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Mighty Oaks Weekend Sports Recap
It was a busy weekend for ESF sports as every fall varsity sports team was in action.
The weekend started off on a high note for the cross country programs as both the men's and women's team came in first place at the SUNY Poly Wildcat Short Race on Sept. 26.
In the men's race, four Mighty Oaks runners finished in the top five, lead by junior Peter LeDuc who finished in second place with a time of 27:37 followed by Reed Scott (third - 27:57), Dana Carris (fourth - 27:58) and Michael Perrson (fifth - 28:12).
The women's team also yielded similar results with five ESF runners finishing in the top 10. Freshman sensation Marissa Lathrop finished second overall with a time of 19:33. Junior Courtney Pitman finished fifth with a time of 20:47 followed by Erin Cuddihy (seventh - 20:54), Cara Keogh (ninth - 21:14) and Elle Palmer (10th - 21:21). The SUNY Poly race featured more than 10 schools and close to 100 runners in each race. The cross country teams are back in action at the SUNY Geneseo Classic Oct. 3.
On the same day while the cross country teams found success on the race course, the men's soccer team came away with a tough 1-0 victory against Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (HVIAC) foe Vaughn College on the road in Queens, New York. The Mighty Oaks lone goal came off a penalty kick at the 39-minute mark by junior Zach Reda.
Elsewhere in the state, the Mighty Oaks men's golf team performed exceptionally well at the NCCGA Northeast Regional Tournament at Old Hickory Golf Club in Livonia, New York. Senior Brian Walsh finished third overall with a two-day combined score of 149. Walsh's second day score of 73 ties the all-time low round score in ESF Golf team history. Senior Alex Brown finished seventh overall with a combined score of 154 (80, 74). The team finished third overall out of six teams. The golf team looks to continue its success at another NCCGA-sponsored tournament at Timber Banks Country Club in Baldwinsville, New York Oct. 3-4.
The women's soccer team was in action on Sept. 27 versus HVIAC rival Albany Pharmacy. The ESF women's team had previously beaten Albany Pharmacy at the USCAA National Soccer Tournament last November in West Virginia in a hard-fought 1-0 double-overtime victory over the Panthers. The Panthers arrived at the game with the defeat still fresh in their minds and came away with a 5-2 victory over the Mighty Oaks. The Mighty Oaks notched the games first two goals however the Panthers tied up the score by half time 2-2. The second half was all Panthers as they netted three goals coming away with a 5-2 win. Junior Heather Carl had two goals for ESF. Senior Bryony Striffler had one assist. The loss was the women's soccer team's first defeat of the season and first defeat in conference play. The team falls to 5-1 overall. The women are back in action against Bryant and Stratton of Syracuse on Oct. 4.
The men's soccer team was also in action on Sept. 27 against Albany Pharmacy. Both teams were playing in their second game in two days and looked a little winded at the start of the game as play mostly occurred in the midfield. ESF controlled possession for most of the first half as the Mighty Oaks had a few free and corner kick opportunities that they were unable to capitalize on. The Panther's scored the only goal of the game came off a penalty kick in the last minute of the first half.
The Mighty Oaks fought hard in the second half to try and create scoring chances but the Panther's defense held strong as they went on to win 1-0. With the loss, the men's team falls to 3-4 overall, 2-1 in HVIAC play. The team gets a some much-needed rest this week and are back in action against Culinary Institute on Oct. 3 in an HVIAC game.