CENTRAL NEW YORK – A special season might be unfolding for the West Genesee girls soccer team as it has proven its quality against opponents both outside and inside Central New York.
And this was proven again last Tuesday night, at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium, where in the rain the Wildcats soaked and drenched Baldwinsville from start to finish on the way to a 5-0 victory.
On one end, WG rarely let the Bees do much while, on offense, the Wildcats ignored the tough conditions and kept on putting shots into the net.
Chelsea Donaldson, with two goals, led the well-balanced attack. Marissa Closson got two assists, with Ellie McMahon, Anna Nelson and Maria Snyder also earning goals.
On Thursday night, WG got another shutout, yet was unable to prevail as Cicero-North Syracuse forged a 0-0 draw. None of the Wildcats’ nine shots got past Natalie LaPoint or Meghan McGrath, with Jenna Orr and Julia Poissant combining for six saves against the Northstars.
It didn’t take long for the winning to resume, though, with WG defeating Liverpool 2-0 on Saturday led by Nelson, who netted one goal and assisted on Jami Tessler’s tally as Donaldson also picked up an assist.
During the Sept. 9-10 Hall of Fame Tournament in Schalmont, the Wildcats started out by prevailing over Goshen in a tense 4-3 battle.
WG needed goals from McMahon, Nelson, Closson and Snyder along with a pair of assists from Maddy Mango to go with some clutch defensive stops.
It was far more lopsided a day later, the Wildcats blanking Schalmont 5-0. Now it was Nelson and Donaldson leading the way, each scoring twice as Mango got the other goal. Snyder, Closson and Alyssa Winters each had an assist.
While all this was going on, Bishop Ludden was also building a win streak of its own, netting 15 combined goals in back-to-back games early last week.
It started with an 8-3 win over Hannibal/Cato-Meridian where the Gaelic Knights scored six times in the first half, led again by Ashley Pawelczyk, who finished with four goals and two assists.
Helping out, Sophia Chemotti scored twice and added an assist, while Grace Olivia had one goal and one assist and Elizabeth Gaughan also found the net.
What followed, just 24 hours later, was an impressive performance against Fabius-Pompey, Ludden blasting the Falcons by a score of 7-1 as it netted six unanswered goals in the first half.
With so much attention on her, Pawelczyk still managed to score twice and get a pair of assists. Gaughan also had two goals, contributing a single assist as Mary Detor had one goal and one assist. Jane Fallon and Jordyn Townes also made it to the scoring column.
Hosting Syracuse United Thursday afternoon, the Gaelic Knights pulled out a 2-1 win, with Gaughan scoring in the first half and converting again in the second half to answer Belvia Konodji’s tally as Pawelczyk earned an assist and Tatum Gilbertson recorded six saves.
Jordan-Elbridge lost 3-2 to Altmar-Parish-Williamstown last Thursday night and fell 1-0 to Onondaga/LaFayette on Saturday afternoon, seeing its skid hit six straight games.
