F-M girls lacrosse reaches sectional Class A title game

CENTRAL NEW YORK – The phrase “unlikely turnaround” is difficult to associate with a lacrosse program as storied as Fayetteville-Manlius, whether on the girls or boys sides.

Yet that’s exactly what the Hornets have pulled off in 2024, going from a 3-15 campaign the year before to an appearance in next Tuesday’s Section III Class B title game at SUNY-Cortland with a chance to dethrone the champions from West Genesee.

F-M has gone through all kinds of excitement in the two previous rounds of the playoffs, from rallying to outscore Central Square 15-13 in Tuesday’s quarterfinal to a semifinal two nights later at Nottingham High School where it needed overtime to knock off no. 2 seed Watertown 15-14.

Here, it was the Hornets who got the jump, leading 9-5 by halftime and then stretching its margin to 12-7 at one point in the second half before the Cyclones roared back.

Led by the sister duo of Olivia and Alex Matucek (four goals each), Watertown caught up and, at 14-14, dragged it to OT, where F-M was able to get posssesion and work it to Julianna Cogliandro, and the senior put home the game-winner.

That was Cogliandro’s third goal of the night, running her season total to 52. Taylor Novack led with five goals, added a pair of assists and won 16 draw controls as eighth-grader Jane Ryan stepped up for her first three-goal hat trick. Addison Keyes and Kathryn McNany each scored twice and Micaela Jennings recorded eight saves.

To get to the final, WG had to first oust Christian Brothers Academy, which it did in the first semifinal game at Nottingham, controlling matters from the outset to beat the Brothers 14-6.

CBA was competitive the first time it faced the Wildcats April 25, and from that 13-9 decision WG learned that it didn’t want to allow the highly-skilled Brothers a chance to make it closer.

Strong on both ends, the Wildcats led 4-0 after one period and then stretched the margin to 9-2 by halftime, skillfully maintaining that advantage the rest of the way led as four different players – Ashleigh Blanding, Molly Doran, Maria Snyder and Sophia Lawrence – earned three-goal hat tricks.

For CBA, Maeve Mackenzie had three goals and Ryann Murphy two goals, but only Lilah Kirch found the net otherwise and Sydney Vaughn had an assist as Wildcats goalie Allie Hanlon stopped 10 of the 16 shots she faced. The Brothers’ season concluded with an 11-6 record.

CBA’s neighbors from Jamesville-DeWitt fully expected to return to the sectional Class C title game, but were upended in the semifinals at Alibrandi Stadium by Fulton in a 10-9 defeat.

The no. 2 seed Red Rams split two regular-season meetings with the no. 3 seed Red Dragons, but had won 12-8 the last time they played on April 30. This made Fulton’s start all the more surprising.

All through the first half, J-D struggled to get the ball and the Red Dragons took full advantage, building a 6-2 margin. Once the Rams settled down, though, it began to chip away at that deficit.

Led by Merris Kessler, Lillian Wells (three goals each) and Brooke Bort (two goals), J-D caught up, 9-9, by the fourth quarter, and appeared poised to go in front.

But Fulton regained the lead on Anna Bednarz’s goal with four minutes left, and the Rams couldn’t answer it, the Red Dragons advancing to meet defending champion Indian River in the finals.

Margaret Bliss had the only goal outside the Rams’ trio of Kessler, Wells and Bort, while Fulton was mostly led by Carleigh Patterson’s four goals and Mya Carroll’s three goals. J-D’s season ended with a 13-5 mark.