The Magic Conch - Section III Soccer, October 22

Busy, busy day in boys soccer in Section III with all of the 1st round games popping off today, 23 to be exact. Just 1 for the girls, LaFargeville/Remsen got pushed back and moved to The Artist Formerly Known As SUNY IT tonight at 6:00. Boys first on here, and I'll throw the Remsen prediction at the bottom!

AA

West Genesee @ Liverpool – The old adage states that it’s very hard to beat a team three times. Yeah yeah yeah. My opinion – if you beat a team twice, why can’t you do it a third? Liverpool’s won both meetings against the Wildcats this season, plus they get them at home in the 8/9 match tonight. Advantage, ‘Pool. I’ll give them 3-1.

RFA @ CBA – I’ll be quick with the judgment here. The Brothers play Class A competition nearly all year, which doesn’t help come sectional time, but they nearly beat the likes of F-M (ya know, the #1 team in the state in AA). These 2 share a common opponent: RFA won once and tied once with New Hartford, CBA basically used Sparty as toilet paper. Advantage, home team. 5-1.

Henninger @ Fowler – The Falcons have won 5 straight after taking a short dive in the middle of the season. Henninger’s been playing everyone tight, good or bad. This one won’t be different. Fowler’s back up to AA after a stint in Class A – and they played in the A league this year – but I’ll take them without much confidence at home, 2-1.

A

ES-M @ Homer – They’ve met once this year, when ES-M made the trip to Homer to get picked apart in a 4-0 L. They beat Oswego the last game of the year to get into sectionals after losing 3 straight. Homer has slipped just a touch in October as well, but they are coming off a win – ugly, but a win is a win – against Camden heading in. Expecting the home crowd to get behind them a little and make this another easy one, 3-1 Homer.

Cortland @ Watertown – Too long of a trip for Cortland, and the Cyclones are playing too well right now. Indian River might have won the Frontier A, but that was in PKs – Watertown tied the top seed. They also dismantled Whitesboro recently. 4-2 Watertown.

Chittenango @ J-D – This game has sadness and regret written all over it. Nothing against Chittenango – Nina’s is good, they have a beautiful waterfall, and the convenience store on the corner came through with white hot chocolate once – but this matchup doesn’t really strike me as close. 5-0 Red Rams.

Oneida @ Marcellus – In Marcellus’ first year in Class A, they won their division. Sure, it may have been the weaker of the two OHSL Freedoms, but moving up a class and still winning is impressive enough. Oneida sits basically at the bottom of the TVL. To play a game of 6 degrees of separation, 315 soccer style; Caz beat Marcellus by 1. Caz killed RFA. RFA beat Oneida twice. Add that together, and that’s the only common opponent proof I can give you in this matchup. Common sense tells me the Mustangs will be just fine at home, 6-1 Marcellus.

Whitesboro @ Fulton – Does this matchup sound familiar? It should, because it happened yesterday. Whitesboro’s girls demolished a visiting Red Raider team in girls fútbol 1^st rounders. Because of that, I’m expecting the crowd at G. Ray Bodley HS to be a little more rabid. Hopefully they’re serving hot chocolate, as I’m sure it’ll be a tid bit nippy with the wind blowing off the lake. Half of Fulton’s games were against AA competition, and I think that will bode well for them. 3-1 home team.

B

Canastota @ South Jefferson – Both South Jeff’s boys and girls host 8/9 games this year. These two share a common opponent, with both losing to Holland Patent. However, Canastota had more issues with HP than their adversary did. I’ll pick the South Jeff boys to win 3-1, just like the girls did yesterday.

Lowville @ Westhill – This isn’t the crazy dominant Westhill team I got accustomed to seeing, but they’re still good. In their defense, Class B in the Syracuse area is an animal this season… even without Marcellus. They always get a big crowd at Westhill, and I’m looking for the boys soccer team to ride that wave to a 5-0 blowout.

Adirondack @ Solvay – Just really not sold on the CSC I this season, or almost any year in Class B for that matter. I’ll pick the Bearcats to defend home field in the 7/10 matchup 4-2.

C

Hamilton @ Westmoreland – The Emerald Knights have been up and down all year, but they have some impressive wins under their belt. Their last game was a 1-0 W over these same Bulldogs that they’re playing in the 8/9 matchup, exacting revenge on a loss a couple weeks prior by the same score. Hamilton has a lot of deep sectional experience, and that goes a long way in a matchup so tight. I’m picking Hamilton to win against Westmoreland for the 2^nd time in a week by a higher score, 3-2 final.

Mt. Markham @ Tully – The Mustangs play in a decent CSC division and always seem to save their best soccer for sectionals. The double digit seed thing doesn’t bug them, as they were an 11 seed last year and knocked out WCV on their home field. I like Tully’s resumé this year a little bit too much to shy away from picking them, though. Advantage, Black Knights. 4-3 sounds decent.

Bishop Grimes @ Watertown IHC – The battle of the private schools in a lower class. IHC plays the As and Bs all year long, which helps them quite a bit when in Class C & D for sectionals. Ask Poland. After tonight, ask Grimes. Cavaliers defend home field 4-1.

Cooperstown @ MPH – Contrary to what I said about Mt. Markham’s CSC division, Cooperstown’s division is god-awful. An interesting stat was sent my way that at one point a couple weeks ago, the non-league records of teams in that league was near a .150 winning percentage. Brutal. Knock it down a little more after this one, MPH will have their way en route to a 7-1 W.

Herkimer @ Thousand Islands – They’re used to each other. Thousand Islands has knocked Herkimer out of sectionals 2 years in a row, and this will be 3. The Magicians play in the same league that God forgot about as Cooperstown, and the psychological factor has to kick in at some point especially for the fellas who have 3 years of varsity experience – damn, these guys again? Thousand Islands 4-0.

Fabius-Pompey @ West Canada – I’ve seen this matchup before as well. This isn’t the Fabius of old but they still have some wins under their belt that make you wonder how far they can go. Even as a 10 seed, they’re my dark horse pick out of Class C this year. It all starts today with a 3-1 W in Newport.

D

Brookfield @ McGraw – McGraw’s won both season matchups by a combined score of 9-1. This includes a 5-0 W last week – things haven’t changed since then. 3-0 McGraw.

Otselic Valley @ Blessed Virgin Mary – Nice draw for BVM, a team that I always think is interesting come sectional time. I’ll give them a 4-0 edge here.

Faith Heritage @ Cincinnatus – Cincy’s the top team in the CCL this year, a league that traditionally fares well relative to other Class D competition in soccer. The fans down there are rabid, certainly not saintly, and the Saints will not be happy campers on the bus home after a 5-2 loss.

Alexandria Bay @ Bishop Ludden – Wait, Ludden is in Class D? What the..? At least their quarterfinal matchup against Old Forge might be interesting. 7-0 Gaelic Knights.

LaFargeville @ Old Forge – Really like the Eskimos this year. They’re tough, have some skill, and they have the good luck charm John Kuznia around. Besides that, there’s something about going to Old Forge to play that makes it reallllly tough to win. I’ll roll with them in a 4-2 decision.

Madison @ Sackets Harbor – Sackets is a little up and down at times, but they’re up now if you ask me. They just played the 1 seed to a draw recently, not to mention playing IHC tough. Gotta like them at home against Madison, 3-0 is my guess.

Girls - D
LaFargeville @ Remsen - Remsen always likes to get their home games in on the turf of SUNY Polytech. They hope to be off their mid-season slide, winning 3 straight since dumping 4 of 6. This team is another one that is capable of beating every D in this bracket but Poland when they play well. Their problem going forward is about stringing those good performances together. That won't be an issue though, as they are playing on a familiar field against a team they're much better than. Remsen moves to the quarters, 5-0.