High School
Knights Snatch A Draw From The Jaws of Defeat
In their second meeting of the 2023-2024 SCHSHL Varsity campaign, a nail biter between the Ward Melville Patriots and the Kings Park Commack Knights ended in a 2-2 draw. Michael Sittler started between the pipes for the Patriots. Colin Caputo got the nod in net for the Knights. The Patriots moved to 3-7-1 on the season. The Knights moved to 8-1-2 on the campaign.
After dropping their first game by a score of 4-2, the Ward Melville Patriots came out flying in the opening minutes of the first frame. Mathew Dann, Jake Mangano and John McCormick peppered Colin Caputo early on, but the Knights netminder continued to make routine saves look easy in the first fifteen minutes. On the other side of the ice, Sittler stonewalled the Knights at every turn. The Ward Melville goaltender broke out his signature windmill save on an odd man rush led by John Coyle, Brian Prange and Nicolas Siegler. At the end of the first period, the game remained scoreless.
Lucas Scolaro put the Patriots on the board at the start of the second stanza. The play began when Timothy Brown and Scolaro forced a turnover in their own zone. The Patriots eventual goal scorer turned up ice and hit the gas pedal. Scolaro made the lead pass to Aidan Ayers who carried the puck in on a 2 on 1 opportunity. The patriots playmaker threaded the needle on the pass to Scolaro who beat Caputo glove side high. Ward Melville went up 1-0. With 11 seconds remaining in the second frame, Lucas Scolaro went end to end and fired a shot at Caputo before cashing in on his own rebound. The Kings Park Commack Knights trailed by two goals after two periods of play.
At the start of the third frame, Jake Mangano was sent to the box on his first of two roughing penalties in a span of less than three minutes. A shot on the odd man advantage by Nicolas Sattler was redirected past Sittler by Ronald Kemly. The Knights had made it a one goal game. With 7:03 remaining in the period, Jesse Lemza beat Sittler five hole off a pass from Jack Salva with Tyler Granelli credited with a secondary assist on the play. The goal came after the KPC forecheck forced a Ward Melville turnover.
The game would require overtime, but neither team would seal the deal. Michael Sittler made a windmill save in overtime to thwart the KPC comeback. On the other end, Colin Caputo turned aside a flurry of chances by Ward Melville.
Scoring Summary
Period | Time | Goal Scorer (Team) | Assist(s) | Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
2nd | 12:03 | Lucas Scolaro (Ward Melville) | Aidan Ayers | – |
2nd | 00:11 | Lucas Scolaro (Ward Melville) | Unassisted | – |
3rd | 12:18 | Ronald Kemly (Kings Park) | Nicholas Sattler | Power Play |
3rd | 07:03 | Jesse Lemza (Kings Park) | Jack Salva, Michael Desaro | – |
Three Stars of the Game
Star | Player (Team) | Stat Line | Performance Summary |
---|---|---|---|
1st | Lucas Scolaro (Ward Melville) | 2 Goals | Lit the lamp twice for the Patriots. |
2nd | Michael Sittler (Ward Melville) | 2 GA, 1 Tie | The Patriots don’t secure a point without Sittler. |
3rd | Jesse Lemza (Kings Park) | 1 Goal | Scored the game tying goal for KPC |
Upcoming Schedule
KPC Looks To Keep Point Streak Alive
The Kings Park Commack Knights will take on the Longwood Lions on Monday, December 11th at 9:40 PM. In their first meeting of the season, KPC won by a final score of 11-0.
Is The Patriots Second Half Surge For Real?
The Ward Melville Patriots will square off with the East Islip Chiefs on Wednesday, December 6th at 9:20 PM. The two teams last met on October 2nd in a game the Patriots lost by a final score of 6-4.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login