All of the regular-season work is now done for the Cicero-North Syracuse and Liverpool girls soccer teams, and the Section III Class AA playoffs loom once more – at least for the Northstars, anyway.
First, though, the two rivals had to face each other Thursday night at Archie Hall Stadium, trying to settle matters after they played to a 2-2 draw at LHS Stadium on Sept. 26.
Here, amid cooler temperatures and gusty breezes, the Warriors again were tough and resilient, but the Northstars beat them 1-0.
What took pressure off C-NS was getting in front during the first half, Marissa Bukowski scoring off a feed from Morgan Siechen. That was all Liverpool would allow as Megan Merrifield finished the night with six saves.
As was the case most of the season, though, the Warriors had a difficult time generating a consistent attack. It only managed two direct shots that the Northstars flicked away to maintain its slim advantage.
C-NS hosted West Genesee the night before, making up the Oct. 2 game that got halted due to rain and lightning. It turned into a thriller, with the Northstars needing overtime to get past the Wildcats 2-1.
They went through a scoreless first half, just like their Sept. 13 encounter that WG won 1-0. And the Wildcats got on the board in the second half with a goal by Jackie Vigliotti, assisted by Shannon Foster.
C-NS answered it, though, and also converted in the first OT period as Ashlyn Slate assisted on goals by Bukowski and Jenna Imbesi, which overcame the nine total saves from Liz Croft and Caitlin Mills. Each of Olivia Haven’s six saves proved important.
Prior to this, C-NS had won its division in tournament play Oct. 7-8 at the Wright National Soccer Complex in Oneonta, capping its work with a 3-1 victory over Athens (Pennsylvania).
In that game, Siechen helped the Northstars bolt to a 2-0 halftime lead and answer Athens’ late push, Siechen scoring twice as Slate had the other goal and Victoria Ianotti had an assist. Combined, Haven and Chloe Gordon had nine saves.
Liverpool’s late-season improvement was on full display in last Tuesday’s game at Baldwinsville, where it was much more competitive against the reigning state Class AA champions, even if the Warriors still fell to the Bees 1-0.
When these teams met late in September, B’ville had won 6-0, and in the rematch Liverpool again found itself under constant attack, yet kept everything out of the net after Hannah Mimas scored in the 17th minute.
With one of the best performances of her career, Megan Merrifield recorded 15 saves. However, the Warriors could not give her much relief, only getting three shots all night.
One more game remained for the Warriors as it hosted Oneida on Saturday afternoon and closed strong, earning a 2-1 victory over the Indians.
During the first half, Liverpool raced to a 2-0 lead thanks to goals by Megan Merola and Alex Rancier. Oneida cut into that edge with Kaya Suppa’s goal, but the Warriors held on, improving to 4-10-2 overall.
Still, Liverpool missed out on the sectional playoffs, where C-NS, as the no. 4 seed, would have to beat no. 5 seed Rome Free Academy this week in order to get to a semifinal next week against Baldwinsville, the top seed.
