Two defeats – one in a shoot-out to Rochester McQuaid, the other in regulation to host Ogdensburg – had left a bad impression on the Baldwinsville ice hockey team during its Jan. 13-14 tournament appearance.
So when the Bees returned to local action last Wednesday night, it didn’t waste time seizing control, smothering Cicero-North Syracuse in the course of a 5-0 shutout of the Northstars.
Both sides had designated the game with the “Carry A Bead’ moniker since the two teams were working together to raise money for the Maureen’s Hope charity.
It took less than 90 seconds for B’ville to get out in front, thanks to Jamey Natoli’s goal. Five minutes later, Zach Perez scored off a feed from Parker Schroeder, and just eight seconds later it was 3-0 as Schroeder this time found the net and Perez got credit for the assist.
To its credit, C-NS settled down on the defensive side and would blank B’ville for the rest of the period and the entire second period, but Ryan Gebhardt extended the margin to 4-0 with a goal 1:16 into the third period, and another would follow.
Now, on Friday night, B’ville would face Liverpool in the Lysander Arena facility the two programs share. Their first meeting, on Dec. 16, resulted in a 3-0 Bees shutout, and the second encounter was closer – at least until a third-period blitz of goals helped B’ville get past the Warriors 8-1.
Attacking from the outset, B’ville had a 1-0 lead less than three minutes into the game, but went quiet until the second period, when the Warriors used Tyler Dorval’s goal to pull even, 1-1. It wasn’t until late in that second period that the Bees went in front for good on Gebhardt’s power-play goal at the 12:18 mark.
But when Cam Sweeney scored less than 90 seconds into the third period to make it 3-1, a lot more followed. Isaiah Pompo scored on the power play, Sweeney returned to net a second goal and three more would follow as the Bees’ six goals were the most it has scored in any period this season.
Zach Hall joined Sweeney in the two-goal column. Four others – Pompo, Gebhardt, Perez and Jacob Abbey – found the net, too, Gebhardt adding two assists. Natoli, Schroeder, Ben Dwyer, Josh Racha, Quinn Sweeney and Michael Carni notched single assists. Rose was again stingy, stopping 22 of the 23 shots he faced.
The win clinched a winning regular season for B’ville as, at 10-4-1, it goes to Kennedy Arena to face Rome Free Academy Wednesday and then returns to the Mohawk Valley Saturday to face Whitesboro, the leaders in the Division II National Conference, a good tune-up for the Feb. 1 trip to Shove Park to face West Genesee.
