Rebels Dominate Mariners on the Ice

KINGSTON – Led by a hat trick from junior TJ Lynch and four goals in the first seven minutes, the South Kingstown Rebels easily powered past Narragansett 7-2 Wednesday night.

The Rebels (2-5, 2-4 Division II-South) responded well from their last game, a 9-1 thrashing by Coventry on Dec. 18. South Kingstown head coach Toby Gibbons said his teams had several good practices after that game, though.

"We got whacked by Coventry and then started to figure things out," he said. "We needed to figure out how to defend the front of the net."

While the Rebels held a 29-22 shot margin, it was the quality difference that mattered.

Narragansett struggled to get good looks at the net even when on the power play, whereas South Kingstown turned saves by sophomore Nathan Vandemoer and clearing passes by defensemen into breakaways.

The first two goals, at 2:23 and 4:39 in the first period, were eerily similar. On both, Lynch scored, with assists by Chad Mitchell and David Reilly.

Even a penalty couldn't stop the Rebels. On a Narragansett power play, Reilly stole a pass and went top-shelf for a shorthanded goal.

Jacob Maione capped off the early scoring binge for the Rebels. Two Narragansett defenders crushed Joseph Mahoney as he skated just outside the offensive zone, but both neglected to control the puck. Maione scooped up the puck for a breakaway goal, with Mahoney and Cameron Ormiston picking up assists.

Narragansett head coach Chris Lussier said it was a horrible night for his team.

"The first seven minutes were disastrous," he said. "For the majority of the game, we were outplayed."

The experience was something starting Narragansett goalie Harry Holland will want to forget. The senior had 38 saves against Middletown on Saturday, but Wednesday, he did not record a save, allowing all four shots he saw in his 7:03 of ice time to score.

Lussier acknowledged that Holland didn't have much chance on the four shots, which were all breakaways or one-timers, but he decided to switch goalies to change the momentum.

"The expectation is that he's going to stop a couple of them," Lussier said of Holland's performance.

Sophomore Dolci Wagner played the remaining 38 minutes in goal for the Mariners and had a strong effort in her first varsity minutes. The sophomore had 22 saves and allowed three goals.

"She held the fort very well," Lussier said. "That game could have gotten ugly very fast."

Narragansett finally got on the scoreboard 13:33 into the first. Forward Robert Pratt re-directed a shot by Brody Wise into the net. Wise and John Sheil picked up assists on the goal.

For the Rebels, Mahoney scored 1:58 into the second, with assists by Maione and Ormiston. Nicholas Zaroogian scored at 5:53, with an assist by Reilly. Lynch had the final goal of the game for South Kingstown 13:14 into the third, with assists by Brett Grimes and Mitchell.

With the score 7-1, the Mariners scored their second goal at 13:33 in the third period. Cory Durkin snapped a high wrist shot from the right-hand faceoff circle past Vandemoer for the score, with Mark Sahagian picking up an assist on the play.

Gibbons said he hoped his team would build on the victory in their next game, which is Dec. 29. The Rebels host Ponaganset at 6:30 p.m.

"We're hoping to build on this, without a doubt," he said. "We played real well for two periods."

Lussier said his team would try to earn their first victory in its next game. The Mariners play 6:35 p.m. on New Year's Day against North Smithfield at the Rhode Island Sports Center.

"Last Saturday, we were flat as can be, and that seemed to carry over to tonight," he said. "The longer you play without a win, the more it creeps into your head is, 'Are we gonna win?'"