Even a 7-2 record had not yet propelled the East Syracuse Minoa boys soccer team into the state Class A rankings – something it hoped to change as the month of September wound down.
Fulton, who faced the Spartans last Monday night, was no. 17 in those state rankings, but ESM got the best of them, relying on a pair of late goals, plus steady, consistent defense, to beat the Red Raiders 2-0.
These two sides worked through a scoreless first half, with plenty of good chances on both sides, yet neither able to convert. Then, less than 10 minutes into the second half, Ty Mulcahy pushed a shot past Fulton goalie Matt Borrow.
That 1-0 lead got doubled when Todd Durantini, who had not scored a goal all season, pounced on the rebound of a Spartans shot and converted. The Red Raiders, by contrast, could not get anything past Ryan Cacace, who earned the shutout by stopping all 13 shots he faced.
The Spartans sought a regular-season sweep of Jamesville-DeWitt last Thursday afternoon, and got it with a 2-0 victory, moving out in front late in the first half when Safet Suljic tore through the Red Rams’ defenses and put home an unassisted goal.
J-D’s defense did what it could to keep the game close, David Tyler recording 10 saves, but Kyle Scalzo doubled ESM’s lead 30 seconds into the second half, and though the Rams had lots of opportunities of its own, Cacace turned them all back and finished with 11 saves.
Fayetteville-Manlius jumped all the way to no. 3 in the state Class AA rankings thanks to its 10-0 start and wins the previous week over Baldwinsville and CBA. And it wasn’t tested much in the last days of September.
The Hornets beat West Genesee 5-0 last Monday at Swan Pond, with Cole Teelin leading a well-balanced attack thanks to his two goals and one assist. Alex Bychkov, Noah Craig and Corey Gallagher also found the net as Hunter Knutsen, Grant Olick-Sutphen, Ryan Varley and Mike Palmer picked up assists.
Two nights later, the Hornets beat Corcoran 6-0, as Riley Burke’s three assists set the tone. Only Teelin scored twice, with single goals going to Knutsen, Craig, Olick-Sutphen and Varley as Luke D’Amato and Nolan Chiles joined Varley earning single assists.
Christian Brothers Academy had just pushed F-M on Sept. 23 and had to turn around two days later to take on another undefeated team, Westhill, who sat at no. 3 in the state Class B rankings.
Again, the Brothers were resilient, but took a 2-0 defeat to the Warriors, whose defense kept CBA off the board while doing just enough on the other end. Matt Buck made nine saves, but Westhill goals by Jack Grooms and Connor Schwartz proved enough.
A day later, CBA roared past Jordan-Elbridge 5-0, taking 22 shots overall to the Eagles’ six. Up 3-0 by halftime, the Brothers saw Dan Melvin score twice as Tommy Daviau, Ryan O’Connor and Zach Witz notched one goal apiece. Assists went to Dan Polhemus, Jordan Knapp, Parker Buck, Tom Homlik and Matt Ludington.
A wild game followed Thursday night against visiting Chittenango, but CBA survived it, prevailing 5-4 in overtime as it recovered from having seen a 3-2 halftime lead go away and overcame 21 saves from Bears goalie Noah Schnauffer.
Mainly, it required Tristan Kucera to pick up a three-goal hat trick, with Melvin and Ayu Ogontola each getting one goal and one assist. Polhemus and Dan Potenza earned assists as Tim Ryder (two goals) and Seth Spurgeon (one goal, two assists) led Chittenango’s attack.
Manlius-Pebble Hill, who had lost to Bishop Grimes on Sept. 22, found its early-season form again in last Tuesday’s 4-0 shutout of Faith Heritage, the completion of a regular-season sweep to go with a 7-0 win over those same Saints earlier in the month.
Simon Hoke stood out on this day, guiding the Trojans to a 2-0 halftime lead and not letting up until he had recorded a three-goal hat trick. Ahmad El-Hindi had the other goal and assisted on one of Hoke’s tallies, with Naldo Chen and Jacob Roy also earning assists.
Grimes had moved on to last Tuesday’s game at Solvay, where it needed overtime to beat the Bearcats 3-2 following a regulation where both sides scored in each half. Paul Kim had two of the Cobras’ three goals, with Deng Mawien earning the other. Connor Alexander and David Cifonelli earned assists.
It proved easier for Grimes in Friday’s 5-1 win over Onondaga, where it jumped to a 3-0 halftime lead on the Tigers as Deng Magwien led a well-balanced attack with a pair of goals. Andrea Pallotta had one goal and one assist, with Alexander and Robert Mannion also earning goals. Kim picked up an assist.
