LocalSportsJournal.com
The No. 5 ranked in Division 1 Mona Shores hockey team spent Friday and Saturday in Brighton, taking part in the Kensington Valley Thanksgiving Tournament.
The Sailors dropped a hard fought tilt to No. 4 (Division 1) Brighton, 7-6 on Friday, but rebounded with a 2-1 win over Riverview Gabriel Richard on Saturday.
In a back and forth affair against Brighton, Mona Shores came within a half inch of tying the game in the final seconds as captain Trent Benedict rang a shot off the post.
Scoring two goals apiece for the Sailors were Jake Nanna and Benedict. Jack Reelman and Brady Tilden each added a single tally in the loss.
Noah Lepzinski had three assists, Reelman added two assists while Zach Leibrandt, Ethan Ring, Benedict, and Nanna each picked up one. Oliver McDonald took the loss in net.
In Saturday’s consolation game, the short handed Sailors battled No. 5 (Division 3) Riverview Gabriel Richard Pioneers.
Unlike Friday’s track meet, this one was a defensive stalwart. The Sailors took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission on a goal by Reelman. Picking up assists on the goal were Isaac Habetler and Benedict.
The second period saw only one goal, which came from the Pioneers. The third period saw Mona Shores get outshot 9-2, but it only took one of those shots to produce the game winner for the Sailors.
Shorthanded with 6 minutes left, Reelman intercepted a pass and found a streaking Trent Benedict in the slot. Benedict buried a shot low blocker, putting the Sailors up 2-1.
The Mona Shores victory came behind senior goaltender, McDonald, who made five blocked shots in the final 15 seconds to seal the victory
The Sailors raised their record to 2-1.
The Sailors welcome No. 3 (Division 1) Livonia Stevenson to Lakeshore Sports Centre on Friday, December 2nd in their first ever mental health awareness game. Puck-drop for that game will be 7:30 pm.
On Saturday, December 3rd, the Sailors start OK-Conference league play with a home game against the Jenison Wildcats. Game time is set for 3:00 pm.
