Even as the Liverpool girls lacrosse team had a strong close to the regular season, Cicero-North Syracuse went in the other direction with two defeats against local powerhouses.
Yet the Warriors and Northstars will face each other Tuesday night at Solvay in the first round of the Section III Class A playoffs, with the winner getting the reward of a confrontation with top seed West Genesee in the semifinal round.
Before all this, the Warriors took aim at Central Square last Tuesday at Solvay’s Earl Hadley Stadium and needed a big second half to beat the Red Hawks 14-8.
Central Square used Sierra Badger’s three-goal hat trick to keep pace with Liverpool throughout the first half, and the two sides went to the break in a 7-7 tie. But the Warriors’ defense stepped up in the late going and allowed for a takeover.
Allison Flood led the late push, finding the net six times. When she wasn’t converting, Kathleen Conese did the honors, earning four goals, while Mary Fadden, Ashleigh Caruso, Kristina Lombard and Andrea Flood earned single goals. Morgan Beaty added two assists as Kayla DeAngelis also got an assist.
The Warriors would also win on Thursday night, topping Corcoran 17-12 after a rough first half where the Cougars, led by Becca Martinez (four goals) and Courtney Consentino (three goals), would inch into an 8-7 lead.
Gradually, Liverpool took over in the second half, as Allison Flood worked her way to five goals and Conese added four goals, to go with a pair of assists. DeAngelis scored twice as Caruso, Beaty, Andrea Flood, Brianna Mancini, Nina Tassone and Anna Daucher also converted.
CNS began its last week with an 18-5 defeat to Fayetteville-Manlius. Other than Rachel Bowles, who had three goals, the Northstars struggled to find any offense in the face of a much-improved Hornet defense and goalie Caroline Trpcevski, who had 12 saves.
Emily Bryerton and Jamie Ryan joined Bowles in the scoring column, with Stefany Gale adding an assist. Stephanie Reynolds posted nine saves. Three F-M players — Mollie Caputo, Kelly Perry and Alex Murphy — had four goals apiece.
On Thursday night, the Northstars lost to Baldwinsville 21-9, getting most of its offense in the first half as Bryerton led with five goals. Rachel Bowles found the net twice, with Katie Jachim and Jamie Ryan getting single goals. Sarah Clark and Sam Yaro paced the Bees with four goals apiece.
