CENTRAL NEW YORK – Anything less than championship runs for the West Genesee and Skaneateles boys ice hockey teams would not suffice, especially with both as defending sectional champions and perched atop their respective state rankings.
These two playoffs quests got underway Wednesday successfully on home ice, with the Wildcats turning back Baldwinsville 5-2 in the Section III Division I quarterfinal and the Lakers dominating New Hartford 6-0 in the Division II quarterfinals.
Of these games, WG’s venture with B’ville at Shove Park carried more peril, if only because Wildcats fans remembered how, in years past, the Bees had accomplished, or at least come close, to ruining championship dreams.
Though B’ville carried an 8-10-2 record into the game, it was a far better team now than when it lost 9-1 to WG in early December in Lysander. Also, WG had not played in two weeks, while the no. 8 seed Bees were just five days removed from a 3-2 opening-round playoff win over Ontario Bay.
Perhaps that was reflected in a scoreless opening period where the Bees’ defense turned back all of WG’s opportunities and had a few of its own.
In the second period, though, the Wildcats found its rhythm and utilized its depth to build a 3-1 advantage, ultimately stretching out that margin down the stretch.
Five different Wildcats – Jonah Vormwald, Jacob Pensabene, Ryan Long, Christian Ball and Parker Berg – earned goals, with Vormwald and Pensabene adding two assists apiece.
Long earned an assist, as did Evan Zoanetti, Greg Wood and Luke Alfieri, while Luke Beck stopped 18 of the 20 shots he faced, half of what B’ville goalies Chase Brooks and Zach Bice dealt with as they combined for 35 saves.
Later that night at Allyn Arena, Skaneateles began the post-season portion of its push toward a third consecutive state title with its fourth shutout in a row and eighth in its last nine games.
New Hartford found itself having to fend off an attack which produced more than one shot per minute and 71 in all. That it didn’t turn more lopsided was due to the superb work of Spartans goalie Rocco Mastrovito-Smith who amassed 65 saves.
Amid all this, Skaneateles did convert twice in each period, ultimately seeing Luke Bobbett and Asher Kozub, each with a goal and assist, lead a well-balanced attack.
Other goals went to Luke Mizro, Sutton Paro, Bradean Taggart and Tye Kennedy, with Cole Palmer, Nate Orsen, Deakin Redding, Jack Bobbett and Tyler Calkins earning assists.
Of the local sides only Syracuse was ousted in the sectional quarterfinals, as in Division I the no. 7 seed Cougars took a 5-0 defeat to no. 2 seed Rome Free Academy at Kennedy Arena.
Syracuse did keep RFA off the board until the second period, but then just like WG did against B’ville the Black Knights would wear the Cougars’ defense down in the last two periods while netting all of its goals.
Conor Rose finished with 29 saves, yet could not contain RFA forward Tyler Lokker, whose two goals and two assists led an atack where Braden Meeks, Jackson Coleman and Jackson Marchione also converted. None of the Cougars’ 15 shots got past Black Knights goalie Donte Sparace.
Tuesday night at 6:30, two sectional semifinals take place. At Shove Park in Division I West Genesee hosts Fayetteville-Manlius, while at Allyn Arena Skaneateles battles Clinton, each of them hoping to advance to March 3 sectional championship games.
