ONONDAGA COUNTY – A common thread among three of the area’s high school girls lacrosse teams is having plenty of accomplishments and players succeeding at the college ranks but not yet earning a Section III championship.
Marcellus, Westhill and Jordan-Elbridge never got the chance to join long-time power Skaneateles in that pantheon in 2020, an entire season wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic.
And the wait to finally resume in 2021 got longer when Marcellus saw its first three games postponed, one of them against Skaneateles to go with contests against Homer and Auburn.
Unable to start last week, the Mustangs hope to do so Tuesday against J-E, while Skaneateles would get underway that same night against Fayetteville-Manlius before an early showdown with Westhill on Thursday.
Westhill avoided all of these delays, taking the field for the first time last Tuesday night against Christian Brothers Academy and proving quite impressive as it put away the Brothers 16-11.
Even that score was deceptive as most of CBA’s production came in the second half, long after the Warriors established control by zooming out to a 14-4 advantage by intermission.
Katy McPeak and Gianna Zerillo led the charge, McPeak by scoring six times and Zerillo by earning four goals and three assists. Adelaide Lowery scored twice, as did freshman Rosemary Mahoney, while Grace Winkler added an assist.
Playing again on Friday afternoon against the combined LaFayette/Onondadga team, Westhill whipped through the winds and ripped past the Lancers 19-4.
Winkler, with four goals, led an attack where six other players – Zerillo, Mahoney, McPeak, Lowery, Claire Hunter and Sophia Caron – each scored twice. Mahoney got two assists and Zerillo two assists as single goals went to Ava Robb, Karly Dillabough and Isabella Sampo.
Westhill remained in great form on Saturday against East Syracuse Minoa, nearly shutting out the Spartans on the way to its third win in a row by a 14-1 margin.
Frankie Argentieri stopped seven of ESM’s eight shots while, on the other end, Winkler found the net four times, with Mahoney and Lowery each netting three goals. McPeak had two goals and one assist, with Zerillo getting one goal and one assist.
J-E would get underway Thursday night, against Homer, but other than Gabrielle Gunnip’s three goals were totally shut down in a 21-3 defeat to the Trojans, who had nine goals from Kloey Roos and 11 assists from Katlyn Savocool.
But the Eagles turned it around in a big way on Saturday, edging Chittenango’Bishop Grimes 16-15 in overtime led mostly by Gunnip, who had six goals and two assists, and Clara Derby, who earned five goals and three assits.
Help came from Makayla Penird, who scored twice, and Riley Crawford, who had a goal and two assists. Gabby Smart and Taylor Eaton also earned goals.
