Freshman Mitch Fessenden Gets His First Varsity Soccer Goal!

Remembering with hair: Southern Cayuga boys soccer goes blonde in honor of former students as team blanks Groton 








Southern Cayuga's Mitch Fessenden scores as Groton's Alan Codner (2) and Joel Twitchell (17) close in on Wednesday at Southern Cayuga High School.





 

October 4, 2012

Scorebox
Chiefs 4
Indians 0

POPLAR RIDGE | They do it every year.

In honor of tradition, and former students that were killed in a car accident in 2003, nearly all of the Southern Cayuga boys soccer players dye their hair blonde every fall.
“It is a way to remember and a way to get pumped for homecoming,” said Chiefs’ captain Mike Killian about the bleached hairstyles. “It gets everybody going for homecoming and the rest of the season.”
“It is such a team-building thing,” freshman Mitch Fessenden said. “It is such an honor to be part of supporting a memory of people that were special to Southern Cayuga.”
The Chiefs, nearly all towheaded, shut out Groton on Wednesday at Southern Cayuga High School, 4-0.
Kurtis Bianconi scored less than half a minute in, Chad Reeves got credit for a goal when his crossing pass was headed in by the defense, and Fessenden got his first varsity mark as time expired in the first half.
“It felt pretty good,” Fessenden said as if he had been there before. “Sometimes it is better to have things quickly there isn’t time to think right away and you just have to make a decision. That helped me there.”
Killian scored with 27:34 left to play after being frustrated by errant tries, the right post, and goalie saves in the first half. Overall, Southern Cayuga out-shot Groton, 19-2. Ben Malone made both saves for his second-straight clean sheet.
“I know I can keep my shot down,” Killian said. “When I don’t, it really frustrates me.”
“He is just always positive,” Southern Cayuga head coach Matt Bancroft said of Killian. “He is always trying to make it so his teammates are in position to do the right things. He is a powerful player.”
The Chiefs, 4-10 on the season, are the lone Class D in the Interscholastic Athletic Conference in Section IV. The record is a little lopsided the wrong way every year playing Class C and B foes, but the experience is invaluable for Southern Cayuga when the Section IV tournament begins later this month.
“That is what we are always looking at,” Bancroft said. “I think we are looking at a home game to start sectionals. As long as we keep doing good things here at the end of the season I think we are going to do very well.”
“Our schedule prepares us because we don’t get as many wins, but we learn a lot more,” Fessenden said. “As long as we make it to sectionals, we have a chance to learn from mistakes that we make against some teams that are deeper than anyone else we will see in sectionals.”
“Playing against such skilled, and bigger teams, all year long makes us ready for our sectional tournament,” said Killian. “We have come a long way. We are making some mistakes, but we are getting there when it comes to making all of the right decisions.”
Opposite of his bleached blonde head were fluorescent orange cleats.

Sports writer Ben Meyers can be reached at 282-2257 or at ben.meyers@lee.net. Follow him on Twitter @CitizenMeyers.

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Community Celebrates Emerson Park
A large crowd enjoying refreshments fills the newly restored grand ballroom Sunday, June 10, 2012 at the Emerson Park Pavilion dedication and centennial celebration.

OWASCO | A story that dates back 100 years turned a new page on Sunday afternoon.
A crowd of more than 100 gathered as Cayuga County Legislators and the Fred L. Emerson Foundation commemorated the centennial celebration and dedication of the newly restored Emerson Park Pavilion.
“The scene that you're looking at behind me, would have looked very different in 1912," said Dan Fessenden, executive director of the Fred L. Emerson Foundation. “You would be sitting among ashes and embers because the pavilion would have just burned down.”
The pavilion burned to the ground in May of 1912 and just three months after the fire, a new one was built — a daunting feat that was made possible by what Fessenden said, was likely the same kind of people doing the work back then, as today.
“As much as there may have been some differences between today and 1912, it takes an army to make a project like this happen,” he said. “And my job today is simply to give thanks to those who made this possible.”
The Emerson Foundation collectively with Cayuga County, came together to renovate and revive the pavilion.  The process was more than five years in the making and cost around $5 million in funds donated by the Emerson Foundation and Cayuga County. 
Fred L. Emerson purchased the park in the 1930s. In 1944, Emerson donated the park to Cayuga County and to the citizens of Auburn.
Members of the Emerson family were in attendance to commemorate the special occasion, including Fred Emerson's grandson, Peter Emerson.
"It is our hope that the pavilion will inspire future generations of community leaders," Peter Emerson said. "It's an absolutely beautiful day and what better way to spend your time than to be out at the lake." 
County Legislator Tim Lattimore described the pavilion as "the crown and jewel of Cayuga County.
"If anyone's been out on the lake at night they've seen these lights from the water," he said. " ... The pavilion has served us well and we hope the future brings more memories for many more years to come.”
For generations, the pavilion has been a place for parties, dances, events and summer outings. Many residents who came for the event vividly remember days at the park.
Ray Jacobs has been eying the project from his home on the other side of the lake, he said, and looked forward to the renovation.
"We came down here as a kid and have many fond memories of this place," he said. "It's a great facility and it's nice to see that younger generations will be able to enjoy it."
Ellen Baumes was anxious to see the place, and she said she could already envision great events happening in the facility. 
"They used to do a Christmas tree event every year here and it would be beautiful to see that done again in the new space," she said. "It's a spectacular facility. It's new and fancy but it's kept it's old charm."
As part of the new plan for the pavilion, H & J Hospitality officially took over the operation of the facility. Owner Jamie Ciaschi, along with his staff of more than 50 employees have been on the job for nine days and he said they're already busy working on upcoming events.
The pavilion has secured more than 40 events for 2012, Ciaschi said. Eighteen are scheduled for 2013, with 12 more in the works. 
"A lot has changed here and we're excited about our future," Ciaschi said. "We're looking forward to it. The future looks bright for the pavilion."