ONONDAGA COUNTY – A five-game win streak following an 0-3 start had given the Christian Brothers Academy/Jamesville-DeWitt ice hockey team all the confidence it would need to try to take down a dynasty.
And the Brothers nearly pulled it off last Monday night at State Fair Coliseum, staying right with Skaneateles until the final horn of a 3-2 defeat to the Lakers.
It all seemed too daunting. Skaneateles sported a 51-game unbeaten streak and, on the way to a 10-0 start, had outscored opponents by a combined 76-5 margin.
None of this seemed to intimidate CBA/J-D, for over the course of the first two periods it limited the Lakers to single tallies in each frame.
Against a Skaneateles defense with seven shutouts on its resume, the Brothers broke through twice, Kodi Dotterer assisting on goals by Tanner Burns and Justin Thies as Joe Dotterer and Nate Christaldi also had assists.
So it was 2-2 going into the third period, and CBA/J-D goaltender Joe Salvador was on his way to recording 40 saves, but the Lakers still went out in front late and hung on, led by Garrett Krieger’s two goals and Luke Renaud’s pair of assists.
As it turned out, Skaneateles would get caught later in the week as Baldwinsville tied them 1-1, while on that same night CBA/J-D went through its own deadlock with the Fulton Red Raiders.
The 2-2 decision involved Joe Dotterer and Seamus Nicholson picking up goals for the Brothers, with John Sheridan asssting on both scoring plays and assists also credited to Burns and Seamus McIntyre.
Fulton countered with goals by Derek Schumaker and Tom Long, and Trey White was superb in the net for the Red Raiders, stopping 41 of CBA/J-D’s 43 shots as Ethan White, taking his turn in the net for the Brothers, recorded 24 saves.
Fayetteville-Manlius, trying for another big victory to match the 4-3 overtime win over West Genesee on Feb. 25, met reigning sectional Division I champion Syracuse last Tuesday at Cicero Twin Rinks.
But the same magic that worked against the Wildcats did not show up here as the Cougars prevailed 5-1, the prelude to the Hornets’ battle with CBA/J-D early this week as the abbreviated 2021 season winds down.
Against Syracuse, Charlie Lorraine’s goal, assisted by Jackson Denton, was all that F-M could manage. Chris Finger turned back 40 of 45 shots, but the Cougars had a balanced attack led by Owen Mahar and Nelson Jones, who each finished with two goals and one assist.
