Top-seeded Cicero-North Syracuse came out of Sunday's Class A semifinal matchup against fourth-seeded Fayetteville-Manlius with a victory and a spot in next Sunday's title game for the second straight year.
Junior Gabby Wameling netted two goals and added an assist to help lift the Northstars over the Hornets 3-1 at Vernon-Verona-Sherill High School.
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"(Gabby's) been playing well all year," C-NS coach Pat Kennedy said. "We just wanted to lean on her a little bit more and she came through for us. We tried to get her the ball a little bit more and she responded. She had a great game."
The defense was on display for both teams in a scoreless first quarter.
"Our girls just stepped up and we controlled the things that we could control," Kennedy said. "We didn't give them a whole lot of looks offensively. Our defense played really well. They just played together. I think that was really the big thing."
C-NS opened the scoring with Wameling's first goal at the three minute mark in the second quarter. That score gave the Northstars a 1-0 lead heading into the half.
Junior Maria Wozniczka increased the Northstars' lead after finding the back of the net in the third quarter off an assist by Wameling.
The Hornets (10-7) cut C-NS's lead to 2-1 heading into the fourth quarter. Sophomore Carlye Bryant scored that goal for F-M.
However, Wameling's second goal of the day ended F-M's hopes of a comeback with just over a minute left in the game.
"F-M, they make you play really tough," Kennedy said. "They are a super tough opponent. They've got a lot of skill and we just came out on top. I can't necessarily say we wanted it more than them because I'm sure they wanted to win just as much."
This was the third time the Northstars and the Hornets have faced each other this season. C-NS won the regular season matchups 5-1 on Sept. 7 and 3-0 on Oct. 6.
The Northstars won 12-straight games before dropping their final two heading into the sectional tournament.
Kennedy said he spent the last week of practices trying to help his team get back on track heading into the postseason.
"It was just a lot of focus in practice, and just working on the basics and making sure we're doing well," he said. "Really probably even more importantly was trying to get the girls to play loose again. The girls played a lot looser today, a lot more relaxed and I think that was really the big thing."
C-NS (12-2) will now advance to the championship game to face second-seeded Rome Free Academy (14-3) next Sunday at V-V-S High School. RFA defeated Baldwinsville 2-1 to earn its spot in the Class A final.
The Northstars defeated the Black Knights 5-0 in their only meeting this season on Sept. 2. They also knocked RFA out of the playoffs last season in the semifinals.
"I think they're gonna come out gunning for us," Kennedy said. "I think this is gonna be a heck of a game. I think it's gonna be a really good one."
