Names on the roster might change. Even the classification might change.
What hasn’t changed is the consistent excellence of the Skaneateles girls lacrosse team, who now has won five consecutive Section III titles, including the first one handed out in Class D Tuesday night at SUNY-Cortland as the Lakers defeated South Jefferson 16-7.
That Skaneateles had to wait until late in the evening to get underway due to weather delays in earlier sectional finals was a small annoyance compared to the various challenges (injuries, illness, a brutal schedule) that could have derailed the Lakers at any time this spring.
A break did come, though, when South Jefferson knocked out state no. 1-ranked Marcellus in the sectional semifinals. So instead of having to deal again with the rival Mustangs (who beat them in April), Skaneateles had to face a Spartans side intent on producing another shocker.
And South Jefferson did get a pair of early leads, controlling the tempo, but once Grace Dower hit on consecutive goals and put Skaneateles ahead for good at 3-2, the machine started to roll.
Kyla Sears, back in the sectional final after missing it a year ago with a knee injury, didn’t score a goal until she pushed through a Spartans double team and found the net with 3:46 left. Three more goals followed, completing a 7-1 run, and what was a tight affair was now an 8-3 Lakers advantage going into the break.
It didn’t stop there, either. Sears, Abby Kuhns and Olivia Navaroli took turns claiming draws, leading to more possession time and more production early in the second half, the lead stretching out to 11-4 before South Jefferson made one more push, moving within 12-7 late in the game.
But once the Lakers started possessing the ball, the Spartans were forced to gamble, leading to wide-open lanes to the net and four consecutive tallies that locked up the latest Lakers sectional title.
Sears finished the night with four goals and four assists. Navaroli also scored four times, tacking on two assists as Riley Brogan’s spectacular freshman season continued with two goals and three assists. Dower, Sophie Kush and Mae McGlynn also scored twice.
South Jefferson, in defeat, had a three-goal hat trick from Natalie Strough. Mackenzie Alexander scored twice and added two assists as single goals went to Sydney Roderick and Mara Hathaway, Roderick getting two assists.
Two days later, it was time for the Lakers to return to the state tournament as it faced Section IV champion Chenango Forks at Liverpool High School Stadium.
