All through Saturday afternoon, a quartet of area high school boys lacrosse teams made their way into three different Section III playoff brackets, and none of them had any real trouble moving forward.
In one instance, it involved two local sides meeting in the Class D quarterfinals, but it turned into a runaway for Marcellus, the no. 3 seed, who ousted no. 6 seed Jordan-Elbridge by a score of 20-5.
Though the first half didn’t feature any outrageous outbursts, the Mustangs steadily built a 9-1 advantage on the Eagles, and kept pulling further away as seven different players had multiple goals.
Liam Tierney, Matt Connell and Mason Barney each found the net three times, Tierney adding two assists. Emmett Barry had two goals and two assists, with Sean Tierney, Luke Ingianni and Marcus Darminio also finding the net twice.
Mike Quick had a goal and three assists as Ryan Moses and Zac Vanorder also converted. J-E, in defeat, got two goals from Wade Brunelle, with single tallies going to Tyler Fietta, Riordan Parker and Nick Long. Jeremiah Sparks, Luke Pinckney and Deacon Hill got assists and Steve Tripp recorded 16 saves.
Marcellus now would face no. 3 seed General Brown in Tuesday’s sectional Class D semifinal at East Syracuse Minoa Stadium, the Lions having taken out South Jefferson 17-5.
Also in Class D, top seed and state no. 1-ranked Skaneateles toyed with Vernon-Verona-Sherrill, winning 27-5 over the Red Devils as it advanced to Tuesday’s semifinal against no. 4 seed LaFayette, who ousted Tully 24-10.
Attacking and converting at will on VVS, Skaneateles had 11 goals in the first period and 10 more in the second quarter, allowing everyone in the lineup to see significant playing time.
Evan Brunelle set a career mark with six goals, adding two assists. Grayson Brunelle got four goals and three assists, with Brendan Powers managing three goals and three assists.
John Danforth scored twice, adding an assist, and Max Wamp had two goals. Ryan Willard had a goal and three assists, Pat Hackler and Nick Wamp each getting a goal and two assists. Goals were also scored by Colin Weeks, Will Pickney, Cole Kennedy, Yorvis Solis, Connor Ellison and Jack Comer.
Meanwhile, in the Class A sectional playoffs, West Genesee had no trouble at all, the no. 2 seed Wildcats roaring past no. 7 seed Clinton 23-2 at Mike Messere Field.
The Wildcats were up 14-0 after one period, Alex Rosa eventually earning four goals and one assist. Brad Cunningham got three goals and three assists, with Anthony Dattellas, Liam Sexton, Andrew Guinto and Mike Miccio each scoring twice, Dattellas getting three assists.
In Tuesday’s Class A semifinal at Bragman Stadium, WG would try to beat no. 3 seed Liverpool for a third time this spring, the winner to get Baldwinsville or Cicero-North Syracuse in Friday’s final at that same venue.
And in Class C, Westhill, the no. 3 seed, defeated no. 6 seed Homer 14-4 to earn a semifinal berth against no. 2 seed Christian Brothers Academy, whom it lost to earlier this month. The winner of that game plays Jamesville-DeWitt or East Syracuse Minoa in Friday’s sectional final at Liverpool.
Back on April 23, Westhill had beaten Homer 10-5, but in the rematch the Warriors were much more aggressive on offense at the outset, going up 5-1 by the end of the first quarter.
That margin kept growing as the game went on, Westhill seeing Will Delano notch four goals and two assists as Jack Grooms matched that point total thanks to three goals and three assists.
Reilly Sizing also had a three-goal hat trick, with Charlie Bolesh scoring twice and adding an assist. Jack Mooney had one goal and one assist as Ryan Gilmartin also found the net.
