With every long possession and forced turnover and big save from goalie Jack Sweeney, the Westhill boys lacrosse team proved itself as a bona fide challenger to Cazenovia’s reign as state and Section III Class C champions in last Tuesday afternoon’s showdown.

And while the Lakers still managed to pull out a 5-4 victory, it left the Warriors’ home turf more relieved than joyous, for now it knew that Westhill had the plan in place to beat them should their paths cross again in the post-season.

Westhill, whose 7-0 start had helped them rise to no. 6 in the latest state Class C rankings (Cazenovia, of course, owns the top spot), had no intention of playing at the fast, high-scoring tempo the Lakers, who beat the Warriors in last May’s sectional semifinals, prefer.

Even after early goals from Henry Mann and Cole Willard in the game’s first 90 seconds, plus P.J. Brown’s tally that made it 3-0 later in the first quarter, the Warriors clung to its game plan.

Whenever it had the ball, Westhill worked around the perimeter for minutes at a time, waiting for just the right shot, rather than immediately engage the Lakers’ sturdy back line.

In some ways, this was a healthy dose of respect. Mike Nourse, Eli Mitchell, T.J. Connellan and the rest of Cazenovia’s defenders caused Westhill fits every time it tried to get close to the net, offering strong protection to goalie Trevor Cross, who mostly stayed quiet in the first half.

Not until Mark Purcell’s goal 3:32 into the second quarter did the Warriros get on the board. Brown answered less than 90 seconds later, making it 4-1, but Casey Rogers produced a goal late in the period, and with Sweeney making a series of big stops, Westhill only found itself trailing by a 4-2 margin at the break.

Any time Cazenovia turned the ball over, or committed a penalty, Westhill stuck to its patient approach. And after Mann’s second goal midway through the third quarter that made it 5-2, the Lakers would not score again, giving the Warriors lots of time to catch up.

Early in the final period, Richie Easterly scored for Westhill to make it 5-3. And it stayed that way until Jack Centore, with 1:27 left, flung a shot past Cross, shrinking the Lakers’ lead to one.

Then, as he had done all afternoon, Mann won a face-off – he claimed 11 of the game’s 13 draws – . and though Westhill forced a turnover in the waning seconds, Connellan intercepted a long pass attempt, allowing the Lakers to run out the clock.

Westhill was right back on the field Thursday afternoon, facing Onondaga, and it went right back into the win column, too, handling the Tigers 13-2.

Again, the Warriors’ defense stood out, shutting out OCS during a 5-0 first half, and Westhill doubled that total in the third quarter while building a 10-1 margin.

Purcell, with four goals, and Ryan Zimmerman, with two goals and three assists, led Westhill’s attack. Easterly also scored twice as Rogers gained a goal and two assists. Collin Henson, Dan Hodgens, Chris Harnell and Matt McAnaney had one goal apiece.