ONONDAGA COUNTY – A great mid-September surge following an 0-3 start helped vault the Cicero-North Syracuse girls soccer team to the no. 14 spot in the first state Class AAA rankings of the fall.
Now the Northstars had to build upon that four-game win streak in the wake of a weekend of games where it shredded two opponents netting 18 total goals.
Back on Sept. 21, C-NS began a home weekend slate with an 8-1 romp over Athens (Pennsylvania) as Emery Kozdemba and Sloane Raymond both notched two goals, with single goals going to Evelyn Magente, Alexa Belknap, Briar Raymond and Katalina Lawrence. Raymond and Adrianna Calabria both got assists.
It was even more lopsided a day alter, C-NS blanking Section IV’s Oneonta 10-0 and getting a three-goal hat trick from Abby Mackey along with an assist.
Riley Joyce and Aaliyah McDonald both scored twice, McDonald adding an assist. Kodemba, Briar Raymond and Lilah Kelly scored, too, with Calabria, Magente and Camilla MacNaught getting into the assist column.
Each game against an overmatched opponent produced another offensive onslaught, which C-NS continued last Tuesday against visiting Rome Freee Academy.
The margin over the Black Knights ended up 9-0, with Abby Mackey burning RFA for four goals to give her seven over a two-game spot along with a single assist.
Calabria kept going, too, finding the net twice as Magente had a goal and assist. McDonald and Lawrence joined in with single goals, Gianna Melfi picking up two assists ahead of single assists from Raymond, Belknap and Addison Mackey.
But after this series of lopsided wins C-NS finally faced a high-quality opponent Thursday when it took on Fayetteville-Manlius and ended up settling for a 2-2 draw with the Hornets.
Even with McDonald and Calabria earning goals and Abby Mackey adding an assist, F-M kept up because Ashley Seidberg netted a goal in each half – one unassisted, the other assisted by Mara Gloo.
Neither side could settle it in overtime, with Kara Dorrance and Natalie LaPoint combining for seven saves and Hornets counterpart Mackenzie Murphy getting nine saves.
Liverpool, beaten 6-1 by C-NS on Sept. 16 and 3-0 by Vestal on the weekend, needed to turn things around from its 1-3 record, with the focal point a game last Wednesday night against Baldwinsville.
Unable to keep up, the Warriors fell 3-0 to the Bees, who got two goals from Nadia Guzman and one from Natalie Hollingshead to overcome Gracie Sleeth’s 10 saves. Lyla Weber and Audra Salvagni picked up assists.
Prior to facing B’ville, the Warriors got a much-needed 4-0 win over Syracuse City where it relentlessly applied pressure and, in the second half, broke open a close 1-0 contest.
Kaylee Lockwood and Emilie Masterson led the way each getting one goal and one assist. Mia Wright and Gabriella Gonzales also found the net,, with Lauren Graham contributing an assist.
