Ludlow Hockey Shuts Out Wahconah
PITTSFIELD, Mass. -- The Ludlow hockey team Wednesday scored two goals in a two-minute stretch of the second period and killed off a two-man advantage to earn a 4-0 win over Wahconah at the Boys & Girls Club.
The Lions overcame a five-minute major penalty late in the second period that was followed less than a minute later by a two-minute minor and kept Wahconah (0-2) off the scoreboard.
“That was probably the back breaker,” Wahconah coach Jeff Daury said. “It was certainly a turning point in the game. We were down 3-0, and we certainly could have had some momentum. You expect to score a minimum of one, but really you’re kind of thinking two.
“Then we got sloppy from there, and certainly after they got the fourth goal in the third period, it was pretty clear it wasn’t going to be our night.”
Ludlow scored the eventual game-winner midway through the first period when Cole Mouinho set up Betinho Terrinea.
In the second, the Lions got two goals early: from David Walsh in the 18th minute and Ryan Martin at the 19-minute mark.
Wahconah took a penalty for too many men on the ice with about five minutes left in the second, but a major penalty for a hit from behind with 4 minutes, 18 seconds on the clock erased that penalty and eventually gave Wahconah 4:40 of advantage time; less than a minute into the major, Ludlow took another minor penalty, giving Wahconah more than a minute with a two-man advantage.
But goalie Michael Young (16 saves) and the Ludlow defense closed the door and went to the locker room ahead, 3-0.
Ludlow went into the third with the final 42 seconds to kill off the five-minute penalty. But Lions forward Brennan Madru scored a short-handed goal 17 seconds into the stanza to put Ludlow up by four goals.
After that, Wahconah played some of its best hockey of the game, giving Daury’s team something to build on going forward.
“I think the second period, in particular, was a regression on our part,” Daury said. “We were really sloppy. We were flying the defensive zone too soon. We were just sloppy all the way around. And, more importantly, we don’t usually get outworked, but we got outworked and outplayed.
“But I thought we turned it around in the third period. So it was kind of one step forward, two steps backward and two more steps forward. It’s a young team. A lot of sophomores. We’ll learn from it.”
Sophomores Quinn Kearns and Jake Risley combined to make 25 saves for Wahconah, which goes to Assabet Valley on Friday.