If you don't fly *A, you may as well fly Alitalia. For obvious reasons their coverage of Italy is pretty good.

Otherwise I agree that looking beyond AC metal to save taxes etc is the way to go. The LX flight is a possibility. I'm sure there are ways to get there via MUC / FRA on LH metal or VIE on OS then EN (Air Dolomiti) the rest of the way. If you must do reward seats, try looking for ways to get to MUC / FRA / VIE on UA from somewhere in the US.

Have fun in Sicilia. It's a neat place! ^