When the Liverpool and Cicero-North Syracuse field hockey teams had their first head-to-head encounter of 2017 Wednesday night at Bragman Stadium, much activity was taking place, including the Northstars’ “Fire Away Against Pulmonary Fibrosis” charity event.
But there was also plenty on the line for two young teams trying to prove themselves, especially for the Northstars, who had endured a rough baptism early last week with back-to-back home defeats to reigning sectional champions Cazenovia (Class C) and Baldwinsville (Class A).
What made C-NS’s 3-2 defeat to Cazenovia last Monday so frustrating was that, twice, it had erased deficits in quick order, and had plenty of opportunities to go in front, too, only to get thwarted by the Lakers and its star midfielder, Zoe Shephard.
Shephard struck first on a hard-hit shot from the point on Cazenovia’s first penalty corner with 12:14 left in the half. Less than two minutes later, the Northstars tied it, 1-1, as sophomore Allie Ball put home the rebound of Jamie Snyder’s shot amid a net scramble.
Just 56 seconds into the second half, Shephard struck again on a penalty corner, scoring from the left point off a terrific blind pass from Mikaylee Whalen. Again, C-NS caught up quickly, tying it 2-2 four minutes later as Jamie Wagner fired in a shot from the left point.
Throughout the middle portion of the second half, C-NS parked itself in the Lakers’ end, but got turned away in multiple attempts to pull out in front. Instead, Shephard returned to finish her hat trick on a hard shot from the left with 9:48 left, and Cazenovia held on from there, getting 17 saves from goalie Shea Flannery.
C-NS knew that Baldwinsville was going to bring the same sort of firepower, only more diverse and not leaning on a single player the way Cazenovia did with Shephard. Yet it still improved on the defensive side, earning a second-half shutout, though it wasn’t quite enough to prevent a 2-1 loss to the Bees.
All of the goals came in the first half. C-NS got an unassisted goal from Jamie Wagner, but the Bees struck by having Amanda Strenk and Mary Cate McKee each convert, with assists going to Emma Brushingham and Talia Scarfino.
For the entire second half, B’ville found itself unable to add to its one-goal lead. At the same time, though, the Bees’ back line mostly contained matters, not letting the Northstars get too many good looks as Hailey Boda turned them away, finishing with five saves. Ally Wagner finished with six saves.
Liverpool, who had started 0-2-1 but had pushed B’ville hard in a 1-0 defeat on Sept. 7, seemed to turn around at home last Monday night with an impressive 4-2 victory over Fayetteville-Manlius.
The Warriors’ attack came to life against the Hornets, converting twice in the first half on the way to a 2-1 lead. An exchange of goals followed early in the second half, but Liverpool didn’t let F-M catch up and tacked on a late insurance tally.
Claire Gaynor, with two goals, led the Warriors, while Kate Salanger and Katrina Bragan had one goal apiece. Hayley Vivenzo added an assist as Hannah Dombroski’s nine saves helped overcome goals by the Hornets’ Susan Bansbach and Lindsey Kilpatrick.
Liverpool’s struggles resumed Wednesday with a 5-0 defeat to Section IV power Greene, seven-time state champion in various classes, But at least the Warriors got to recover for a week before taking on C-NS, who had beaten F-M 2-0 on Sept. 8.
Against the Hornets, the Northstars got first-half goals from Katie Thies and Lindsey Hughes as Jamie Wagner contributed an assist. The C-NS defense, led by junior Mina Erickson and freshmen Anna Melfi and Emily Kuehn, protected that lead the rest of the way, holding the Hornets to a single direct shot.
On Saturday, C-NS ended it skid by jumping all over Cortland in a 4-0 victory, scoring each of those four goals in the first half. Snyder had two of them, with Bailey Lazore and Alli Bartlett adding goals as Lindsey Hughes and Julia McDonough got credit for assists. Purple Tigers goalie Kelsey Gibbons made 15 saves.
