Should the Jamesville-DeWitt boys lacrosse team scale large heights this spring, it might point toward a chilly Saturday morning where it climbed out of major depths against the area’s most storied program.
The Red Rams trailed through most of its game at West Genesee, but erased a four-goal deficit in the second half and then won it, 8-7, on Connor Durkin’s goal 14 seconds into overtime.
J-D had little trouble winning any of its first three games this spring, including last Wednesday’s 14-6 romp over its neighbors from East Syracuse Minoa, but West Genesee almost derailed them.
In its first season under new head coach Shaun Smith after Mike Messere’s retirement, the 15-time state champion Wildcats had started 2-0, and for a long while Saturday it looked like WG would get three in a row at the Rams’ expense.
During the first quarter, J-D had most of the possession time, yet still found itself down 2-1 after Brad Cunningham scored in the waning seconds on a transition goal. A solid Wildcats’ defense, plus several point-blank stops from Luke Staudt, caused plenty of frustration.
It got worse in the third quarter, J-D’s deficit growing to 6-2, and it went more than 13 minutes without a goal before Matt Kemmis broke that drought, and then Tanner Burns made it 6-4 before the period ended.
Down the stretch, the pace picked up, but little changed as, with 2:16 left, Connor Delany converted to extend WG’s lead to 7-5, but the Rams were not done.
Kemmis answered Delany’s goal 20 seconds later, and J-D got the ball back, tying it, 7-7, when Will Davis flashed open at the point and sent a hard shot past Staudt.
It came down to the overtime face-off, where Brendan Coyne outfought WG’s Vince Calabria, and then passed it to Durkin, whose initial shot was turned back by Staudt, but Durkin pounced on the rebound and, with a second chance, beat Staudt for the game-winner.
All of this followed J-D’s game with ESM, pushed back 48 hours from last Monday due to snow, though that delay didn’t affect the Rams one bit.
An early tone was set when J-D raced out 4-1, though for a time ESM was able to answer it, producing enough in the second quarter to only trail 5-3 going into the break.
But the Spartans were blanked in the third quarter, the Rams beginning to draw clear as Durkin anchored the attack, dishing out a season-best five assists to go with his three-goal hat trick.
Pat Murad also scored three times, with Matt Kemmis getting two goals and two assists. Davis and Johnny Keib each had two goals and one assist, Burns and Nick Kemmis getting single tallies..
For ESM, only Lance Madonna scored twice. Mike Kavanagh, Jackson Palumb, Eric Callahan and Owen White had one goal apiece, Luke Rosaschi held to one assist as goalie Logan Lemelbaum made 16 saves.
Right after, ESM had a narrow escape Thursday night at Cortland. Without any rest following the defeat to J-D, the Spartans went back and forth all game long and were glad to escape with an 11-10 win over the Purple Tigers.
They were tied 3-3 after one quarter and 5-5 at halftime. Only in the third quarter did ESM move in front and it held on late behind Rosaschi’s four goals and three assists, with Madonna adding three goals and two assists.
Tim Crouse, blanked against J-D, put up three goals this time, with Kavanagh getting one goal and one assist. Palumb added two assists as Lemelbaum earned nine saves. Brandon Ludwig paced Cortland with three goals and three assists.
A night before J-D and ESM met, it was Christian Brothers Academy making its 2019 season debut, and it had little trouble against Watertown at Alibrandi Stadium, crushing the Cyclones 17-4.
Wyatt Auer outscored Watertown by himself, amassing six goals and tacking on two assists, while Preston Taylor earned seven assists to go with his pair of tallies.
Colin Kelly was potent, too, getting four goals and three assists, while Joey Matheson had three goals and one assist. Ryan Mackenzie had a goal and two assists. Sam Bonacci earned one goal and one assist as Josh Hulslander contributed an assist.
On Saturday, CBA played again, at Brighton (Section V), where it lost a 12-11 overtime thriller after rallying from a 5-3 halftime deficit to tie it in the third quarter. Z.J. Shanin making 14 saves.
Taylor (three goals, one assist) and Kelly (two goals, three assists) led a well-balanced Brothers attack, Auyer adding two goals and one assist. Mackenzie had a goal and three assists, with Matheson, Hulslander and Brockton Bowler also finding the net.
