The Skaneateles girls soccer team has taken its season in an entirely new direction, and it led the Lakers to the Section III, Class B playoffs.

“They have made a complete turnaround in the last couple of weeks,” Lakers coach Lauren Wiese said. “They made the decision to be a more physical team than usual and it has changed the playing field for us.”

Skaneateles was primarily a defensive team, but lately has displayed an aggressive offense that looks to score more goals. The change in tactic and attitude helped the Lakers pick up two late-season victories - against Marcellus and Manlius Pebble Hill.

Today, 11th-seeded Skaneateles hopes to ride that momentum into a quarterfinal game at No. 6 Homer. Play kicks off at 5:30 p.m.

“We finished on a really high note,” Wiese said. “We beat both second-place teams, Marcellus and Manlius Pebble Hill. We were pretty excited about that.”

Skaneateles, who finished sixth in the Liberty League, was the only league team to beat Marcellus, which it did twice. The Lakers shut out Marcellus 1-0 on Friday and beat MPH by the same score on Wednesday.

“The girls are beside themselves right now,” Wiese said. “We finished the regular season in such a dramatic fashion, especially against Manlius Pebble Hill, and now they seem to feel much more confident and not as afraid.”

But Skaneateles can't be overconfident against Homer, a team it lost to twice this season. The Lakers lost 1-0 in both matchups.

“Homer is new in the league and they are a very physical team,” Wiese said. “The two times we played them we played really hard but didn't focus enough on offense to finish it. Hopefully the confidence we have now can help us do that. We feel pretty confident and have gained a lot of momentum from the last two games. We are playing a really physical game and we are counting on that and trying to get mileage out of it.”

Last season, the Lakers lost in the first round of sectionals to Clinton in overtime.

“We know we have nothing to lose,” Wiese said. “We have good outside midfielders and have been working a lot on offensive possession drills in practice to try and gain possession in the midfield. We have the confidence now and it's just a matter of executing. It's really any given day, we have proved that we can play with good teams and that by being aggressive we can create our own opportunities. Sometimes you can even create your own luck.”

In Class AA playoff action, 10th-seeded Auburn (8-8-1) travels to No. 7 Rome Free Academy for a 7 p.m. game on Wednesday.

The Maroons' main goal this season was to qualify for sectionals.

“The girls have stayed positive throughout the entire season,” Auburn coach Tom Quest said. “We are really excited to be able to go to sectionals and compete.”

Last season, the Maroons got past Fayetteville-Manlius in a first-round shootout but lost in the sectional semifinals.

The Maroons shut out RFA, 2-0, earlier this season and are hoping to build off that game.

Quest said defensively, the Maroons are looking to keep their opponent in front of them. Their offensive strategy is simple - get the ball into the back of the net as much as possible.

Auburn had an impressive start to its season, going 6-1, but slipped a bit as the season progressed.

But none of that matters now as sectional play gets under way.

“It is like a new season,” Quest said. “Everyone is 0-0, it's a fresh start and that is the way we will treat it. The girls are looking forward to the game in Rome. Our captains, Virginia Porten and Marissa Slayton, have given us great leadership and provide the motivation we need. The girls had a good practice (Monday) and our feeling is positive. They will definitely be playing their best.”