SYRACUSE – All of the current West Genesee ice hockey players have heard plenty about the great teams of the past that lay claim to a steady string of Section III championships.
Now, at last, these Wildcats have one of their own.
For the first time since 2017, WG holds the sectional banner, earned Monday night at Upstate Medical University Arena in downtown Syracuse with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Baldwinsville.
“I’m happy for these kids,” said head coach Frank Colabufo. “They prepared, fought hard and did a great job of staying focused.”
Much of that focus, on this night, entered around a Wildcats defense that had to protect a slim one-goal margin through a tense third period as B’ville put up an all-out attack, trying to pull even.
That the Bees never did so was a tribute to WG’s work ethic and the poise of senior goaltender Dylan Desena, who turned back all 16 shots he faced in that period and finished the night with 31 saves overall.
“He played phenomenal,” said senior captain Jeremy Keyes.
As for Desena, he said he has dedicated this season to the memory of his father, who passed away late last year, and that he knew that, with help from his teammates, he could perform here.
“I was nervous (in the third period, but I was confident that we could pull through,” he said.
In every way, this game sharply contrasted the two sides’ lone regular-season encounter back on Nov. 30, when WG routed B’ville 7-2. From the outset, it was clear that neither side would get away.
They battled through a scoreless first period. Bees goalie Jon Schirmer, starting despite a hand injury suffered in his team’s sectional semifinal win over Cazenovia, made 12 saves, twice Desena’s number.
Gradually, the Wildcats’ pressure picked up, which led to a power play early in the second period and a 1-0 lead when Jared Jaeger tipped in Ryan Stratton’s shot from the point.
Sam Ciappa brought B’ville to life at the 7:42 mark of the period, charging from his own end up the ice and drawing defenders until he passed to Reese Gilmore, who netted the tying goal.
Late in the period, WG’s Ryan Considine, who had assisted on the first goal, sent a shot from near the blue line on the right side that twisted and turned, eluding Schirmer and finding the top left corner of the net.
That it turned out to be the game-winner was only possible because of the work Desena did, aided in no small part by Considine, Jack Gianuzzi, Kyle Evanchak, Patrick Quinn and other back-line players who braced for the Bees’ all-out effort in the third period.
“We knew they (B’ville) would bring their best hockey, and we had to weather it,” said Colabufo.
All through those last 17 minutes, the Bees would swarm the net. Sometimes Desena would fall on the puck and force a face-off that WG would win. Other times, the Wildcats would simply clear it out, even if meant icing.
By the final minute, with Schirmer pulled, the Bees had six attackers and got a handful of more chances, but Desena turned them all away and, as the clock hit zero, gloves, helmets and sticks went in the air and a celebration five years in the making was underway.
