SYRACUSE – Right up to the final seconds of Monday night’s Section III Division I championship game at Upstate Medical University Arena, the Baldwinsville ice hockey team sought a way to pull even with West Genesee.
Already on this evening, the Bees had proven, beyond a doubt, that its lopsided Nov. 30 defeat to the Wildcats did not accurately reflect its quality, seeming to build momentum as the night went on.
Now, as time ran low and goaltender Jon Schirmer watched from the bench, six attackers maintained possession in WG’s end, desperately trying to push the puck past Wildcats goalie Dylan Desena.
It could not do so, though, and when the horn sounded, WG had a 2-1 victory, its first sectional title in five years, and kept B’ville from ending its own championship drought that dated back to 2015.
In many ways it was a classic battle between these long-time hockey rivals in a classic setting in downtown Syracuse, full of physical play, with one side controlling things early and the other taking over in the game’s latter stages.
From the outset, it was clear that neither side would get away, with B’ville far removed from the side that lost 7-2 at Shove Park in that long-ago season opener.
They battled through a scoreless first period. Schirmer, starting despite a hand injury suffered in his team’s sectional semifinal win over Cazenovia Feb. 24, made 12 saves, twice the number of WG counterpart Dylan Desena.
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.
B’ville would allow nothing more, Schirmer eventually gaining 32 saves as he weathered all that the Wildcats threw at him and then watched as his teammates went all-out to get back even.
For long stretches of the third period, the Bees found itself in WG’s end. Constantly it forced Desena to either cover the puck for a face-off, or made a defender clear it out for icing.
Yet whether it was a power play early in the period, point-blank stops by Desena on Ciappa and Matt Carner, or withstanding the extra attacker in the closing minute, the Wildcats were able to hang on.
All told, of Desena’s 31 saves, 16 of them came in the third period. He said that he was nervous throughout this late stretch, but trusted himself and his teammates to get the job done.
As WG’s players picked up their championship medals and claimed the sectional banner, B’ville’s players stayed out there and watched, many of them congratulating the Wildcats as they all left the ice together and wishing them good luck in the state tournament.
