Whenever the Marcellus and Westhill girls soccer teams get together, the battle proves memorable in some way.
So it was again Thursday night, where it took 80 minutes of regulation, 20 minutes of overtime, one weather delay and nearly three hours for the Mustangs to fight past the Warriors 1-0.
No one could score until Brielle Filtch, taking a well-timed feed from Laura Dailey, dribbled around Westhill’s superb goalie, Sam Peebles, and deposited the decisive goal with 5:48 to play in the second OT period.
Of course, there were all kinds of chances for both sides to get on the board long before Filtch did, though Marcellus had most of the chances in the first encounter between the two since the Mustangs beat the Warriors 1-0 in last fall’s Section III Class B semifinal.
It was quiet through the game’s early stages, and the action never really picked up until the two teams returned to the field with 15:40 left in the first half after a 30-minute lightning delay, though no rain or storms found their way to Marcellus.
Filtch, in fact, had back-to-back chances in the 33rd minute, first ripping a left-footed shot off the left post, and then getting another look seconds later and firing it just wide right. Jordan Wentworth also had a close-in look late in the half, but Peebles beat her to the ball before she could shoot.
During the second half, Peebles continued to excel with a series of close-in stops on her way to 15 saves for the night. Westhill, too, had an opportunity with 11 minutes left as Emily Mizer fought her way open in front of Marcellus goalie Margaret Choroser, but shot it inches wide of the post.
As the game moved into the pair of 10-minute overtime periods, the defenses clamped down further. Choroser, who had nine saves, got help from her back line as Meghan Witkowski, Shannon Donahue and Makenzie Felicia led the resistance.
Yet it looked like it would end 0-0 until, midway through the second OT. Dailey, working from near the right sideline, crossed to the middle and Filtch, in a sprint, moved past her defender, got the ball, and worked her way past Peebles to decide it.
Marcellus, who improved to 3-0 on the season, will meet Westhill again on Oct. 9, this time on the Warriors’ new artificial turf field.
Westhill lost a narrow 1-0 overtime decision to West Genesee on Aug. 31. Then, in its OHSL Liberty division opener against Solvay on the Warriors’ brand-new artificial turf field, the hosts outscored the Bearcats in a wild 7-4 affair.
Neither side excelled on the defensive end, but it was Westhill inching out in front 4-3 by halftime and gradually pulling away as Solvay wore down a bit.
Maggie Tripodi gave the Warriors a three-goal hat trick, adding an assist. Nicole Easterly had one goal and one assist, with Emily Mizer, Grace Powers and Sam Toscano also converting. Tatiana Monds and Kelly Lippert added assists.
Solvay, in defeat, got two goals from Chelsie Delperuto, with Brianna Wiesczynski earning the other tally. Combined, Bearcats goalie Julie Gardner and Maria Leonardo combined to make 14 saves.
Westhill then rolled past Chittenango 5-1 to get to 2-1 on the season. By the time it had a 3-0 halftime, the Warriors were in full command as Powers, Monds and Lindsay Lippert all scored. Powers and Lippert tacked on second-half goals, just to be sure.
