Lake Placid boys soccer fall to Saranac Lake
SARANAC LAKE — The Saranac Lake boys soccer team snapped a three-game losing skid in the Oct. 21 regular season finale with a 7-2 victory over Lake Placid at Schroeter’s Field.
Saranac Lake’s Mason Stoddard netted three goals and Dillon Wilson scored twice and added four assists. Teammates Zack McCarthy and Ryan Bartholomew each record one goal, while Ethan Knight chipped in with an assist. The Red Storm improved to 7-9 overall, just ahead of the Section VII, Class B playoffs.
On the other side, Seb Cecunjanin and Justin Lushia scored for Lake Placid, which dropped its fourth match in a row. The Blue Bombers, which will compete in the Section VII, Class D playoffs, fell to 4-11 overall.
With playoff matchups not officially set, Saranac Lake head coach Brad Rafferty said it was just great to get a win on senior night — and the final game of the regular season.
The Red Storm got off to a hot start, with Bartholomew and McCarthy scoring in the first four minutes —
both goals came off a pass from Wilson.
While trailing 2-0, Cecunjanin opened up the scoring for the Blue Bombers with an unassisted goal. However, Saranac Lake tacked on three more — one from Wilson, and two from Stoddard.
Lake Placid aded its second goal with around 7 minutes left before the intermission on a shot from Lushia, but were never able to mount a comeback. The team was outshot 16-3 in the contest.
“We finished well for the first time in a while,” Rafferty said. “We put a lot of crosses in the net. Something we’ve been focusing on all year is crossing the ball low on the ground and Dillon can get the ball down end line almost every time. It’s nice to see them finally getting on the other end of it.”
Cecunjanin, who has led the Blue Bombers in scoring this season with 13 goals, switched over to a defensive position in the second half, helping hold Saranac Lake to just two goals.
“Wherever he is, he’s a handful — at the top or in the back,” Rafferty said. “They put him back at sweeper and you could really tell.”
Wilson was credited with a goal a few minutes into the second half, while Stoddard buried one a few minutes later on pass from Knight. The scoring total was the highest the Red Storm have posted this season.
Lake Placid’s Will Landriault and Max Perez combined for nine saves in net, while the Red Storm’s Cedar Crist turned away two shots.