Bantam A/E Storm split games to start playoffs
By Ryan Lamont
The Bruce County Physiotherapy Bantam A/E Storm split the first two games of their W.O.A.A series with Mitchell. Game one was Tuesday night in Mitchell.
The Storm started off strong but were unable to score and fell behind 3-0 after the first period. In the second, Justin Lamont started the comeback for Saugeen Shores on an end to end rush which the goaltender saved, however Colton Hall was there to put in the rebound. James Besito then made it a one goal game with a hard slap shot that went up and over the shoulder of the net minder. Taylor Schihl was then able to tie the game on a breakaway in which he scored top shelf. Then late in the period, the Storm ran into some penalty trouble, and Mitchell was able to score the eventual game winning goal on the power play. The Storm had 47 shots on the Mitchell net.
Game 2 was Saturday in Southampton with the Storm facing elimination. The first period was back and forth action with both the Mitchell goalie and Saugeen net minder David McGinnis making key saves for their teams. The game remained scoreless after the first period. After a mad scramble in front of the Mitchell net early in the second, Ryan Crosetta was able to pot home a 1-0 lead for the home team with Justin Greig and Callan Fraser getting the helpers. Less than 2 minutes later, Tanner MacAulay went behind the Mitchell net to pick up the loose puck and was able to score on the wrap around to put the Storm up 2-0 with Besito getting the assist. Besito put Saugeen up by 3 on a breakaway with Duncan Simpson getting the lone assist. Braden McKellar then took a hard slap shot from the Mitchell blue line that the goalie stopped with his left pad. The rebound went right onto the stick of Braden Kelly who banked the shot into the net for a commanding 4-0 lead. The Storm would add another goal early in the final frame on a nice stretch pass by MacAulay to a wide open Besito who again scored on a breakaway to put the game out of reach at 5-0. Mitchell would break the shutout late in the game, but the Storm enjoyed a 5-1 victory to stay alive in their series.
The Storm play the deciding game with Mitchell next Saturday, Jan 23 at 1:00 pm in Southampton. The winner of this game will face Goderich in the W.O.A.A final.