local measuring stick for any would-be contender. The Warriors play at Utica Proctor on Thursday.