A month full of defeats both lopsided and close had stunned followers of the Cazenovia boys lacrosse team so accustomed to recent success.
Thus, it was cathartic for the Lakers to turn those results around, at least for one night, last Tuesday against Tully, as it got off to its best start of the season and didn’t let up until it had recorded a 15-7 victory over the Black Knights.
With all kinds of pent-up frustration on display, Cazenovia didn’t let up until it led Tully 6-0 after one quarter, eventually extending that margin to 11-3 at halftime – more than enough, as it turned out.
Will Shepard, with four goals and two assists, led the charge as Alex Nowak also got four goals. Thomas Bragg scored three times, adding two assists as Cole Basic earned two goals. Trey Schugg and Will Khalil had the other goals. Between them, R.J. Smith and Chase Cross earned 10 saves.
Then came Thursday’s Laker duel at Hyatt Stadium, with Cazenovia traveling to state Class D no. 6-ranked Skaneateles and nearly making a miraculous late-game comeback before settling for a 13-11 defeat.
Cazenovia caught Skaneateles at a good time, with those other Lakers coming off a tough 11-10 defeat to state no. 1-ranked Westhill two nights earlier. As such, the visitors were able to stay within touch throughout a fast-paced first half.
Still, Cazenovia trailed 6-4 at halftime, and Skaneateles established a cushion with back-to-back goals by Reggie Buell late in the third quarter to go up 11-6. Eventually, the score got to 13-8 with less than five minutes left before Cazenovia scored three in a row to nearly erase its deficit.
Shepard continued his strong play with four goals and two assists. Nowak scored three times, with Bragg getting a goal and two assists. Khalil had one goal and one assist as Basic and Matt McLaughlin also found the net. Smith made 13 saves as, for Skaneateles, Pat Hackler and John Danforth each got four goals, with Buell adding three goals and three assists.
Perhaps Cazenovia’s season was best symbolized by Saturday’s 11-4 defeat to Pittsford, a game where the Lakers gave another all-out effort and were within two, 6-4, at halftime thanks to three goals by Khalil and another by Shepard.
But Pittsford blanked the Lakers in the second half and pulled away, overcoming Smith’s latest 13-save performance. With the loss, Cazenovia fell to 3-9, though its 3-4 league record meant that post-season hopes were alive with three games this week, one of them against Chittenango.
Also playing last Tuesday night, Chittenango fell to LaFayette 17-5, unable to keep up with a frantic pace set by the Lancers, who built a 7-3 halftime edge and pulled clear behind three-goal outings from Ian Evans, Reed Jackowski and Evan Spratt, who combined for eight assists.
Only Bill Demand was able to produce on a consistent basis for the Bears, earning his own three-goal hat trick as the passes came from Karl Farber, who had three assists. Cooper Young and Grant Czarnecki had the other goals and Eddie Houle had an assist. Carson Maciag finished with 13 saves.
When Chittenango took its shot at Tully on Thursday, the Bears lost, 13-8, to the Black Knights, the game decided in the middle stages as the two sides were tied, 5-5, but then Tully outscored the Bears 6-1 over the course of the second and third periods.
Farber and Carter Laramee still had two goals and two assists apiece. Demand also scored twice, adding an assist as Keith Spurgeon and Christian Cerio earned the other goals. Maciag made 15 saves. For Tully, Jake Edinger, Tyler Edinger and Brandon Lyon each had three-goal hat tricks.
