High school hockey: Elyria Catholic fights early before falling to Westlake

NORTH OLMSTED — Elyria Catholic fought back but ended up running out of gas in a 6-2 season-opening loss to Westlake at the North Olmsted Recreation Center on Friday night. After giving up a pair of goals in the first 2:23 of playing time, the Panthers (0-1) rallied with two quick ones of their own. Forward A.J. Schwanenberger was able to score from the right wing after defenseman Maddie McIver kept the puck in the Panthers' offensive zone with a nice play at the blue line, cutting the Demons' lead to 2-1 with 11:37 left in the first period. Just 25 seconds later, Andrew Post scored off a feed from freshman Charlie Grimes to tie the game at 2. Westlake sophomore Sean Evilsizer scored a pair of goals late in the first period, one unassisted and one on a feed from senior Matthew Smith, to give the Demons some breathing room heading into the first intermission. With 18 players on the roster to just 11 for the Panthers, Westlake was able to take control. Panthers' goalkeeper Michael Grucella was able to keep Elyria Catholic in the game with a number of clutch saves, but Westlake (1-0) scored one goal in each of the final two periods to take home the win. "Only really having eight skaters rotating in and out, we definitely got a little tired," Panthers' coach B.J. Basinger said. "We had some chances, but weren't able to capitalize on our odd-man rushes and bury the puck. "We hit a couple of posts on the power play. We just have to do a better job of hitting the net." Post, who had 17 of the Panthers' 27 shots, said it was critical for his team to fight back after surrendering the two early goals. "It was very important and was a boost to our morale," he said. "It showed that we can compete with teams like this." Post was also enthusiastic about the effort from Grucella, who made 19 saves in net for Elyria Catholic. "Michael is always there when we need him," he said. "He's always making great saves. The only time the other team scores is when we're dogging it, and that's on us. He's always playing as hard as he can and making big saves when we need them." Post and Lex Grimes both saw well over 30 minutes of ice time for the Panthers. "That shows their character. They keep fighting," Basinger said. "Lex Grimes and Post, they don't come off the ice that much, and with our numbers that's just how it is for them. They did a good job with their effort. You never want to have a 6-2 loss, but you can't fault their effort." Contact Mike Perry at 329-7135 or ctstringer0303@gmail.com. Westlake 6, Elyria Catholic 2 FIRST PERIOD: (W) Matt Smith (Kevin Teets), 14:13; (W) Sean Evilsizer (unassisted), 12:37; (EC) A.J. Schwanenberger (Maddie McIver), 11:37; (EC) Andrew Post (Charlie Grimes), 11:12; (W) Evilsizer (unassisted), 5:54; (W) Evilsizer (Smith), 1:21. Penalties: none. SECOND PERIOD: (W) Ryan Sharak (unassisted), 5:02. Penalties: (W) Luke Dossa (2:00 - slashing), 12:44; (EC) Post (2:00 - roughing), 1:10. THIRD PERIOD: (W) Teets power play (unassisted), 7:54. Penalties: (EC) Post (2:00 - tripping), 8:12; (W) Sharak (2:00 - tripping), 5:14; (EC) Post (2:00 - slashing), 3:11. Elyria Catholic 2 0 0 — 2 Westlake 4 1 1 — 6 Shots on goal: Elyria Catholic 27 (11-10-6), Westlake 25 (10-6-9). Goalies: Elyria Catholic – Michael Grucella (25 shots, 19 saves), Westlake – Vinny Boccardi (27 shots, 25 saves). Faceoffs won: Elyria Catholic 21, Westlake 19; Power plays: Elyria Catholic 0-1, Westlake 1-4.