ONONDAGA COUNTY – Whether it was expected attrition from graduation or unexpected adversity of injuries to several key players, it looked for a long time like the Baldwinsville boys lacrosse team would meekly surrender the Section III and state Class A crowns it held for two years.
Yet when the sectional Class A title game takes place Wednesday night at Fulton, the Bees will be there, quite eager to win it again and turn back Liverpool’s challenge.
In a semifinal Saturday at West Genesee’s Mike Messere Field that symbolized both its struggles and its resilience in the face of them, B’ville, then no. 4 seed, rallied and knocked off top seed Fayetteville-Manlius 8-7.
Going 7-9 in the regular season appeared, on the surface, to give the Bees a distinct disadvantage, for it would have to go through an extra round of playoffs and face an F-M side that went 11-5 against a tough schedule.
But B’ville had split two close regular-season games with the Hornets, contrasting with two losses apiece to Liverpool and Cicero-North Syracuse, who met in the first semifinal as the Warriors held off the Northstars 10-8.
Far more important was the fact that key defensive players returned for the Bees just in time for the post-season push, and they would play at their best against F-M.
It was that defense which kept B’ville in the game during a scoreless first quarter and didn’t let the Hornets get away in the early going, the deficit only 3-1 when they went to halftime.
With newfound confidence, the Bees made up the ground in the third quarter, pulling even 4-4, and during a tense final period doubled its output, every bit of it needed to inch out in front and stay there.
Josh Armpriester, successful on 13 face-offs, set up opportunities as Brady Garcia proved the anchor of the offense, twice scoring and dishing out three assists.
Dylan Garcia and Tiernan Lynch also scored twice, with single goals going to Iggy LoMedico and Judson Ferris. Trevor Sutton would stop 11 of the 18 direct shots he faced, and no F-M player scored more than once.
Just to get this chance, B’ville first had to blast past no. 5 seed Rome Free Academy in last Wednesday’s opening-round game at Pelcher-Arcaro Stadium, the Bees handling the Black Knights 16-2.
Dominating in every phase of the game, B’ville led 7-0 through one period and doubled that margin to 14-0 by intermission, with Brady and Dylan Garcia each netting three-goal hat tricks and Brady adding three assists.
Lynch and Ferris both scored twice and got an assist, while LoMedico had one goal and one assist. Armpriester netted a goal, as did Matt Niedzialek, Greg Marinelli, Dan Trouesdale and Zach Bice.
