Though it is nothing more than bragging rights at stake this winter, the Baldwinsville ice hockey team had a clear mission – get the better of its main large-school rivals.

For instance, the Bees still remembered that the Syracuse Cougars beat them in the 2019 Section III Division I final at the War Memorial on the way to the Cougars’ first-ever state championship.

Now they met at Three Rivers Athletic Complex Monday night, with both sides having won their first two games, and it was B’ville getting the best of the battle, surging in the middle stages and holding on late for a 3-2 victory.

They went through the entire first period, and half of the second period, stuck at 0-0, but then in a 22-second outburst the Bees went ahead for good.

Sam Ciappa’s goal broke the deadlock. Then, before Syracuse could regroup, the Bees attack again and, with Alex Pompo finding the net, the margin went to 2-0.

Even when the Cougars got on the board late in the period, B’ville responded, Pompo finding the net 1:23 before intermission to extend his team’s lead to 3-1.

All through the third period, the Bees’ defense worked hard to protect the lead. Though Syracuse again cut the margin to one, it could not force overtime.

Good as this win was, the Bees could not sustain its win streak as it fell by that same 3-2 margin to Cortland-Homer Wednesday at Allyn Arena in Skaneateles, which the Golden Eagles are using as a home rink this winter.

Pompo netted one goal and assisted on the other by Hoskin, with Garrett Sutton assisting on both scoring plays. But Cortland-Homer won largely on Jed Brazo’s stick as he scored twice and assisted on the Golden Eagles’ other tally, by Braden Marsh.

And B’ville knew an even bigger test loomed Thursday at that same Allyn Arena when it faced Skaneateles, whose 4-0 start had included a 14-0 destruction of Liverpool earlier in the week.

It wasn’t as lopsided here, but once again the Lakers ketp a quality opponent off the board, defeating the Bees 5-0 by getting on the board in every period and withstanding 22 saves by B’ville goalie Leo Legault.

No one hurt the Bees more than Garrett Krieger. Having passed the 100-point mark for his career earlier in the week, Krieger landed three goals and an assist as Luke Renaud and Colin Morrissey had the other goals.

With Saturday’s game against Fayetteville-Manlius postponed, the Bees could now rest and wait for games next week against CBA/Jamesville-DeWittWednesday at State Fair Coliseum and Cicero-North Syracuse Friday at the Twin Rinks.