Mike Messere did not accumulate 801 victories over 40 seasons coaching West Genesee’s boys lacrosse team by making hasty, rash decisions.
So it had to surprise everyone that closely follows the Wildcat program to see Messere signal for a time-out midway through the first quarter of Wednesday night’s Section III Class A final at the Carrier Dome, with WG only trailing Auburn by a single goal.
Again, though, Messere knew what he was doing.
Right after that time-out, the Wildcats went on a 9-1 run and dominated the rest of the first half, cruising from there to a 16-9 victory over the Maroons to reclaim the sectional championship that Fayetteville-Manlius snatched from them one year ago.
“It was hard last year (to lose to F-M)”, said senior attacker Nick Cunningham. “It just feels good to be back on top.”
The game even differed from the two regular-season games WG played against Auburn. Though the Wildcats won them both, the margins of 12-8 (on April 10) and 11-9 (on May 12) suggested that the final could have the same kind of continual tension.
It certainly began that way. Other than Ryan McDonald’s goal 1:08 into the game, the Wildcats rushed shots and turned the ball over in a nervous opening act.
Auburn took full advantage, with Dan Entenmann, coming off a seven-goal, four-assist showing against Syracuse in the May 23 sectional semifinal, scoring one goal and assisting on Anthony Alberici’s tally.
And that was when the Wildcats called time-out. Messere said the change in strategy involved switching to a “zone offense” to counter the zone look Auburn was utilizing on the defensive side.
A minute after the time-out, David Procopio tied it, 2-2, and less than two minutes later Nick Cunningham put home the goal that put WG ahead for good.
That was just an appetizer, though, before the Wildcats feasted on Auburn during a decisive second quarter. Cunningham, Conor Bartlett and Mike Fletcher all found the net to make it 6-2, forcing the Maroons to use a time-out to try and stop the tide.
Brian Cunningham did score right after the time-out, but that was Auburn’s last tally of the half. Nick Cunningham completed his hat trick 90 seconds later and Tyler Shoults, who already had three assists, added his own goal before Procopio and McDonald converted late in the half.
What was a close, competitive battle had turned into a 10-3 halftime cushion, and the Wildcats weren’t about to let Auburn recover.
Shoults scored twice more in the third quarter to complete his hat trick, and Nick Cunningham ran his total to four goals, bridging a bizarre sequence where top defender Nick Mellen committed three straight penalties and the Maroons capitalized with a pair of goals.
Auburn battled to the end, seeing Entenmann and Brian Cunningham each finish with four goals, but it didn’t prove enough to keep the Wildcats, with goals from Procopio (his third of the game), Derek Farrell and Ryan McDonald, from icing another sectional title.
This latest sectional title sends WG into Saturday’s Class A regional final against Section IV champion Corning-Painted Post at 3:30 at Cicero-North Syracuse’s Bragman Stadium.
The winner of that game advances to next Wednesday’s state semifinal against Pittsford (Section V) or Orchard Park (Section VI) at St. John Fisher College in suburban Rochester, with the state final set for June 6 at Vestal High School, near Binghamton.
Messere said his team needs to be more consistent and avoid penalties to make a serious push at the program’s 16th state title, but Shoults said he is ready for it.
“It’s great to be back on top,” said Shoults. “But we’re not done yet.”
