Except for its victory in the Finger Lakes Cup on Sept. 21-22, the Skaneateles boys soccer team has spent a lot of time in contests that went beyond regulation.
Overtime games against Marcellus and Cazenovia were the prelude to two more games, including a rematch with the Mustangs, that would drift deep into overtime before going in the Lakers’ favor.
During last Tuesday night’s drama against Chittenango, Skaneateles again had to go well beyond 80 minutes to pull out a 2-1 victory over the Bears.
Skaneateles was granted the no. 10 spot in the first state Class B rankings of the season. This did not impress Chittenango, though, as Andrew Martin’s goal helped to forge a 1-1 tie going into halftime.
And there it remained, through the second half and an entire 10-minute overtime period. It wasn’t until the second OT period that the Lakers pulled it out, with freshman Sam Clymer a central figure.
Clymer scored one goal and assisted on the other, by Jeff Kringer, while Ryan Higman gained an assist on Clymer’s tally. Erik Pola, well-protected by the Skaneateles defense, only had to make two saves, while Bears keeper Kyle Coon had six saves.
Now came the rematch with Marcellus, who had drawn Skaneateles 1-1 in a game played out over two days earlier this month due to weather delays.
Here, it would get decided in the Lakers’ favor in a 3-2 classic, made more remarkable by the fact that Marcellus had lost two goalies ( Eric Daggett with a broken ankle, Ian LaFever with a broken jaw) for the rest of the season and had to convert defender Dan Brown to take over duties as keeper.
Skaneateles coach Aaron Moss was away on a fishing trip, and he missed quite a show. The Lakers grabbed a 1-0 lead barely 11 minutes into the game on Mike Jorgensen’s goal, but Marcellus roared back, seeing Evan Turner and Tom McNaney find the net.
The Mustangs’ 2-1 halftime lead didn’t last long, either, as just 14 seconds into the second half Higman’s shot glanced off a Marcellus defender into the net. And it would stay even through the rest of a tense second half.
This was the fifth time Skaneateles had gone to OT this season, and it was 2-0-2 so far. Through most of the two 10-minute periods, Marcellus, in a defensive mode, turned away all of the Lakers’ chances, and another draw looked imminent.
Just 1:32 before it ended, Clymer knocked down a clearance attempt by the Mustangs, settled it and fired a shot just inside the left post that eluded Brown and won it for the Lakers.
And all this led to Tuesday’s big trip to Westhill, who gave the Lakers its lone defeat of the season, 1-0, early in September.
