Whether it was West Genesee working among the large schools or Bishop Ludden attempting to conquer small schools, a pair of area high school boys soccer teams had all kinds of motivation heading into the Section III playoffs.
In the case of the Wildcats, it was a chance to confirm that its slow, steady rise among large-school programs could sustain itself amid post-season pressure, having lost 4-0 to Liverpool in its sectional opener a season ago.
WG took a no. 4 seed into Thursday night’s quarterfinal at Mike Messere Field against no. 5 seed Cicero-North Syracuse, whom it beat 1-0 just one week earlier. A date in the semifinals with top seed and defending champion Baldwinsville was at stake.
It was close and hard-fought, but the Wildcats won 1-0, the decisive moment coming in the first half when Justin Klaczko put in the game’s lone goal.
The Wildcats’ defense did the rest, turning back every Northstars charge in the latter stages and helping WG earn a chance at toppling top seed and defending champion Baldwinsville in Wednesday’s AA semifinal at Jamesville-DeWitt. The winner meets Henninger or Liverpool (who ousted no. 2 seed Fayetteville-Manlius in penalty kicks) in next Monday’s sectional title game, also at J-D.
As for Bishop Ludden, the no. 3 seed in Class C, the desire to win a sectional title was augmented by wanting to send its revered head coach, Oscar Vergara, into retirement on the highest note possible.
Hosting no. 14 seed LaFayette in last Wednesday’s opening round, the Gaelic Knights were relatively quiet at the outset, but took charge in the second half to eliminate the Lancers 5-1.
At the forefront of the getaway were Noah Kerwin and Liam Casey, each of whom scored twice as Kerwin chipped in a pair of assists. Luke Infanti earned one goal and one assist, with Michael Gaughan and Charlie Colella also earning assists.
This allowed Ludden another home game on Friday as it battled no. 6 seed Waterville (who ousted Beaver River 3-0) in the sectional quarterfinals. Amid a steady rain, the two teams absorbed plenty of mud and grit, but the Gaelic Knights still emerged with a 1-0 victory.
Through a scoreless first half, both sides had many opportunities without converting. That continued until Gaughan, in the second half, found an opening and put one past Indians goalie Cole Pearsall.
For the game, Pearsall had 14 saves, yet Waterville could not help him out, taking 11 shots, all stopped by Jim McGarvey.
In the sectional Class C semifinals Wednesday at Vernon-Verona-Sherrill, Ludden would face no. 2 seed Bishop Grimes, with whom it split two regular-season meetings. The winner there goes to the Nov. 5 sectional final against South Lewis or Westmoreland/Oriskany.
