Even before the calendar turned to September, the Skaneateles girls soccer team found itself in a good mood following a key early victory in OHSL Liberty division play.
Skaneateles went east on Route 20 to take on its fellow Lakers from Cazenovia in the Aug. 29 season opener, and a wild sequence early in the second half led to the visitors pulling out a 2-1 victory at the Sean Googin Sports Complex.
Neither side scored in a quiet first half, but things picked up after the break. Early in the second half, Molly Wood flashed open in front of the net and, taking a well-timed pass from Elizabeth Lane, beat Cazenovia goalie Maggie Johnson to put her team in front.
Minutes later, Casey Crawford’s tally tied it, 1-1, but Skaneateles caught a break in the 51st minute when it applied pressure and forced a Cazenovia defender to touch the ball with her hand inside the 18-yard box.
That led to a penalty kick, which Lauren Goodchild converted for the go-ahead goal. From there, the Skaneateles defense did the rest, clamping down on Cazenovia and forcing it to a handful of shots, all of which freshman goalkeeper Sophie Kush was able to snare.
Coming off a 2012 season that ended with a Class B quarterfinal defeat to Westhill, the Lakers welcomed league newcomer Altmar-Parish-Williamstown last Tuesday afternoon, earning a 2-0 shutout over the Rebels.
With a relentless attack, Skaneateles took 17 shots to APW’s two, with one goal in each half proving enough. Tate Green and Tori Field found the net, while Emmeline Graham earned one assist.
Making it a 3-0 start, the Lakers hosted Hannibal on Thursday night. Unlike the first two games, the Lakers’ attack wasn’t thwarted anywhere as it reached double digits on the scoreboard and routed the Warriors 10-0.
It was already 6-0 by halftime, and Green provided the spark, earning four assists to go with her pair of goals as Catie Woodruff stepped up, too, earning her first three goals of the season amid a hat trick.
Five other Lakers – Graham, Wood, Reneah Campbell, Nicole Beatson and Lauren Goodchild – took turns earning goals, too, as Lane and Miranda Hagen found the assist column.
Without any rest, Skaneateles went to Solvay 24 hours later, searching for four wins in a row – and by roaring out of the gate, the Lakers were able to shut out the Bearcats 2-0.
Perhaps knowing it would be a bit tired from playing for a third time in four days, Skaneateles pushed the tempo early, and it worked. Green and Hannah Powers both put shots past Solvay goalie Chelsie Delperuto to provide that two-goal margin.
That was all the Lakers needed, as it went back on defense and bottled up the Bearcats, holding them to just three shots and sewing up a fourth consecutive victory.
With a chance to breathe, Skaneateles will return to action Thursday, hosting Jordan-Elbridge, before a tough test Saturday at Homer.
