ONONDAGA COUNTY – When the Baldwinsville boys lacrosse team left Fayetteville-Manlius May 6 in the wake of a bitter overtime defeat to the Hornets, it knew that two more battles with the Hornets lay ahead, both on home turf.
F-M’s first trip to Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium on Tuesday night was preceded by the Bees having three other high-profile contests, two of them against West Genesee.
The first game with the Wildcats last Thursday night at Mike Messere Field was a nervous encounter for quite a while before B’ville’s fine all-around qualities defined the second half of a 15-9 victory.
B’ville’s defense has rarely struggled like it did in the opening two quarters at WG, which produced a deficit that did not disappear.
So trailing 7-6 at the break, B’ville began to grab more face-offs, gained more possession time and, in turn, proceeded to take apart the Wildcats’ defenses amid a decisive 5-1 push in the third quarter.
Back home for a rematch with WG on Saturday afternoon, B’ville found this game even more difficult than the first one, but did just enough to edge the Wildcats by a familiar 7-6 margin.
The total goals matched the first half of Thursday’s affair, WG again gaining an early edge but then shut out by a stingy B’ville defense in the second quarter.
Despite the Bees going in front in the third quarter, the Wildcats pushed back, tied it 5-5, and made B’ville have to convert midway through the fourth quarter and again a few minutes later, then hang on.
Before all that, B’ville traveled to Alibrandi Stadium and met a Christian Brothers Academy side which had beaten West Genesee on May 15 just days after head coach Ric Beardsley had stepped down.
Ignorning all of this, the Bees jumped out 4-0 on the Brothers in the first quarter and never got caught, using a 6-2 third-quarter surge to get away and eventually prevailing 16-7.
Keegan Lynch, scoring five times, nearly matched CBA by himself as Colin Socker added a three-goal hat trick.
Luke Hoskin scored twice, with Trey Ordway and Colin Doyle both getting one goal and one assist. Carson Dyl and Victor Ianno had the other goals, Ryan Hollenbeck adding an assist as Cooper Foote recorded seven saves.
This followed a 17-4 win over Marcellus on May 15 where Hoskin had four goals and one assist. Socker scored three times, with Hollenbeck, Ianno, Ordway and Doyle each scoring twice and Lynch earning three assists.
