If a post-season was going to take place in Section III Class A field hockey in 2020, there was now little doubt about who Baldwinsville would need to defeat in order to hang on to its title.
The Bees took on undefeated Cicero-North Syracuse last Tuesday at Bragman Stadium, and like four opponents before it, B’ville could not dent the scoreboard against the Northstars and lost by a 2-0 margin.
Of the four games C-NS won at the outset of its season, two of them were 1-0 decisions (against Cortland and Fayetteville-Manlius), and the Bees figured to provide the toughest test yet.
In fact, B’ville did get some penalty corners in the opening minutes, but could do little with them, and C-NS went in front late in the first quarter when, on its own penalty corner, Gia DiToma tipped in a pass from Jamie Snyder.
For the rest of the half, the Bees’ defense did an admirable job withstanding heavy Northstars pressure, keeping it 1-0.
As it turned out, the third quarter did in B’ville, for it played on more even terms and had a couple of good chances, yet could not put it past Ally Wagner, who finished with six saves.
Cara Vredenburg got 10 saves, yet could do little about C-NS’s clinching goal with 3:09 left, a screaming shot from Anna Melfi off a penalty corner fed once again by Snyder.
Finally having its home opener Thursday against Fayetteville-Manlius, B’ville looked to bounce back – and not only did it do so, it showed plenty of resilience in a 2-1 overtime victory over the Hornets.
A first-half goal by F-M’s Maddy Duggleby could have signaled a getaway, especially considering the amount of shots the Hornets would take throughout the evening.
But Vredenburg piled up 17 saves, giving her team a chance. And in the second half Emma Dugan tied it, her goal coming off a feed from Rebecca Mantione.
When the teams went to seven-on-seven overtime, it was Mantione again making the crucial pass, setting up a game-winner from Bella Nadzan, who netted her first goal of the season.
Then the Bees faced Cazenovia on Saturday on the grass at Burton Street Elementary School, and on a surface far more unpredictable than Field Turf, B’ville had to go to OT again to edge the Lakers 1-0.
All through the first 60 minutes, Cazenovia’s defense did an effective job containing whatever B’ville tried, holding them to five shots, all stopped by Mackenzie Halliday.
Once more, though, the seven-on-seven format tilted in B’ville’s favor, a pass from Nadzan setting up Mantione for the game-winner.
The Bees go twice on the road this week, visiting Liverpool on Monday and then Cortland on Saturday at 11 a.m.
