Friday, January 29, 2016 by Aidan Joly Photos by Eli Fisher
With a quick flick of the wrist, Saratoga ended a 34-minute stalemate and carried the momentum to a win.
The Saratoga Blue Streaks varsity hockey team defeated the Shenendehowa Plainsmen on Wednesday night at the Weibel Avenue ice rink by a final score of 2-0.
The game had remained locked in a 0-0 tie for its first two periods, but that tie was ended at the 4:18 mark of the final period on a wrist shot by Caleb Smith, giving Saratoga the first lead of the night.
“Jonathan (Luse) made a blind pass to my tape, and I just whacked it in. It felt really good,” Smith said of his goal.
The goal ended a frustrating series of events for Saratoga, as they had two previous goals waved off before the Smith goal counted.
That goal also ended an impressive night for Shen goaltender Matt Chieco, who had saved Saratoga’s first 18 shots of the game before letting one past him.
“You’re feeling good, but at the same time, you don’t want to screw up,” Chieco said of his mindset going into the third period.
Saratoga would extend their lead to two just under three minutes later, when Josh Dagle found the back of the net.
“The chemistry wasn’t there, so I put Josh (Dagle) back on that line, and I think it provided a spark on the bench,” Saratoga head coach Dave Torres said.
Chieco struggled in the third period, having two of the four shots he saw go into the net, the only two that Saratoga would need to pick up the win.
On the other end of the ice, Saratoga goaltender Tom Fornabia had an outstanding night, stopping all 16 Shenendehowa shots on goal, and possibly giving himself the starting job heading into the playoffs, as his team sits at the top of the league with an 11-0 league record.
“Tom has been playing great the whole season. He has a lot more confidence, he’s playing really well and keeping us in the game a lot of the time,” Smith said.
Wednesday was also the Coaches vs. Cancer game, and the two teams raised $9,500 for the American Cancer Society.
In addition to this, it was the 2016 Senior Night, and Saratoga players Ryan Hogan, Colin Paton, Garret Smith, Sean Holmes, Brenden Coffey, Matt Russell, Danny Hobbs and Tom Fornabia were honored before the game. Senior captains Elliott Hungerford and Josh Dagle, who have been on the team for five years, were also honored.
Shenendehowa falls to 8-10 on the season with the loss, and now has a 7-2 record in league play.
Saratoga improves to 11-0 in league play this season, and has a 13-4-1 overall record. They will play again on Friday in a road game, taking on La Salle. That will finish off their season before they head to the playoffs.
STATS
Saratoga
Caleb Smith: 1 goal
Josh Dagle: 1 goal
Colin Paton: 1 assist
Jonathan Luse: 1 assist
Elliott Hungerford: 1 assist
Goaltender Tom Fornabia: 16/16, 100% saved
Shenendehowa
No scoring
Goaltender Matt Chieco: 20/22, 91% saved
