SKANEATELES - The Skaneateles hockey team is truckin', just like the song playing in its locker room after Friday night's 5-3 whuppin' of New Hartford.
Matt Baker, right, and twin brother Mark are enjoying a great season for the Weedsport boys swimming team, but there is more to them than their success in the pool. Reid Silverman / The Citizen
The Lakers opened up the Section III, Division II playoffs by leading the Spartans 5-0 halfway through the game, then preserving the victory before a huge crowd at Allyn Ice Arena.
"I've got to tell you, our team is really coming together," said head coach Mitch Major. "We're playing well, our offense is clicking, and we did what it took to win tonight. That was what we haven't done all year."
Winning the game earned Skaneateles (17-6-2) a second-round matchup against the top-ranked Division II team in the state, Clinton, which dispatched CBA 5-2 in its first-round matchup Friday. The game will be played either Tuesday or Wednesday at Clinton.
Clinton visited Skaneateles on Feb. 4 and came away with a 3-2 win.
"(Clinton) won, but we know we can beat them," said junior forward Justin Cunningham, who picked an excellent time to notch his second career hat trick. "This is huge momentum we have to go against them."
The Lakers got on the board with just their second shot on goal of the night, four minutes into the game, as a 60-foot pass crossed the ice and found Jeff Pola's stick.
Pola dumped the puck off to Dan Ford, who set up Eric Schaeffer for the score on a 2-on-1 break, with the Spartans' defenders too slow to retreat.
Five minutes later, Cunningham found himself with extra time to line up his shot on New Hartford goalie George Jweid, after getting a feed from the corner from Peter Elliott.
New Hartford's (14-9-1) defenders looked positively beleaguered with two minutes left in the first period, as Pola scored on a Tim Chase assist. Chris Beardsley (26 saves) made his first tough save just before the horn, leaving the Lakers with a 3-0 lead after one period.
A deft flick of the puck by Ford inside Skaneateles' zone began another scoring play 7:47 into the second period. Ford caromed a pass to Elliott, who dealt to Cunningham to finish the play.
While the Skaneateles supporters were still celebrating the goal, Cunningham struck again, 19 seconds later, prompting New Hartford head coach John Cunningham to switch goalies from Jweid (13 saves) to Anthony Cadieux (11 saves). But the switch came too late.
The Lakers changed tactics from attacking to preserving the rest of the way, and the Spartans responded with goals at 10:10 of the second period and 6:12 of the third period - both coming on the last second of separate power plays.
"We're a team that moves the puck well, and we just wanted to attack and have no regrets," Major said. "And it worked. We went up 5-1, and then we changed up a couple of things to win the game. We started dumping the puck, and basically kept three men high and tried to keep that clock moving."
Stephen Peck's score with 1:12 to play in the game closed the gap to 5-3 for New Hartford, which outshot Skaneateles 12-8 in the third period (the teams tied in shots on goal for the game, 29-all).
New Hartford's Kyle Cunningham had a goal and assisted on the Spartans' two other scores.
For the Lakers, Elliott and Ford both notched a pair of assists. Mike Perkins, Tim Chase and Schaeffer each had one assist.
Staff writer Andrew Walter can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 258 or
citizensports@lee.net
"I've got to tell you, our team is really coming together," said head coach Mitch Major. "We're playing well, our offense is clicking, and we did what it took to win tonight. That was what we haven't done all year."
Winning the game earned Skaneateles (17-6-2) a second-round matchup against the top-ranked Division II team in the state, Clinton, which dispatched CBA 5-2 in its first-round matchup Friday. The game will be played either Tuesday or Wednesday at Clinton.
Clinton visited Skaneateles on Feb. 4 and came away with a 3-2 win.
"(Clinton) won, but we know we can beat them," said junior forward Justin Cunningham, who picked an excellent time to notch his second career hat trick. "This is huge momentum we have to go against them."
The Lakers got on the board with just their second shot on goal of the night, four minutes into the game, as a 60-foot pass crossed the ice and found Jeff Pola's stick.
Pola dumped the puck off to Dan Ford, who set up Eric Schaeffer for the score on a 2-on-1 break, with the Spartans' defenders too slow to retreat.
Five minutes later, Cunningham found himself with extra time to line up his shot on New Hartford goalie George Jweid, after getting a feed from the corner from Peter Elliott.
New Hartford's (14-9-1) defenders looked positively beleaguered with two minutes left in the first period, as Pola scored on a Tim Chase assist. Chris Beardsley (26 saves) made his first tough save just before the horn, leaving the Lakers with a 3-0 lead after one period.
A deft flick of the puck by Ford inside Skaneateles' zone began another scoring play 7:47 into the second period. Ford caromed a pass to Elliott, who dealt to Cunningham to finish the play.
While the Skaneateles supporters were still celebrating the goal, Cunningham struck again, 19 seconds later, prompting New Hartford head coach John Cunningham to switch goalies from Jweid (13 saves) to Anthony Cadieux (11 saves). But the switch came too late.
The Lakers changed tactics from attacking to preserving the rest of the way, and the Spartans responded with goals at 10:10 of the second period and 6:12 of the third period - both coming on the last second of separate power plays.
"We're a team that moves the puck well, and we just wanted to attack and have no regrets," Major said. "And it worked. We went up 5-1, and then we changed up a couple of things to win the game. We started dumping the puck, and basically kept three men high and tried to keep that clock moving."
Stephen Peck's score with 1:12 to play in the game closed the gap to 5-3 for New Hartford, which outshot Skaneateles 12-8 in the third period (the teams tied in shots on goal for the game, 29-all).
New Hartford's Kyle Cunningham had a goal and assisted on the Spartans' two other scores.
For the Lakers, Elliott and Ford both notched a pair of assists. Mike Perkins, Tim Chase and Schaeffer each had one assist.
Staff writer Andrew Walter can be reached at 253-5311 ext. 258 or
citizensports@lee.net
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