Cougars Fall to Top-Seeded Summit

Following a thrilling 2-1 overtime win against Governor Livingston in the first round of the Union County Ice Hockey League Tournament on Monday night, Cranford's playoff run ended at the hands of top seeded Summit at Warinanco Park on Wednesday night. The Hilltoppers (13-6-4) won 6-2 after taking a 3-1 lead in the first.

Senior captain Bobby Lawrence led the way for the Hilltoppers (13-6-4) with a hat trick, and sophomore Mike Nyitray added a goal and two assists.

The Cougars (12-10-2) could not slow down Summit's attack. Junior Eric Pawlick provided Cranford's only offense, scoring both goals.

"We did a terrible job, particularly in the first period, of covering the guys crashing into our net," Cranford head coach Rich Hurley said. "We just let them come in and get the rebounds. We were ready to play, we just didn't play smart in our own zone."

Two of Summit's three goals in the first came off of rebounds.

Within seven minutes of play, Summit's Lawrence and Nyitray combined for two goals and two assists, respectively. Lawrence's first goal came at 10:55 on a rebound shot. He then scored again at 8:43.

Pawlick netted his first goal with 7:49 remaining in the period, cutting Summit's lead to 2-1. He ended the tournament playoffs with three goals. In Cranford's first playoff game, Pawlick scored the game tying goal.

"He's had a phenomenal year, and has been pretty much our go to guy as far as scoring all season long," Hurley said. "Defensively he's also done a good job, but we just needed more than him to score."

Junior Timmy Yager responded for the Hilltoppers though, scoring an unassisted goal from point blank range on his own rebound. Each of Summit's goals in the first were very close to the net, making it nearly impossible for Cranford to defend or block the shots. This gave Nixon's team a huge advantage against the Cougars.

"When you get in a playoff atmosphere it's usually the team that's going to work the hardest and going to win those battles, whether it's along the boards, in the corners or in front of the net," Nixon said. "We did a really good job of that in the first period."

In the second, after Nyitray's goal made it 4-1 Hilltoppers, senior captain Jack Mulcahy scored on a slap shot all the way from the blue line. The shot was intended to create a rebound opportunity for a forward closer to the net, but instead it gave Summit a commanding four goal lead.

"Usually that kind of shot doesn't get through, but he put it on net," Nixon said. "I was standing right behind him when he took the shot and there wasn't much there, but somehow the puck found it."

Lawrence completed his hat trick with an unassisted, empty net goal at 3:06 in the third period while on the penalty kill. Yager got sent to the box for interference thirty seconds earlier.

The Hilltoppers will play either second seeded Arthur L. Johnson or third seeded Westfield for the UCIHL Championship on February 27th at 6 p.m. at Warinanco Park. Summit is 1-1-1 against both Johnson and Westfield, making Saturday's game not only for the league title, but also the season series.

"We haven't been to a cup final in nine years, and I know it's going to be a battle," Nixon said. "The team that gets the breaks and works the hardest is going to win."

While Cranford is eliminated from the league playoffs, Hurley's team will compete in the State Tournament. The Cougars are the 23rd seed in the 32 team Public B bracket, and they will play at 10th seeded Hopewell Valley of the Colonial Valley Conference.

Hurley expects the game to be a challenge for his players, but one they can overcome.

"They're the 10th seed for a reason and we're the 23rd seed for a reason," he said. "We're going to have to go down there and play our best game."