A clean, smooth sheet of ice is where the Skaneateles girls hockey team works best.
With first place in Section III at stake Wednesday night at Allyn Arena, the Lakers broke things open with a pair of goals early in the second period, going on from there to defeat the Warriors 4-1.
It hasn’t taken long for Clinton to establish its girls hockey program, and it won its first three league games to match what Skaneateles was doing in its league contests.
Now they met head-to-head, and immediately the game turned into a duel between the aggressive Skaneateles attack and a Clinton defense anchored by goaltender Ryann Stripp.
Through most of the first period, the Lakers kept the puck in the Warriors’ end, and took hard shots that Stripp managed to glove. All told, Stripp had 11 first-period saves.
But at the 11:57 mark of the period, Clinton turned the puck over in its own end and Abbey Kuhns, wide open at the point, sent another hard shot that eluded Stripp and found the net.
Still, all of this was done on uneven ice, since no time passed between pre-game warm-ups and the opening period. Once the Zamboni had done its work and the teams returned for the second period, the Lakers pounced.
Just 45 seconds into the frame, another turnover set up a goal by Allison Weiss. Less than two minutes later, Ioanna Christou’s pass found Megan Teachout in full stride and, with her skill and speed, Teachout didn’t stop until she had put the puck past Stripp to make it 3-0.
Clinton didn’t flinch, though, starting to assert its own attack, and the pressure paid off with Mia Lopata’s scrambling goal midway through the period. That kept Skaneateles from relaxing, and it resumed its attack, forcing a power play that Teachout converted with her second goal, assisted by Kuhns and Sophie Kush.
Instead of sailing the rest of the way, the Lakers tried to make it interesting by committing a series of third-period penalties. Twice, Clinton had five-on-three opportunities, but Weiss, Lauren Jones and the rest of the Skaneateles defense kept killing off those chances, and goalie Johna Halko made several key stops, finishing with 17 saves as Stripp had 26 saves.
These two teams would meet again Tuesday at Clinton Arena. In between those games, Skaneateles would make a trip east for a pair of weekend games against Saranac Lake and Lake Placid.
The first game, on Friday, was one-sided as Skaneateles blanked Saranac Lake 6-0, scoring twice in the first period and three more times in the second period to put things away, while holding Saranac Lake to just eight shots all night.
Nine different Lakers earned points, with Sophia Burns leading the way thanks to two goals and an assist. Teachout and Campbell Torrey each had one goal and one assist as Sophia Kush and Lauren Jones also found the net. Kuhns got two assists as Weiss, Grace Kush and Katie Halko had one assist apiece.
Up against Lake Placid on Saturday afternoon, Skaneateles kept it going with a 7-1 victory that was sparked by four unanswered goals in the first period, something Lake Placid could not overcome.
Converting three more times in the third period, the Lakers got another hat trick from Teachout, who finished with three goals and one assist. Kuhns scored twice, with Sophia Kush and Sophia Burns each earning one goal and one assist. Weiss was credited with three assists as Jones and Grace Kush earned two assists apiece.
