At last, the door for the Skaneateles girls soccer team appears swung open.
For much of the last three decades, the Lakers have fielded winning sides, able to beat most of its league foes and go deep into Section III Class B tournaments, too.
Yet at the end, someone, usually Marcellus or Westhill, keeps them from a championship. In 2013, it was Westhill’s turn, denying Sknaeateles 1-0 in a tense sectional quarterfinal.
Everything is different in 2014, though. Westhill is still in Class B, but Marcellus, who went all the way to the state finals a year ago, has moved up to Class A and the OHSL Freedom division.
This gives head coach Todd Cook’s Lakers a greater opportunity to get to the top, and with some of these players gaining experience from winning a state Class C girls lacrosse title during the spring, the confidence has only grown.
Just how confident was evident in last Tuesday night’s season opener at Hyatt Stadium, where the Lakers did whatever it wanted during an 8-0 shutout over the Jordan-Elbridge Eagles.
It wasn’t just that Skaneateles bolted out to a 6-0 lead by halftime, but how it did so – spreading the attack around in a manner that had to scare future opponents.
Seven different Lakers had goals by game’s end, with only Emmeline Graham finding the net twice. Catie Woodruff had a goal and two assists, with Tate Green adding one goal and one assist. Lauren Goodchild, Lauren Parker, Amanda Wetmore and Ally Pietropaoli also found the net.
Much the same thing happened less than 24 hours later, when the Lakers went to Phoenix and smashed the Firebirds 11-2, getting past double digits through an attack where four different players picked up multiple goals.
Green, with three goals and one assist, led the charge, but Woodruff, Wetmore and Makie Kerr each picked up two goals to provide ample support. Graham and Pietropaoli had the other goals, Parker joining Green, Woodruff and Kerr in the assist column.
A much tougher test loomed Monday, when Skaneateles hosted 2-0 Cazenovia, a precursor to the Lakers’ appearance in the Lewiston-Porter Tournament near Niagara Falls on Friday and Saturday.
