To say that the West Genesee boys lacrosse team avenged last May’s Section III Class A final defeat to Fayetteville-Manlius when it prevailed 8-4 amid a gray Tuesday afternoon on the Hornets’ home turf would overstate it, since the stakes were not the same, nor were the lineups thanks to plenty of roster turnover since 2014 on both sides.
But the Wildcats did gain, at least for now, the upper hand in this long rivalry, holding it for at least one month until the two sides gather again a month from now in Camillus.
Though the problems with WG’s artificial turf home field were clearing up, it was not yet time to go back to competition on that field, so the two dates with F-M were flipped, the rematch now set for May 5 at Wildcat Stadium.
In contrast to WG’s 3-0 start (though head coach Mike Messere said there was plenty to work on), F-M was 1-2, still getting used to new faces all over the lineup, not to mention eight sophomores on the roster. The Hornets’ three games were all one-goal decisions – a win over Auburn, followed by defeats to Jamesville-DeWitt (9-8) and Liverpool (14-13).
Here, neither side would reach those numbers, which was just fine by the Wildcats, who never trailed and relied on mini-scoring bursts and tough defense to subdue F-M.
Mike Fletcher got WG on the board just 2:01 into the game, and Derek Farrell landed his first goal of the season less than 90 seconds later. The Wildcats controlled most of the first quarter, but saw F-M goalie Brian Charlamb make many tough point-blank stops, and two other shots bang off the posts.
Down 2-1 going to the second period, F-M did tie it on Lucas Hamel’s goal at the 3:35 mark, only to have David Procopio answer 29 seconds later, putting the Wildcats ahead for good.
Over the next four minutes, WG added two goals from Tyler Shoults and a second goal from Farrell in between Dylan Taylor-Wolford’s second tally, making it 6-3 going into halftime.
When Ryan McDonald and Nick Cunningham hit on back-to-back scoring plays 22 seconds apart early in the third quarter, it was 8-3. But the Wildcats did not score again, turned back by both unlucky shots off pipes and more great play from Charlamb, who finished with 16 saves.
Yet all F-M could manage in the entire second half was Mac Fish’s goal, assited by Taylor-Wolford, 5:23 into the third quarter.
Nick Mellen, Chris Sheedy, Jake McCarthy and the rest of WG’s back line kept forcing F-M away from the net with man-to-man pressure, and even when the Hornets got some shots, Ryan Mavretish turned them back, stopping 16 of the 20 attempts he faced.
Facing Auburn on Friday night, the Wildcats would take a bit longer to assume control, but did so and once again got the upper hand in this long-term rivalry, beating the Maroons 12-8.
Fresh off a win over Baldwinsville two days earlier, Auburn played WG to a 4-4 first-half draw. But in the pivotal third quarter, the Wildcats kept the Maroons off the board and, more importantly, notched four unanswered goals that accounted for the eventual winning margin.
Procopio led the attack throughout the night, scoring five times, though Matt McDonald wasn’t far behind, earning three goals and one assist.
Fletcher helped both of them out with four assists to go with his lone tally as Cunningham, Farrell and Shoults notched the other goals. Mavretish recorded 10 saves. Four different Auburn players – Anthony Alberici, Jack Burgmaster, Dan Entenmann and Kaiden Tubbert – had two goals apiece.
Home again on Saturday to face Loyola, a visiting opponent from Chicago, the Wildcats prevailed again, 15-5, breaking it open in the second quarter with five unanswered goals after Loyola managed a 2-2 first-period tie.
Setting a new career mark, Fletcher dished out six assists, and plenty of teammates benefited. Matt McDonald scored three times, with Cunningham, Procopio, Farrell and Shoults earning two goals apiece. Cunningham added a pair of assists as Ryan McDonald, Conor Bartlett, Kevin Sheehan and Ryan Smith earned single goals.
Now at 6-0 on the season, the Wildcats would host Liverpool on Wednesday night before another big non-league game on Saturday against reigning sectional Class B champion Jamesville-DeWitt.
