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Oswego High School Hockey Season Recap and Sectionals Preview
CORTLAND, NY — Oswego Buccaneers Hockey has been preparing this past week as the team gets set to head on the road to Cortland-Homer for the first round of Sectionals. The Division II Section III 2020 Sectional Tournament begins this Thursday as the Oswego Cortland-Homer match up is the first of two quarterfinal games being played. New Hartford is set to travel to Clinton Arena to face Clinton Friday evening for the second game. All four of these teams have a tough road ahead however, as the lowest remaining seed will go on to face Skaneateles, the current number one team in the entire state. The highest remaining seed will head to play the 15-3-1 Whitesboro Warriors who finished the season with a 9-1-1 division record.
The Buccaneers season has been up and down as the group finished only 4-8 in division but had an overall record of 11-9. The team began back in November with two games against Section V opponents that ended with two wins over Notre Dame and Churchville-Chili. The Bucs would head into division play in December as the team would drop two games to New Hartford and Clinton before heading to Albany in which the group won two games against Section II opponents. The rest of December would be back and forth before the team went on a five game win streak to start the new calendar year. This streak began against Spencerport who is based out of Section V. At the time, the Rangers were ranked 13th in the state in which the team has now moved up to 8th. With this win streak, Oswego would end up being ranked as high as 13th statewide over the course of the season. This streak however would end quickly after losing 6-0 to Skaneateles and would continue into a three game losing streak that occurred against divisional opponents. The Buccaneers would get one win going into February against Auburn but would drop their final two regular season games, one being against their upcoming opponent Cortland-Homer.
Cortland-Homer finished 5-7 in division this season as the Golden Eagles scored a total of 42 goals against division opponents, second just behind Skaneateles who finished with 58. In comparison to Oswego, the Bucs only scored 26 points in their division games which is the second lowest out of the seven teams. In their two games against each other, each team got a win as Oswego defeated the Golden Eagles 4-3 during their 5 game win streak. However, on February 4th, the Bucs would fall to Cortland-Homer 6-1 at home.
Most of this season’s success have come from new upper class who have stepped up and taken larger roles on the team. Junior Ryan Bartlett has recorded 24 points (8 goals and 16 assists) in only his 12 games played. Bartlett has not played since Oswego’s game against New Hartford on January 13th. The junior has doubled his points totals compared to last season even though he has missed a good amount of the season. If the Buccaneers could add him back into the line up for Thursday nights game, Oswego’s chances of moving on in sectionals will definitely increase. Oswego also leans on their junior goaltender Brandon Demling who last year only got a total of 39 minutes in between the pipes. With a total of 359 saves and a goals against average of a 3.07, the junior has stepped into the starting position and has allowed the Bucs to win some close games. Demling has played both games against Cortland-Homer this season and you can expect him in net tomorrow evening in Cortland. Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. from the J.M. McDonald Sports Complex in Cortland.
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Men’s Basketball falls in overtime to Brockport
OSWEGO, NY — Men’s Basketball wrapped up their regular season this past Saturday as Brockport traveled into the Max Ziel Gymnasium. Number 25 Brockport would take this one 85-80 as the teams need extra time to decide a winner. The Golden Eagles would score 11 points in overtime to secure the victory. Liam Sanborn led the Lakers on Senior Day as he tallied 23 points in his 44 minutes played. Joe Sullivan tallied 16 points as he made 5 field goals and 5 free throws.
The Lakers will now start preparing for their first round playoff game in the SUNYAC Championship against Cortland. The Red Dragons and the Lakers split games this season as each team won against each other in their own gyms. Oswego is the four seed in the tournament and will be the home team in the match up. The game will be held at 7 p.m. in the Max Ziel Gym.
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Team Spotlight: Oswego State Men’s Soccer
OSWEGO, NY — The Oswego State Men’s Soccer team, a squad surrounded by a lengthy but rather disappointing history in terms of success, has recently been on the upswing the past couple of years. This due to the arrival of Head Coach Dan Kane, who took over the Lakers heading into the 2017 season. A program that has transferred from being a doormat for the SUNYAC to a championship hopeful which showed just a year ago. The 9-7-2 team lost to SUNY Cortland in penalty kicks, a once nationally ranked team, in the opening round of the SUNYAC tournament. The squad’s first appearance in the bracket since 2014 was another step in the right direction for the Lakers.
The obvious common problem teams face across the nation comes down to retention of progress gained over the course of more than one season. For Kane’s Lakers, the group realized quickly what was expected of them before heading home last semester.
“The team realized that we got to make some advances individually and collectively,” Kane stated, “if we are going to sustain our kind of progression from the last few years.”
Of course, the return to Oswego has been much different for a team that usually starts games before the start of September. Kane spoke on the lack of team practices has made team cohesion difficult, something the head coach wished the group had similar to previous years. However, Kane found a positive in the situation as the coach touched on how this difference gave him the ability to work on a different subject, the incoming Class of 2024.
“We are way further along in terms of getting to know them as people because we have been having so many calls with them.” Kane said, “I know our freshman a lot better than I normally would which I am really thankful for.”
The push to the potential spring season gives the new members of the squad an opportunity to gain maturity before their first steps onto the Laker Turf. Kane explained the “grind of college and of the season catches up” and often saw regression through the course of a season from his first-year athletes because of this. Coach continued about his envy towards spring sports due to this trend, that may now be able to be tapped into due to this uncommon season.
Another plus for these Lakers is the return of the backline and starting goaltender Brian Terra. The defensive core that held conference opponents to an average of less than a goal last season will continue to be the backbone for the Lakers success. A defensive strategy that Kane plans to build on to improve the game at the other end of the pitch.
“It is going to look different.” Kane expressed, “[We] are going to play a bit differently but the more you can rely on your defense to win individual battles, the more freedom it gives our attacking players to take some chances and be creative and get more numbers forward.”
For now, the Lakers will have to remain on the sidelines before kicking off their season after the end of the calendar year. A group that got a taste of soccer together one week ago at their first team practice on the Laker Turf. The torrential downpour of rain did not take off the smiles that were found on every student athlete.
“We were in small pods.” Kane continued, “the energy and the positivity at practice was amazing. They were loving it.”
However, the Lakers will not be able to continue preparation for the 2021 season until next semester after the postponement of Athletics due to the recent spike of COVID-19. This added set pack could put the group at a disadvantage compared to other SUNY institutions across the conference, but Kane is taking a different look at the situation.
“To all the teams that are practicing, I wish them well.” Kane stated, “we hope to be back there soon in January, and we will make the most of the time we are given. We are not going to be the team that has excuses like that.”
For this team, the optimism shines from the head of the program. The Lakers seem to be in good hands heading into the most unusual season in sports history. Kane acknowledged the adversity that lies in front of the group but told his athletes to stay committed to the process.
“This is no question a time of adversity, so what kind of growth can we have in these moments and the second thing is even though we are not able to be together in a normal sense, we still have to be for each other.” Kane continued, “Those are kind of the two biggest messages, stay present and be there for each other. When the referee does blow that first whistle and lets us play, we will be ready for that moment.”
Photo Provided by Oswego State Athletics
