Now at no. 4 in the state Division II rankings, the Skaneateles ice hockey team continues to show its all-around improvement to various opponents. That would include Solvay, whom the Lakers visited last Friday night at State Fair Coliseum. In this case, all aspects of the game fit together in a 4-1 victory over the Bearcats. Much of the night belonged to Skaneateles’ deep, physical pool of defenders. They ran all over the ice and shut down whatever Solvay tried to establish, keeping them off the board until Dennis Scanlon’s unassisted goal in the third period. The Bearcats took just 12 shots all night. This allowed the Lakers to be patient on the offensive side, waiting until the second period to really take charge. And much of that was Packy Jones’ responsibility. Already the leading Skaneateles goal-scorer, Jones dazzled in the second period, working his way to a three-goal hat trick as the Lakers built a 4-0 advantage. Dylan VanHoltz had one goal and one assist, while Zach Augustine earned two assists. Dan Tarolli and Sean Cooney each had one assist. Skaneateles has a special patriotic-themed event planned for Wednesday’s home game against CBA/J-D, as it is “Support The Troops Night”, with festivities beginning at 6:45 at the Community Center. Each fan is encouraged to wear red, white and blue, and will be given an American flag as they enter the center, while the Skaneateles High School Jazz Band will be performing patriotic songs. A pregame ceremony will honor United States Marine Corps members just returned from Iraq, and special patches for $5 will be sold, with proceeds donated to the New York Chapter of Hockey Supports the Troops. When all this is done, Skaneateles will head out on Friday for another key league game against Corcoran at Meachem Rink.