ONONDAGA COUNTY – Twice in three days, the Cicero-North Syracuse and Liverpool boys lacrosse teams measured up to one another, with the same result on each occasion.
Both contests went in the Northstars’ favor, a 14-4 romp on May 1 followed two nights later by a much closer contest on that same LHS Stadium turf, but this tone going 15-10 in C-NS’s favor.
Liverpool reached its goal total from the first game by halftime and zoomed right by it in large part due to the work done by Joe Sacco, who not only notched four goals, but added three assists.
Despite this, C-NS still fought its way to a 7-4 halftime advantage and had an answer every single time the Warriors tried to make the game closer in the second half.
Ian Leahey scored five times to pace the Northstars, with lots of help from Mason Ciciarelli, who had three goals and two assists, and Mason Blakeman, who got three goals and one assist.
Joe Green, Elijah Martin and Michael Koehler also converted for C-NS, while Giovanni Heater recorded six saves.
Other than Sacco, only Jackson Furr got more than one goal for Liverpool, converting twice as single tallies went to Dom Osbeck, Nick Toscano, Aaron Clouthier and Owen Machaud, with Osbeck adding a pair of assists. Owen Salanger and Mark Matott combined to make eight saves.
C-NS now looked to break a long dry spell against West Genesee on Thursday night, and nearly did so, though it was unable to hold a second-half lead in a 9-8 defeat to the Wildcats.
Entering the night with a 1-3 record, WG found itself in more trouble when the Northstars battled out in front and took a 5-4 lead to the break.
But the Wildcats outscored C-NS 4-1 in a pivotal third quarter and, to hang on, needed Nick Louise to earn three goals, with Joe Delany and Pat Britton adding two goals apiece.
Heater made eight saves, two fewer than WG counterpart Bryce Landry, while Ciciarelli, with four goals, accounted for half of C-NS’s output. Anthony Cimino had a goal and three assists, with Leahey, Tyler Mazzoli and Elijah Martin also finding the net.
Now playing Fayetteville-Manlius for the second time in as many weeks on Saturday, the Northstars did not get as close in the rematch, falling 14-6 to the Hornets.
Ciciarelli got two goals and two assists, with Cimino adding a goal and two assists. Blakeman and Tyler Mazzolli also found the net as Heater got 13 saves but F-M featured nine different goal-scorers, led by Isaac Frechette’s hat trick.
As that went on, Liverpool, hosting West Genesee, dropped its second decision to the Wildcats this season by a 13-5 margin.
Only two Warriors players scored, with Sacco getting three goals and Clouthier two goals. Louise continued what he started against C-NS, netting a game-high four goals for WG.
