Though the Skaneateles and Marcellus girls lacrosse teams may have separated themselves from the rest of the Section III Class C contenders, they don’t appear to have separated from each other.
Or at least that was the impression gained from Monday night’s classic, when the two rivals pushed into overtime before the Lakers emerged on top, edging the Mustangs 14-12.
Leading by as many as four in the second half, the Lakers watched Marcellus come back on two separate occasions to tie it, 11-11, and force overtime. But the Mustangs could not get in front all night.
“We didn’t play our best, but we came out on top,” said Skaneateles head coach Bridget Marquardt.
Specifically, Marquardt said her team could not pick up ground balls, nor get shots past the Mustangs’ veteran senior goalie, Renee Poullott. So before the pair of three-minute OT periods, the Laker coach told her players to fare better on those fronts.
And Skaneateles listened, controlling possession through most of the first extra period and getting clutch goals from Casey VanSlyke and Nicole Beatson to move back in front 13-11.
Just as important was the draw that Alana Navaroli chased down after Grace Hunt scored 16 seconds into the second OT to cut the Lakers’ lead to 13-12. Once Navraoli got the crucial ground ball, the Lakers were able to run out the last 2:44, clinching it with Navaroli’s last-second goal.
So ended a wild, exciting contest that, for the most part, involved the Mustangs trying to chase Skaneateles down after falling behind 4-1 early in the first half. The rest of the half saw Marcellus inch closer, but not quite catch up.
Having scouted the Mustangs beforehand, Marquardt said her primary aim was shutting down the Mustangs’ high-scoring junior attacker, Grace Nolan. With Tate Green doing most of the work and help from VanSlyke and Casey Woodruff, Nolan did not have a point all night.
But Marcellus has plenty of other offensive options, and they would produce a comeback after the Mustangs fell behind 9-5 early in the second half. Audrey Cerrone’s third goal sparked a 4-0 run that tied it, 9-9, as Hunt, Molly McGuane and Alex Burrows all followed up with goals.
Even after the Lakers restored an 11-9 lead with goals from Molly Wood and Natalie Roche, the Mustangs fought back a second time. Lexy Bird, celebrating her 18th birthday, cut the margin to one with 6:06 left, and 40 seconds later Hunt’s second goal tied it, 11-11.
In the tense final minutes of regulation, Skaneateles lost possession when Emma Ford was ruled to have an illegal stick (which she was allowed to replace), gained the ball back and ran the clock down, only to turn it over again, which led to overtime.
Wood and Hannah Powers led another balanced Laker offensive effort with three goals apiece. Beatson had two goals and two assists, while Ford and VanSlyke both had two goals and one assist.
For the Mustangs, Cerrone, Bird and Hunt earned three goals apiece, while McGuane took advantage of all the attention on Nolan, managing two goals and three assists.
Marcellus gets another shot at Skaneateles on May 8 at Hyatt Stadium, and there’s a good chance the two rivals will have a post-season encounter, too.
“We will see them again,” said Marquardt.
