OSWEGO, N.Y. — The Oswego Men’s Lacrosse team lost their second game of the 2021 season on Friday, falling to the Cortland Red Dragons 16-7. The Cortland winning streak vs Oswego continues as the Red Dragons improve to 37-0 all time vs the Lakers. Oswego has yet to win a game this season after losing to Brockport to start the 2021 campaign.
Cortland came out firing early on, scoring the game’s first 3 goals before Weston Gray put the Lakers on the board to end the 1st quarter. Both teams scored 2 goals apiece in the 2nd quarter with the Red Dragons leading 5-3 at halftime. However Cortland would go on and blow things open in the second half. They outscored Oswego 11-4, including a 7-goal run to end the 3rd quarter. Liam Dollard and Weston Gray lead the way for the Lakers, each scoring 2 goals in the contest. Freshman midfielder, Lucas Cioch, also added 2 assists in the loss. Oswego now drops to 0-2 on the season following their two SUNYAC losses, and currently sit in 4th place in the West division. They’ll look to bounce back vs Nazareth College on Tuesday, April 13th at 4 p.m. in the Lakers first non-conference game of the season. WTOP 10 will continue to deliver content on the Oswego State Men’s Lacrosse team as the group battles to head to the SUNYAC Championship.
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Oswego State Baseball Looks to Tie Record
OSWEGO, N.Y. — The Oswego State Baseball team will face off against Clarkson for the second time this season on Tuesday, May 4th. The Lakers have a chance to tie their win streak record that was set at eighteen victories back during the 1982 season as the group heads into the doubleheader with a sixteen straight wins. Oswego comes into the contest with a 17-1 overall record and is undefeated in non-conference matchups this season. The Golden Knights of Clarkson enter the doubleheader with a 12-13-1 record and is currently coming off a split with conference opponent RIT.
Clarkson and Oswego have already met up in Potsdam this season as the Lakers were able to get a sweep on the road back in April. The 17-13 and 9-4 wins were momentum boosters as multiple Lakers were able to get hits against the Golden Knights. Since those two games, Clarkson has gone 4-5-1, all games against Liberty League opponents. Since April 14th, Oswego has been able to take sole possession of first place in the SUNYAC West division. Today’s doubleheader will give the two teams a chance to take a break from conference opponents and build momentum for the final stretch of the season. First pitch is at 1:00 p.m. and game two is tentatively set for 4:00 p.m. from Laker Baseball field.
Image Provided by William Rogers, WTOP 10 Photography Department
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Team Spotlight: Oswego State Field Hockey
OSWEGO, NY — As the unusual fall semester continues into the month of October, the Oswego State Field Hockey team would be in the heat of a competitive battle in the SUNYAC conference right about now. The 4-12-0 Lakers finished the 2019 season sixth in the conference standings, missing the playoff bracket. The group lost one senior at the end of the 2019 campaign, midfielder Riley Mallett. Head Coach Heather Moore touched on the impact the Suffern native made to the team.
“[Riley was] a leader by example, always the hardest worker on the field.” Moore said.
With much of the team returning for their 2021 season, Moore feels that the team will be able to pick up the leadership around the field. Moore expects the defensive core, backed by sophomore netminder Erica Scheblein to develop heading into this unusual season.
“Sometimes we ended up being a little too individualistic and not playing as much as a unit.” Moore continued, “with a higher level of communication and some confidence, they will become a stronger unit.”
The Lakers had a goal against average of 3.31 in conference play last season, which ranked them 6th among their competitors. On the other end of the turf, the team average 1.7 goals per game, a stat led by freshman Annie O’Neill. With the attacking front returning as well, Moore focused on bringing the team back to the fundamentals after the end of last season.
“Focusing on overall player development and improvement. Rebuilding our skills and our game sense, like our Field Hockey IQ.” Moore added, “retooling some things and getting our returners on the same page and having them work towards the same goals.”
The team was heading in that direction before the suspension of Athletics due to the concern of COVID-19 on the SUNY Oswego campus. Before this occurrence, the team was able to participate in three team practices in two individual pods. Although the group was happy to be back on the field together, Moore brought up the difficulty with the system.
“The hardest part was going back and forth from each pod and being able to give the right feedback at the right time,” Moore stated.
With no team activities now till the beginning of their season, the group will have to wait to take make their mark in the 2021 season. The Lakers will welcome five first year students onto their roster when the time comes. The group contains five individuals that play a range of positions.
“I have only seen them practice three times.” Moore further states, “but from what I can tell, they are going to be little sparks all across the field.”
These additions to the group will hopefully set the Lakers over the top once the calendar flips to 2021. The setback is something Moore is seeing the positives in, as the coach notices the break in the common rush of a season.
“It’s also nice to have a break and reflect about what worked, what did not work, and what do I see moving forward.” Moore said, “how I see them impacting in the future.”
As Moore and the rest of the coaching staff led their team into the rest of this semester, the coach’s message was simple and clear.
“It’s been a good lesson to all of us to remain flexible and adoptable. Using the information as it comes and managing your reactions.” Moore finished with, “I know things are crazy and keep changing, and it’s okay.”
Photo Provided by Oswego State Athletics
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Oswego State baseball team returns to action against Salisbury
OSWEGO N.Y. — The Oswego Baseball team made their return over the week on with three contests. They faced off in two games Saturday against the nationally ranked Salisbury. These two contests were wildly different in outcomes. Their first game of the season was a rough one, with oswego giving up fifteen runs in a 15-2 loss. The Lakers scored a run in the first inning when graduate student Kyle Lauria stole second, leading to senior Ryan Enos putting the Lakers on the board. It was all downhill from there as the Lakers were only able to score one more run in the third inning when Ryan Enos scored his second run of the day.
The second matchup ended with a much better outcome for the Lakers as they found a way to come out with the victory. It was another rocky start for the Lakers as they were down by two runs after the first three innings. The Lakers were not even close to finished as they had a score to settle with Salisbury. A double by senior Julian Drew gave the Lakers a golden opportunity to get on the board. After a pitch sailed past the catcher the Lakers were able to cut the lead down to one. Another score at the top od the sixth by senior Ryan Weiss tied the game up at two a piece. Weiss had a dominant performance in this game, and came in clutch in the top of the ninth inning. Weiss had a base hit that set up senior Ryan Enos for a crunch time run, giving the Lakers a 3-2 lead. Pitcher Ben Wilcox would seal Salisbury’s fate in the bottom of the ninth. The Lakers would have the rubber match Sunday afternoon.
The Lakers battled it out in a hard fought game Sunday, but ultimately came out on the losing end. Despite being right in it until the very end, they ultimately lost 6-5. Oswego was on the board first at the top of the third when sophomore Brian Brezosky scored after a single that got him to the plate. The fifth inning was action packed as the Lakers scored 3 runs to give them a 4-1 lead. Salisbury answered right back though, scoring two runs in the bottom of the fifth. Later in the top of the seventh, Kyle Lauria would score his second run of the day after capitalizing on a botched pitch. Unfortunately this would be the Lakers last run of the contest as Salisbury went on to score a run in the bottom of the seventh, eighth, and ninth inning to seal their one run victory. Oswego walked out with one win this weekend but showed signs of greatness after going against top ranked Salisbury. The Lakers take a trip to Virginia to face Shenandoah University this Saturday and Sunday. Time is TBD.
Image Provided by Oswego State Athletics
