Now the Westhill boys soccer team is quite aware of the main obstacle to reclaiming the Section III Class B title – namely, one opponent that still holds the crown.
Having gone unbeaten against everyone else, the Warriors still haven’t solved defending sectional champion Skaneateles in either of their two meetings, including last Thursday night’s home game, a 2-1 defeat to the Lakers.
Not only were the Warriors no. 7 in the state Class B rankings, it hadn’t allowed a goal until its ninth game of the season, a single tally late in a 6-1 romp over Jordan-Elbridge earlier in the week.
But Skaneateles had played Westhill to a 0-0 deadlock on Sept. 5 amid broiling conditions (the heat index was close to 100 degrees) at Hyatt Stadium. Now, with temperatures 50 degrees cooler, the energy level picked up on both ends.
Through most of the game’s early stages, Skaneateles was on its heels, needing quality stops and some big saves from goalkeeper Sam Smith to keep it scoreless. And in the 27th minute, Westhill’s Connor Schwartz was fouled inside the 18-yard box, leading to a penalty kick that Mike Lantry converted, sending left-footed shot past the diving attempt by Smith to stop it.
Less than five minutes later, though, the Lakers forced a corner kick. Matt Neumann took it, and fed it to the middle, where Luke Palmer offered a perfect header off the hands of Westhill goalie Antonio Scrimale and into the net, the first goal Scrimale had allowed this season.
Tied 1-1 at the break, Skaneateles seized the initiative in the second half, constantly forcing Scrimale to make all kinds of saves (he finished with 10). But the pressure continued and, in the 61st minute, Dylan Viscomi fitted a low shot from the right side just inside the left post for the go-ahead goal.
And the Lakers knew what to do with that lead. Palmer, Sam Duggan and Reece Eddy formed a formidable defensive wall, never letting Westhill’s multiple attackers get too close as the stretch wore on and preserving that slim margin.
Before all this, the shutout streak was broken late in last Tuesday’s 6-1 victory over Jordan-Elbridge, the breakthrough happening when the Eagles’ Bailey Bourque, off a feed from Russell Hines, put it past Warriors goalie John Geer.
Yet even that came amid a late Westhill charge that broke things open. Ryan Zimmerman, continuing recent hot play, netted a three-goal hat trick, while Sebastian Ramirez had one goal and one assist. Nick Colella added two assists as Jack Miller and Owen Hoyne had the other goals and Lantry picked up one assist.
A day earlier, at Central Square, Westhill had to work all 80 minutes to earn a 1-0 victory over the Redhawks. Once Zimmerman scored in the first half off a feed from Braeden Elmer, the game turned into a defensive battle. Central Square goalkeeper Dakota Williams made eight saves and the Redhawks attacked enough times to make Westhill worry. But Scrimale’s six saves kept his team in front.
Marcellus watched all this unfold, and after heavy rains postponed last Tuesday’s game at Cazenovia (it will get made up this Saturday), the refreshed Mustangs went to Jordan-Elbridge and blanked the Eagles 4-0 to move to 9-2-1 on the season.
All game long, J-E goalie Max Bondgren, who made 15 saves, faced stern attacks, and Marcellus made sure it got a 3-0 first-half cushion. Alec Stasyuk and Doug LaPrease each had one goal and one assist, with Ross Filtch and Mike Melnyczuk earning the other goals.
West Genesee received a visit from Fayetteville-Manlius last Monday night, and were unable to get on the board in a 4-0 loss to the Hornets.
For much of the first half, Wildcats goalie Ryan Mavretish turned back the shots he faced. Combined, Mavretish and Kamel Awayda had 14 saves, but F-M still got away in the second half behind two goals from Joe Falcone and one goal and one assist from Dan Murray. Mike Myagkota had the other goal.
In a non-league game Wednesday at Fulton, the Wildcats lost, 3-1, to the state Class A no. 14-ranked Red Raiders, Tyler Pirro’s first-half goal, assisted by Bahie Ezzat, got WG on the board, but Fulton still led 2-1 at the break and added to that margin late, led by Spencer Vono, with one goal and one assist, and Jared Marden, who had two assists as Austin Beckwith and Austin Wilde had the other goals.
Then WG fell to East Syracuse Minoa Friday by a 4-1 margin, all from a first half where the Spartans raced in front, 3-0, led by Brad Hartung and Nate Sturick, who each had one goal and one assist. Pirro did break up the shutout in the second half as Mavretish made 12 saves.
Bishop Ludden, in its lone action of the week, took a tough 1-0 defeat to state Class C no. 20-ranked Fabius-Pompey last Tuesday night to fall to 6-3 on the season. Both teams struggled in the wet conditions, the game remaining 0-0 until Yesner Vazquez, off a feed from Kyle Mawson, netted the Falcons’ lone goal. Both goalies – Peter Lockwood for Ludden, Corey Lawson for F-P – finished with five saves.
Solvay’s week started with a 4-3 loss to Phoenix, Trailing 2-1 at halftime, the Bearcats did enough on the offensive side to rally, only to surrender that same amount of goals to the Firebirds. Layth Karim scored twice for Solvay, with Vlad Trut adding one goal and one assist. Nate Kosecki also had an assist as Joe Reale made nine saves.
A night later, the Bearcats lost, 3-0, at Skaneateles, Reale getting seven saves but unable to completely contain a well-balanced Lakers attack. Sam Clymer and Graham McCarthy both had one goal and one assist, with Matt Benson getting the other goal and Solvay held to just one direct shot on the Skaneateles net.
In Friday night’s game at Cazenovia, Solvay again got close, but lost, 3-2, to the Lakers. All of the offense came in the second half, where Trut and Jonah Cavallo netted goals, only to see Dan McKillop, Adam Race and Burke Regan each find the net to help Cazenovia overcome Reale’s nine saves.
