Even if it was long anticipated and expected from a side that has spent most of the spring securely perched atop the state rankings, the Baldwinsville girls lacrosse team still reveled in ending a six-year wait for a Section III Class A championship.
What’s more, it was another emphatic, complete performance from the Bees that secured the sectional title as it defeated West Genesee 16-6 Tuesday in the sectional title game at SUNY-Cortland.
B’ville netted the game’s first six goals and never let the Wildcats get closer than five the rest of the way, prevailing in this long-time rivalry for the third time this spring.
The two regular-season meetings were stark contrasts, B’ville barely holding on 11-10 in the first game April 23 in Camillus, but then dominating against WG 15-7 in the rematch May 9 at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium.
Not only that, but the Wildcats had to go to the wire to hold off CBA in its sectional semifinal at Auburn’s Holland Stadium after the Bees blew out Rome Free Academy.
Sprinting out of the gate, B’ville scored three times in 65 seconds in the opening minutes, with Jenna Pastore, Olivia Muscolino and Sophia Cavallaro finding the net in that order. When Hannah Johnson made it 4-0, WG had to use a timeout before the game was six minutes old.
Any time the Wildcats possessed the ball, it ran into Emme Foote, Maddie Czyz, Sydney Smith and the rest of B’ville’s active, aggressive back line, who forced turnovers and bad shots at a regular rate.
Not until the 13:48 mark of the game did WG get on the board with Emily Stratton’s free-position goal, only after the Bees had built a 6-0 margin. And Cavallaro added her third goal in the last minute of the half to reestablish that earlier cushion as B’ville was up 8-2 in the break.
Any time the Wildcats threatened to make it interesting, as when Halen Saroney scored in the opening minute of the second half, B’ville answered it, due to Cavallaro’s fourth and fifth goals less than a minute apart.
All told, Cavallaro had five goals and two assists, with Muscolino notching a three-goal hat trick and Emma Gebhardt adding consecutive goals in the second half to match the two put up by Johnson and Pastore, Katie Pascale adding two goals and two assists.
On Saturday at 11 a.m. at Fayetteville-Manlius, B’ville faces Ithaca (whom it beat 12-9 on May 11) in the Class A regional final, looking for a win to return to SUNY-Cortland for the June 7-8 state final four.
