Now the Skaneateles boys ice hockey team would head to the road to face most of the sides best positioned to challenge them for area Division II supremacy.
The first of these games was set for last Wednesday at New Hartford, but weather forced a postponement of that game and it will get made up Feb. 10.
However, all was clear last Friday as Skaneateles made its way to historic Clinton Arena, site of decades of hockey history and home in 2018 to an NHL preseason game between the Buffalo Sabres and Columbus Blue Jackets.
Clinton, no. 7 in the state Division II rankings, awaited the top-ranked Lakers, and it was a fierce battle on the defensive side, but Skaneateles did break through twice and beat the Warriors 2-0.
On both of the Lakers’ scoring plays, Garrett Krieger took part, netting one goal and assisting on Charlie Major’s tally as Charlie Russell also had an assist.
As for Clinton, though it turned everything else back thanks to Dan Frank’s 22 saves, it only took 15 shots against a stingy Lakers defense, all of them stopped by Chad Lowe.
Another eastern trip would follow on Tuesday, Skaneateles this time facing state no. 5-ranked Whitesboro, before it came back to Allyn Arena on Friday to take on Oswego.
Meanwhile, in girls ice hockey, Skaneateles returned to action last Monday after a two-week break and took a 4-0 defeat to Clinton. Evie Sheridan made 26 saves, but the Warriors got four goals from four different players – Mia Lopata, Drew Kopek, Abigail Kurdziolek and Hailey Kwiatkowski – to prevail.
After weather postponed Wednesday’s game with Alexandria Bay, the Lakers traveled on the weekend to Beekmantown and Plattsburgh, eager to turn things around.
It didn’t happen against Beekmantown, who prevailed 2-1 by scoring twice in the second period and then hanging on late despite a third-period goal by Lizzy Sachar, assisted by Campbell Torrey. Rose Kozub finished with 23 saves.
Skaneateles then broke its skid on Saturday, beating Plattsburgh by that same 2-1 margin as this time the Lakers got the second-period goals, one each by Sachar and Emily Evans, with freshman Isabelle Wells getting a turn in goal and stopping 22 of the 23 shots she faced.
Now at 4-5-1 on the season, the girls Lakers would go to Oswego Tuesday before back-to-back games against Ithaca and Clinton later in the week.
