CENTRAL NEW YORK – Whatever other ups and downs it had gone through in the early portion of its season, the Skaneateles boys lacrosse team had, at least, got the upper hand on rival Marcellus.
The Lakers edged the Mustangs 8-7 last Monday night, a mere 11 days afer they had first met on April 29, which was a 9-6 decision in Skaneateles’ favor.
But the rematch was quite different in that Marcellus got off to a strong start, forging a 7-4 halftime lead as Adam Rayfield and Marcus Darminio each scored twice, with Ryan Moses, Gavin Ciota and Matt Welch getting single goals and Doryn LeClair earning a pair of assists.
All of this was shut down by the Lakers in the second half, its defense rounding into form as goalie Luke Renaud stopped everything he faced on the way to nine saves overall.
Skaneateles tied it, 7-7, by the end of the third quarter and netted the only tally of the final period, Grayson Brunelle finishing with four goals and two assists. Colin Morrissey converted twice as Ryan Willard and Sean Kerwick each had one goal and one assist.
Without any rest, Skaneateles had to turn around and, 24 hours later, face undefeated Homer. Despite a fine effort, the Lakers could not quite catch the Trojans, taking an 11-8 defeat.
Ultimately, the early stages proved decisive, Skaneateles not getting on the board until the second quarter, by which point Homer was establishing a 6-2 advantage.
Battling to the end, the Lakers did see Willard produce five assists as Morrissey and Brunelle both scored three times, with Kerwick getting the other goal. Homer had six goal-scorers, led by Jake Calabro, who found the net five times.
Skaneateles roared back to form late in the week, first with a 19-4 victory over Chittenango where Brunelle netted five goals and two assists, with Cole Kennedy stepping up to net four goals. Morrissey had three goals and one assist as Willard and Nolan Signor each scored twice.
Then, against Cazenovia on Saturday afternoon, Skaneateles took a 13-8 defeat, seeing those other Lakers break a four-game skid (all on the road) by pulling away in the second half of its long-awaited home opener.
Meanwhile, Westhill, who beat Skaneateles the week before, had its own game with Cazenovia last Tuesday and prevailed by a 13-6 margin.
Luke Gilmartin scored five times and added three assists. James Schneider, Will Delano, Kyle Rosenberger and Griffin Grooms got two goals apiece, with Delano earning three assists and Rosenberger adding two assists. In goal, Owen Mahar was superb, stopping 10 of Cazenovia’s 16 shots.
Following this up, Westhill handled New Hartford 13-5 on Thursday, with five goals from Delano and Gilmartin managing four goals and three assists as Schneider got two goals and one assist.
That same day, Marcellus battled reigning state Class D champion LaFayette and got close to an upset, only to take a 13-11 defeat as Brett Bucktooth and Jameson Bucktooth both netted three goals for the Lancers.
On Saturday, Marcellus fell to Baldwinsville 17-4, the game getting away when the Bees netted seven goals in the second quarter to the Mustangs’ two.
Westhill was on the field Saturday, too, getting past South Jefferson 12-6 led by Grooms’ four goals and two assists. Gilmartin got three goals and two assists as Delano and Schneider both scored twice and Kyle MacCaull also converted.
Jordan-Elbridge lost, 11-10, last Monday to Holland Patent, who earned its first-ever varsity victory despite Caleb DeCola and Griffin LaFleur both getting four goals and two assists for the Eagles. Wyatt Mullen and Bryan Tanner had the other goals.
Another close decision followed a day later, J-E falling 13-12 to Chittenango in a game where Wade Brunelle’s six goals did not prove enough.
DeCola scored three times, adding a pair of assists, while Nick Long had a goal and two assists. LaFleur and Nixon Karcz also scored, but Caleb Barnard carried the Bears to victory thanks to his eight goals and one assist.
