Maybe the Cazenovia girls soccer team should change home venues more often.
In an unfamiliar surrounding Friday night, the Lakers got an unexpected result, knocking off state Class B no. 4-ranked Marcellus 2-1, finishing the regular season at 11-5 and giving itself a huge boost of confidence heading into next week’s start of the Section III Class B playoffs.
Originally, the game was set for the Sean Goggin Sports Complex, but it got moved to Swan Pond, in the village of Manlius, which was once the full-time home field for Fayetteville-Manlius soccer before its new artificial turf field opened this fall.
So on this larger and wider field, Cazenovia dealt with a Marcellus side that beat them 4-1 back on Sept. 30, though that game was tied 1-1 at the half, giving the Lakers a reason to think that it could at least hang close.
But Cazenovia also caught Marcellus at an opportune time, the Mustangs coming off an emotional 2-1 overtime win over state no. 3-ranked Westhill earlier in the week. The Lakers had fallen to Westhill by that same 2-1 margin on Wednesday, another sign that it wasn’t too far away from the elite level.
During an active first half, Cazenovia’s gifted junior forward, Kristie Kleine, would twice find her way past Marcellus defenders and put shots past goalie Margaret Choroser. Becca Wheeler and Audrey Burbidge got credit for the assists.
Brielle Filtch converted for Marcellus, and the Lakers clung to a one-goal lead at the half. All through the second half, the real assault began as the Mustangs camped out in Cazenovia’s end, taking a barrage of shots until it had amassed a 28-6 advantage in that category.
Somehow, though, Wheeler, Caroline Franz, Colleen Dougherty and the rest of the improving Laker defense turned away those chances, and when that didn’t work, goalie Jamie Enders put together her best effort of the season, recording 16 saves.
Two nights earlier, against Westhill, the Lakers nearly pulled off a similar upset, as it was leading at halftime– but that lead would not hold in a game held less than a week after a 4-0 defeat to those same Warriors.
The Lakers seized a 1-0 lead when Kleine pushed in an unassisted goal. That held up until the second half, when the Warriors roared in front as Lindsey Lippert managed one goal and assisted on the other, by Kelly Ristoff. In defeat, Jamie Enders made six saves.
Just before the rematch with Westhill, the Lakers met Homer last Monday and did just enough in the second half to beat the Trojans in yet another 2-1 decision.
Neither side could find the net in the first half. Homer got on the board with Jessica Walter’s goal, fed by Emma Porter, but Cazenovia would counter.
Franz and Dougherty both scored for the Lakers in those late stages, while Kaitlyn Gerber earned an assist. That slim lead held up as Enders finished with five saves.
Cazenovia’s boys soccer team did not have a pleasant start to this last week of the regular season, going to Homer and falling to the Trojans 3-1.
A rough first half saw the Lakers fall behind, 3-0, as Zac Moore’s pair of goals led the Trojans along. Cazenovia did get on the board with Tyler Modzeleski’s goal in the second hald, but it could draw no closer, as Chris Matteson finished with eight saves.
When the Lakers took on Westhill Thursday at Morrisville State College’s turf, it was close all the way through, but Cazenovia fell to the Warriors by the same 2-1 margin as the girls faced.
This led to Friday’s regular-season finale against Marcellus, where the Lakers lost again, 3-2, leaving it at 9-7 and on the wrong end of three consecutive defeats.
As the no. 6 seed in Class B, Cazenovia’s boys team hosts no. 11 seed General Brown in Wednesday’s first round, with the winner to get South Jefferson or Vernon-Verona-Sherrill in the quarterfinals later this week.
The Cazenovia girls also occupy the no. 6 seed in Class B – which means, if it beats no. 11 seed Sherburne-Earlville on Tuesday, it will face Marcellus, the no. 3 seed, in the quarterfinals Thursday night.
