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Baron Cup in hand, US icers lead way
(by Tony Lange - February 17, 2011)
Baron Cup in hand, US icers lead way
By TONY LANGE
University School's ice hockey team won its eighth Baron Cup title last Sunday with a 2-1 triumph over Lake Catholic in the championship match at the John M. Coyne Recreation Center in Brooklyn.
In Baron Cup II action last week, second-seeded Solon advanced to the semifinals after beating seventh-ranked Brecksville-Broadview Heights, 5-3. The Comets lost to third-seed Rocky River, 8-2, in the semifinals.
Orange's hockey team lost a 2-1 overtime battle to Mayfield in Sunday's Baron Cup III championship at Brooklyn.
The second-ranked Preppers were led by Ian Robertson, who scored both goals in the championship. The first one was an unassisted play in the second period. He scored his second goal in the third period with less than six minutes left to play to put University School up 2-0.
Lake Catholic, the fourth seed in the Baron Cup I tournament, scored its only goal during a power play with just over three minutes left in the game.
Assisted by goaltender Sam Althans' 23 saves, the Preppers hung on to win it and improved to 18-9-5 on the season.
The Baron Cup I tournament included the top five teams in the seven-school Red North Division -- St. Ignatius, University School, St. Edward, Lake Catholic and Strongsville -- as well as the top three teams from the six-school Red South Division -- Shaker Heights, Holy Name and North Olmsted.
En route to the Baron Cup I championship, the Preppers beat seventh-seeded Holy Name, 6-1, on Feb. 10. Robertson had a hat trick in that game, while Andrew Preiser, Travis Lang and Brad Stefanski netted the other three goals. Althans tallied 15 saves.
In the semifinals, the Preppers beat third-seeded St. Edward, 4-1, on Feb. 12. Preiser recorded a hat trick in that game, and Jared Rubin scored the other goal. Althans made 20 saves.
In the state ice hockey coaches poll released Feb. 11, St. Edward was ranked third in Ohio, while University School was tied for fourth with Sylvania Northview.
St. Ignatius, which was the top seed in the Baron Cup I until Lake Catholic knocked the Wildcats off in a 5-4 semifinal match, was ranked second in Ohio.
In the postseason tournament, University School is ranked No. 1 in the Kent District and will play the winner of the Chagrin Falls-Cleveland Heights game at 6 p.m. Feb. 18 p.m. at the Kent State Ice Arena.
In high school ice hockey, there is only one division, with four districts in the state -- Kent, Brooklyn, Columbus and Sylvania.
In advancing to the Baron Cup II semifinals, sophomore standout Sam Littman scored twice in the second period for the Comets. John Hannah, Alex Kuneiga and Corey Jeziorski had a goal each. Goaltender Kyle Peterson tallied 23 saves.
In Solon's semifinal loss to Rocky River, Kuneiga had one goal, and Sam Camiener scored the other. Peterson had 20 saves. With the loss, the Comets fell to 21-10 on the season.
Meanwhile, sixth-seeded Kenston fell in the first round to Rocky River, 12-4. Jordan Manke had two goals for the Bombers, while Zack Kinney and Ben Kinney scored the other two. Goaltender Jim Sciortino tallied 25 saves. With the loss, the Bombers fell to 15-10-2 for the season.
At the top of the bracket, eighth-seeded Chagrin Falls also lost in the first round. Top-seeded Amherst Steele beat the Tigers, 6-2. Peter Kampf and Chris Lange scored the goals, while Don Jackson tallied 37 saves. With the loss, the Tigers dropped to 5-13-1 on the season.
The Baron Cup II tournament was comprised of the top four teams from the White East Division -- Solon, Kenston, Kent Roosevelt and Chagrin Falls -- as well as the top four teams from the White West Division -- Amherst Steele, Rocky River, Normandy and Brecksville.
In the postseason tournament, Chagrin Falls was scheduled to play Cleveland Heights in the Kent District early this week.
Kenston plays the winner of the Orange-Mentor game at 1:15 p.m. Feb. 20 at the Kent State Ice Arena.
Solon, the seventh-seed in the Kent district, plays West Geauga at 8 p.m. Feb. 17 at the Kent State Ice Arena.
With Orange's loss to Mayfield in the Baron Cup III championship, the Lions fell to 20-6-1 on the season.
After a scoreless first period, the second-seeded Wildcats netted the first goal to take the 1-0 lead in the second period. With about 10 minutes left in the third period, Orange's Brian Joseph tied the game.
The game went into overtime, and Mayfield scored on a two-man advantage breakaway with 1:20 left in extra minutes. Orange goaltender Peter Shapiro tallied 21 saves in the game.
En route to the championship game, the top-seeded Lions beat eighth-seeded Lakewood, 11-1, in the first round. Danny Bodner, Scott Fuller and Cory Bonda scored two goals each. Adam Rukin, Brian Joseph, Jake Holm, Roman Petrosyan and Jacob Yelsky each had one. Shapiro recorded four saves.
In the semifinals, Orange topped fourth-seeded Nordonia, 6-2. Bobby Bodner had a hat trick, while Brian Joseph, Mitchell Joseph and Yelsky each had one. Shapiro tallied 13 saves.
The Baron Cup III is comprised of the top four teams in the seven-school Blue North Division -- Orange, Mayfield, North Canton Hoover and Nordonia -- the top three teams in the seven-school Blue South Division -- Midview, Cleveland Heights and Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin -- as well as the top team in the seven-school Blue Central Division -- Lakewood.
In the postseason, Orange was scheduled to play Mentor as a part of the Kent District early this week.
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