Bourne, MA – We’ve set up shop at Gallo Arena for numerous playoff games this month and these playoff game atmospheres just keep getting better. Tonight was a huge turnout for the D1 South semis. The game started off with some good pace in the opening few minutes of the first period. It looked like the momentum was going to favor Franklin early as they went on the man advantage. The Bishops kill went to work and an unreal shot block from junior forward John Riley led to a bounce off his shin guard and into space where he won a foot race to the net got a shot off and banged home a rebound to give the Bishops a 1-0 lead. Franklin did not shy away after the goal as they started to gain some momentum by establishing zone time and shots on the Williams’ netminder. Things started to shift in Archies favor and they carried the 1-0 lead until the end of the period.
Franklin came out hot in the second period hungry for the equalizer. They had plenty of chances throughout the frame but the puck did not bounce their way. The Panthers’ top line of seniors Colin Hedvig, Kyle Hedvig, and sophomore Dylan Marchand was creating great chances for the Panthers. Franklin senior defenseman Tommy Tasker had some great chances himself. There was an urgency out of Franklin to even up the score. However, play started to transition back and forth as the frame went on. Archbishop Williams gained some momentum after killing off another penalty and not letting the Panthers’ power play capitalize. Credit to AWHS sophomore goalie Nic Buccella who made key saves in the period to preserve the lead for the Bishops. In the late minutes of the period, Franklin got into penalty trouble going down 5-on-3. The Bishops capitalized with 28 seconds left in the frame when sophomore forward Jackson Sylvester roofed a rebound off a shot from junior forward Conor Kelly. The play was textbook puck on net and get traffic to the net. This was huge for the Bishops going into the second intermission up 2-0.
Right off the bat in the third period senior forward Tommy Page walked in and sniped one to give the Bishops a 3-0 lead. Junior forward Christian Koylion and junior defenseman Nick Recupero were credited with the helpers. Franklin was still hungry for their first goal to get them back in the game. Led by their top line again in desperation time, they threw everything on the cage that they could. The Bishops were sacrificing their body blocking shots and playing good defense in the third. Credit to the team defense of Archbishop Williams and their goalie Buccella for preserving the lead until the end and giving the Bishops a spot in the D1 South final against Walpole.
Three Stars:
- G Nic Buccella, Archbishop Williams
- F John Riley, Archbishop Williams
- F Tommy Page, Archbishop Williams
TTPA F Dylan Marchand, Franklin
