It took three tries, but the Fayetteville-Manlius field hockey team earned its place in the win column in emphatic style last Monday afternoon, breezing to an 8-0 victory over the Cyclones. The Hornets simply overwhelmed the Cyclones, bolting to a 7-0 lead by halftime and backing off in the second half as everyone on the roster saw playing time. Molly Winiecki and Kerry O’Connor each scored twice on F-M’s behalf. Katelyn Gualtieri, Hannah Bucklin, Julia Todd and Emily Hebert also put in goals, while Issy Moro, Courtney Clark, Lindsey Trachtenberg and Kendra Napierala earned assists. The Hornets kept up this good form in Wednesday’s match against Auburn, shutting out the Maroons 6-0. Again, F-M had a quick start, seizing a 4-0 halftime lead and cruising from there. Kendra Napierala earned a three-goal hat trick, with Gualtieri finding the net twice and Bucklin earning the other goal. Haley Shields and Kerry O’Connor each had one assist. In Friday’s opening round of the Holland Patent Fall Classic, the Hornets lost 1-0 to New York Mills, despite Abby Cunningham’s seven saves. But in the consolation game the Hornets took out Whitesboro 3-1, improving to 3-2-1 on the season as Winiecki poured in two goals and Napierala got a goal and assist. Trachtenberg and Gualtieri gained assists, too. East Syracuse-Minoa came close to its second win in 2010 during last Tuesday’s match against Cortland, only to see the Purple Tigers move to 5-0 by edging the Spartans 2-1. Down 1-0 at the break, ESM got on the board in the second half when Dayna Cordell scored off a pass from Amy Loder. Still, Cortland won, overcoming the combined 10 saves of Danielle Hobb and Nicole Nieset by having Taylor Taber and Sarah Hartnett earn goals. But the Spartans would prevail on Saturday, edging Homer 1-0 as Jill Alaimo’s first-half goal, fed by Stephanie Edmonds, would hold up. Between them, Hobb and Nieset again finished with 10 saves, this time producing the shutout. Both F-M (on Tuesday) and ESM (on Thursday) get to host defending Class C champion Cazenovia this week, with the Spartans also encountering unbeaten Class A power Baldwinsville.