Throughout its tough non-league slate, the Baldwinsville girls soccer team remained in good spirits, convinced that the adversity it faced now would lead to triumph down the road.
When the Bees, no. 11 in the first state Class AA rankings of the fall, hosted reigning state Class B champion Chenango Forks last Saturday afternoon, it was just the latest test after opening-week wins over Bethlehem and Saratoga Springs plus a tournament in Oneonta the weekend before where it took a 4-2 defeat to Long Island power Islip.
That loss had snapped a five-game win streak, but it hardly fazed B’ville as, led by forward Hannah Mimas, it returned home last Tuesday night and proved far too much for Christian Brothers Academy, prevailing by a 5-0 margin.
Steadily, the Bees applied pressure, and it resulted in a 3-0 halftime advantage on the Brothers, with Mimas netting two of those goals. Then, in the 52nd minutes, Mimas converted again to complete her hat trick.
Katie Pascale and Hannah Johnson offered the support, earning one goal apiece. Simone Nievel picked up a pair of assists as Carolyn Brussel, Graisa Madden and Kelsey DeLola earned one assist apiece. All told, B’ville took 21 shots to CBA’s three.
Now B’ville faced Forks, who started atop the state Class B poll after its 2016 state title run. And the Blue Devils proved it could hang right with a Class AA opponent, but the Bees still prevailed by a 2-1 margin.
Neither team would score in the first half. Then Forks did break through against the B’ville defense with a goal, only to have Pascale and Madden answer on the Bees’ behalf as DeLola got credit for an assist. Each of Meaghan Wilson’s seven saves was needed.
Already, B’ville had played half of its regular-season games and had gone 7-1 in them, with the lone test this week coming Thursday at Cicero-North Syracuse before the Sept. 26 showdown with Liverpool.
