High school hockey: Elyria Catholic loses GCHSHL opener to Westlake

ELYRIA — Elyria Catholic finally got its first Greater Cleveland High School Hockey League game in and the Panthers came up a little short in a 4-2 loss to Westlake at North Park Rec in Blue Division play Wednesday night. With only seven skaters, the Panthers (2-2, 1-0) went toe-to-toe with the Demons and their four lines, holding a 22-20 advantage in shots on goal. "The effort was there, the hockey ability was there, we just couldn't get the puck in the net tonight," EC coach Rick Montgomery said. "We had some good opportunities with first shots, but we weren't there to follow things up." Elyria Catholic had 10 shots on goal in the first period, but each got turned away by Westlake goaltender Alex Rendziak, who finished with 20 saves. The Demons (4-2) went up 1-0 in the first when Ryan Sharak scored off a Sam Kieger assist with 5:24 on the clock. Westlake only had three shots on goal in the second period, but two of them got past EC goalie Christopher Krupka (16 saves), a converted soccer goalie, who started skating a month ago. Colt Rujawitz scored on a power play at 10:31 and Andrew Toner scored with just 1:36 left in the period. Toner's goal was a big one, as it came just 22 seconds after EC freshman Kyle Fairbanks had cut the lead to one off a Landen Maderia assist. The Westlake lead grew to 4-1 four minutes into the third period on Sharak's second goal, this one was unassisted as he gathered in a loose puck and ripped a shot from the left wing. "It was nice to have Ryan back with the team after his injury," Demons first-year coach Brendan Teets said of his sophomore who returned from a broken wrist. "He was a good addition and really put forth a good effort tonight. It's nice to see him healed up and helping the team." Fairbanks gave Elyria Catholic life, scoring 16 seconds after Sharak's score to cut the lead to 4-2, but Westlake skated out the clock. "In that third period, we really had some good opportunities but just couldn't finish things up," Montgomery said. "I think we carried the play for most of the game and got a little tired at the end of the game. We were strong and got some big saves from our goalie who has been strong all year. We were right there tonight." Contact James Brady at 329-7135 or jbrady_ct@yahoo.com. Westlake 4, Elyria Catholic 2 FIRST PERIOD: (W) Ryan Sharak (Sam Kieger), 5:24. SECOND PERIOD: (W) Colt Rujawitz (Drew Labenz, Matthew Smith), PP, 9:53, (EC) Kyle Fairbanks (Landen Maderia), 1:58, (W) Andrew Toner (Luke Heierding), 1:36. PENALTIES: (EC) Ian Woodyard (2:00 tripping), 10:31, (W) Rujawitz (2:00 tripping), 9:19, (EC) Maderia (2:00 tripping), 7:44. THIRD PERIOD: (W) Sharak (unassisted), 10:50, (EC) Fairbanks (Lex Grimes), 10:34. PENALTIES: Smith (2:00 slashing), 5:34. Westlake&emsp;&emsp; &emsp;&emsp; &emsp;&emsp; 1 &emsp;&emsp;2 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;— &emsp;&emsp;4Elyria Catholic &emsp;&emsp; &emsp;&emsp;0 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;1 &emsp;&emsp;— &emsp;&emsp;2 Shots on goal: Westlake 20 (7-3-10), Elyria Catholic 22 (10-6-6). Goalies: Westlake: Alex Rendziak (22 shots, 20 saves), Elyria Catholic: Christopher Krupka (20 shots, 16 saves). Power-play opportunities: Westlake 1-2, Elyria Catholic 0-2.