In an emphatic manner, the Cicero-North Syracuse ice hockey team broke into the win column and bounced back from a season-opening Nov. 30 defeat to Rome Free Academy.
Against Central Square last Monday night at the Twin Rinks, the Northstars began to take over in the second period and did not let up until it had registered an 8-1 victory over the Red Hawks.
Kyle Bird’s goal had Central Square even, 1-1, going into the second period. From there, though, C-NS attacked at will and converted often, a trail of seven unanswered goals evenly spread out over the final 30 minutes of action.
Eric Hamilton, shut out against RFA, did not get stopped here, piling up four goals and adding a pair of assists, his passes often coming from Jesse Farabee, who picked up three assists.
Matt Fiume picked up a goal and two assists. Danny Rush had a goal and assist, while Luke Keyes, Chris Schneid and Curtis Howland each scored, too. Paul Ludden and Matt Siegel both matched Hamilton and Fiume with two assists apiece. Connor Doren and A.J. Merola earned assists, too.
C-NS played its first road game of the season two nights later, at the Watertown Fairgrounds Arena, where it roared past Watertown IHC 10-1 in much the same manner by which it routed Central Square.
Again, it was a 1-1 tie through one period and, again, the second period onward belonged to the Northstars, this time including nine unanswered goals stretched out over the final 30 minutes as part of a 51-shot attack.
Hamilton, for the second game in a row, picked up four goals, but it was Fiume as the top scorer, scoring twice and adding three assists. Chris Schneid had one goal and one assist, with Doren, Siegel and Nick Schneid also finding the net. Kyler Schilling, Luke Keyes, Zach Sheridan and Newell Field all found the assist column.
Liverpool’s ice hockey team, looking for its first Division I win of the season, took its shot at five-time defending champion West Genesee last Wednesday night at Shove Park.
And while the Warriors lost, 4-2, it did represent a significant step forward for a Warriors side completely overwhelmed by Wildcats teams in recent years.
With a much younger roster, WG is not expected to dominate as much, but still has plenty on hand. Liverpool got to them, though, with a goal in the first period, which kept the margin at 2-1.
However, the Warriors were unable to score again until the third period, mainly because it never had the puck all that much. WG’s attack was relentless, and only a gigantic effort from eighth-grade goaltender Steve Kozikowski kept it close as he made 51 saves.
Liverpool would tack on another goal in the third period as Conner Hurwitz and Tyler Garofalo got credit for finding the net, with Dalton Horton and Kody Gaulke earning assists. David Procopio led WG with two goals and one assist.
Encouraging as that was, things sank again in Friday’s 8-2 loss to Central Square, a game where the Red Hawks broke open a 1-1 tie with four unanswered goals in the second period.
Try as it could, Liverpool could not stop Central Square forward Kyle Bird, who had an incredible night, scoring six of his team’s goals and assisting on the other two. Horton and Gaulke managed the Warriors’ goals.
A day later, though, the Warriors broke its skid with a 6-2 victory over Watertown IHC. Liverpool dominated the first two periods, building a 5-0 lead, and cruised the rest of the way.
Gaulke, with two goals, and Conner Hurwitz, with two assists, led a well-balanced attack. Four others – Rich Hart, Zach Vivenzo, Don Husted and J.T. Muolo – earned single goals, with Horton and Rocco Leone picking up assists.
