PEABODY — The Bishop Fenwick and Lynnfield boys hockey teams took the ice Wednesday night at the McVann-O’Keefe Rink. The Pioneers (16-0-1) continued their pursuit of perfection with a 4-1 victory against the Crusaders.
The game was tight for most of the first period. However, Fenwick got itself into trouble after back-to-back penalties.
When play resumed with the face-off in Fenwick’s zone, Lynnfield won the draw and the puck fell to sophomore Will Norton who fired it past the Crusaders’ goalie to give Lynnfield an early 1-0 lead with 5:37 remaining in the first period.
The Crusaders were hoping to go into the second period down just one, but with 20 seconds remaining in the first, Lynnfield sophomore Tim Sullivan slotted the puck into the net to make it 2-0 right before the first intermission.
“We strike first a lot. Our issues have been extending, so it was good to strike first and then extend,” Lynnfield head coach Jon Gardner said.
Lynnfield picked up right where it left off in the second period as Jack Carpenter got a breakaway. Carpenter showed his composure before patiently placing the puck into the back of the net to give the Pioneers a commanding 3-0 lead.
“Going down the stretch with these games going into the tournament, we told them they need to get out of the rope,” Gardner said. “There’s been a couple of periods where we kind of had some splits in the second period, and we fixed that after we shined a light on it.”
Although down three goals, Fenwick started to gain momentum. Two Lynnfield penalties allowed the Crusaders to get shots on net. Despite not capitalizing on their man advantage, the Crusaders got a goal back right before the second period ended.
Defenseman Anthony Sasso showed he was more than a defender on this occasion, reacting to a loose puck and firing it home to make it 3-1 going into the third period.
Lynnfield killed every penalty on Wednesday, something that has been a staple for the Pioneers all season. Gardner said “they’ve been great all year” in that regard.
“Even when we get scored on, it’s usually not a product of us having breakdowns as far as us moving the puck around. It’s more like a weird zone entry or a failed clear rebound,” Gardner said. “We just don’t let teams get set up. We’re pretty good structurally.”
Heading into the third period, the Crusaders conceded another goal to Norton who doubled his tally on the night, giving him 15 goals on the season and ending any chance of a Fenwick comeback.
The Pioneers’ next game is Saturday at 5 p.m. as they travel to Martha’s Vineyard Ice Arena in tournament play. The Crusaders will look to get back in the win column when they host St. Mary’s on Saturday with the puck set to drop at 6 p.m.
