While the West Genesee boys lacrosse team attempted to add yet another Section III title to its long and rich championship legacy, Marcellus was trying to reach this plateau for the first time in program history.
Neither of them would get there, denied by opponents playing at a high level.
The Wildcats were turned back 18-6 by Baldwinsville in the sectional Class A final Friday night at Cicero-North Syracuse’s Bragman Stadium, while the Mustangs were overwhelmed by LaFayette 16-1 in the Class D title game at Liverpool High School Stadium.
West Genesee’s quest involved trying to turn around two regular-season defeats to B’ville. In the second of them, the Wildcats led going into the fourth quarter, only to have the Bees surge late and prevail 14-10.
A bit of encouragement was found early. When Anthony Dattellas and Max Rosa netted back-to-back goals in the middle portion of the first quarter, the Wildcats took a 2-1 lead. But it didn’t last long.
Less than a minute after Rosa’s tally, B’ville’s Brendan Wilcox converted to tie it 2-2, and when Austin Bolton followed it up a goal (one of two he had in the opening period), the Bees led for good.
But it was an eight-minute stretch of the second period that turned the game into a romp, B’ville striking for six straight goals to cap off a 9-0 run that displayed all of the team’s skill and depth.
Adam Davis found the net less than a minute into the period. Wilcox, Connor Steria, Mike Tangredi and Spencer Wirtheim all scored, too, before Davis returned to complete his hat trick with 3:25 still remaining in the half.
And B’ville didn’t feel content, even with a 10-3 halftime lead. Bolton dominated the third quarter, scoring three times as he ultimately matched Davis with four goals apiece, Davis also getting a pair of assists.
Wilcox topped them both with a team-high five goals as Wirtheim, the catalyst for the Bees’ attack, dished out six assists and Braden McCard managed four assists.
Only on occasion did WG find a shot past B’ville goalie Dan Stehle, who stopped 17 of the 23 shots he faced. Max Rosa had three goals, with Dattellas scoring twice and Nick Louise earning the other goal. Alex Rosa got two assists.
Hours later, it was the turn of Marcellus to try and end its long wait for a sectional championship, dating back to when the varsity program started in 1987.
Waiting for them was LaFayette, after its 13th sectional title. The Lancers were only a .500 team in the regular season and had lost, 11-10, to the Mustangs on April 11, but had caught fire in the post-season.
LaFayette had stunned state no. 1-ranked Skaneateles 8-7 in the sectional semifinals earlier in the week, partially because it used a stingy zone defense to shut out the Lakers in the first half before hanging on late.
Here, the shutout lasted a whole lot longer. In fact, the Lancers did not allow a goal until Matt Connell finally put Marcellus on the board in the game’s final minute.
By then, the outcome was long settled, with the Mustangs on the receiving end of a comprehensive performance by LaFayette that few opponents could have topped.
Any time Marcellus had the ball, it had to deal with LaFayette’s mixture of zone and man-to-man looks that proved confounding. Only nine shots flew on target, eight of them stopped by Collin Dix.
Rob Seeley made eight saves of his own, but even he could not keep the potent Lancers attack from steadily wearing Marcellus down, as it was 5-0 at halftime and LaFayette scored seven times in the third quarter to put it away.
Trevor Hill scored six times to lead LaFayette, with Zach Delaney adding three goals. Reid Jackowski and Mason Homer each had two goals as Dylan Lyons got a goal and four assists. The Mustangs’ season ended with a 12-4 record.
