Joseph Caruso delivered one of the most complete individual performances of the young season, and Northport/Huntington needed every bit of it in a 7-5 win over West Islip on Monday at The Rinx – North Rink. Caruso finished with three goals and two assists, and his power-play goal at 12:33 of the third period proved to be the game-winner.
The teams traded goals early, with Caruso opening the scoring at 5:31 of the first period before Ciaran Pollard answered just 43 seconds into a wild opening frame that also saw two penalties. The second period turned into a track meet, with four different Northport/Huntington players — Caruso, Ryan Collins, and Joseph Buonocore twice — finding the net, while William Shields and Andrew Mervyak kept West Islip within striking distance. Buonocore’s pair of goals just 24 seconds apart, both assisted by Caruso and Kevin Sherwood, gave Northport/Huntington a cushion it would need in the final period.
West Islip refused to fade quietly. Charles Salamone and Shields scored back-to-back shorthanded goals just eight seconds apart in the third period, tying the frame at two apiece and briefly threatening a comeback. But Caruso’s power-play strike moments earlier already had Northport/Huntington in front, and Colin Jackson added an insurance goal at 3:11 to help seal it. Pollard finished with a goal and three assists for West Islip, while Shields added two goals and an assist.
Northport/Huntington turned to two goaltenders, with Boden Rudloff picking up the win after not allowing a goal in his appearance and Brett Kostor taking the loss on the other bench with five goals against. West Islip’s Tyler Sapoff did not allow a goal in his outing but was tagged with the loss, while Colin Hovanec allowed seven. Both clubs entered the night at 0-1, and with the win, Northport/Huntington evens its record while West Islip will look to regroup as the season progresses.
