While getting a second straight Section III Class B championship is still the main goal for the East Syracuse Minoa boys lacrosse team, what it did last Tuesday night may prove just as memorable in the long run.
Against a mighty Jamesville-DeWitt side that has beaten them up many times over the years, the Spartans stood up to the Red Rams, made a stirring comeback and prevailed 10-9 in overtime.
These teams had met April 14 and J-D, on its home turf, tore ESM’s defenses apart in a 21-12 victory. But the Spartans had not lost since, racking up six straight wins and climbing to no. 12 in the latest state Class B rankings.
J-D, meanwhile, had seen its own 10-game win streak stopped by Class A Fairport on May 5, but still was no. 4 in the state Class C poll, and got in front of ESM 3-1 in the early stages of their rematch.
What followed was a 5-1 Spartans run, most of it from Lance and Derrek Madonna as Gannon Abreu also got a goal, helping ESM go in front 6-5 by halftime.
The Rams regained the lead in the third quarter, but that didn’t last, either, as Luke Rosaschi and Tim Crouse hit on back-to-back goals early in the fourth quarter, putting ESM back in front 9-8.
Late in regulation, J-D pulled even, 9-9, so it went to overtime. But the Spartans’ Dan Boland won the OT faceoff and quickly passed it to Rosaschi, whose shot eluded Liam Coyle for the game-winner.
That was Rosaschi’s third goal of the night as Crouse and Lance Madonna both had two goals. Alex Recor joined Abreu and Derrek Madonna with single tallies as each of Owen Anzalone’s 12 saves counted.
In defeat, J-D’s Griffin Cook scored three times and added three assists. Connor Durkin and Johnny Keib each got two goals as Will Davis and Nick Kemis had one goal apiece.
Furious at this result, J-D took it out on a pair of late-week foes, starting with Thursday’s 17-3 destruction of Cortland that saw a nine-goal second quarter and a 13-2 halftime margin.
Davis had three goals and Pat Murad got three assists as Durkin, Keib, Nick Kemis, Tanner Burn and Matt Kemmis each had two goals, Durkin getting three assists and Burns two assists. Cook had one goal and two assists as Ryan Evans also had a goal.
A 22-5 romp over Fulton followed on Friday, with 11 goals in the first quarter alone. Cook had three goals and three assists as Ryan Drotar, Josh Greenway and Ibte Beg each saw extended action and had three-goal hat tricks of their own. Evans, Kemis and Brendan Drotar had two goals apiece, with Durkin getting one goal and one assist.
ESM, meanwhile, met New Hartford and won 19-9, though it was close in the first half, with plenty of goals on both sides as ESM inched in front of this Spartans dual by an 11-7 margin.
Once it tightened up on defense, though, ESM got clear, blanking New Hartford in the third quarter. Eventually, each of the Madonna brothers finished with five goals and one assist as Rosaschi topped them in points thanks to three goals and four assists.
Despite a 7-5 record and a two-game skid, Christian Brothers Academy was still no. 5 in the latest state Class D rankings, but that was before last Tuesday’s 7-6 overtime defeat to no. 12-ranked Marcellus.
The Mustangs entered this game having won six in a row, but the Brothers were on the way to halting that streak when it worked its way to a 5-2 halftime lead.
At that point, though, things halted. Neither team scored a goal in the third quarter, but the Mustangs stayed patient and, in the final peiod, made up all the ground before getting possession in OT and winning it.
Ryan Mackenzie and Mike Adornato each got two goals for CBA, with Wyatt Auyer adding goal and assist. Patrick O’Brien had the other goal and Joey Matheson earned an assist as Will Fallon had 10 saves.
Friday brought CBA to Westhill and to a rematch of last year’s memorable sectional Class D final won by the Brothers in double overtime.
They went to OT again here, but the Warriors pulled it out, 8-7, coming through despite CBA holding to one goal in the second half, with Mackenzie scoring three times as Adornato got two goals. Auyer had a goal and two assists as Colin Kelly added two assists and Sam Bonacci scored, too.
Only on Saturday did CBA get back in the win column, handling Chittenango 15-4 as it bolted out to a 7-0 lead by the end of the first quarter.
Kelly, with two goals and two assists, led the way as O’Brien, Mackenzie, Auyer and Mike Catalano also had two-goal outings. Sam Bonacci, Joey Matheson, Matt Ludington, Cole Matthews and Josh Hulslander had one goal apiece.
