BY MURRAY GLEFFE
CORRESPONDENT
ASHWAUBENON – There would be no last-second Ashwaubenon heroics this season, as the Bay Port hockey team avenged last year’s Fox River Classic Conference loss with a 3-1 victory over the Jaguars at the Cornerstone Community Ice Center Dec. 6.
In a 2017 game between the two rivals, Bay Port led 3-2 with just one second remaining before the Jags tied the game and won 50 seconds into overtime.
Aaron Ribar, Bryson Hyska, and Trevor Jenquin each netted a goal for the Pirates (4-1 overall, 2-0 FRCC), while Liam Golden tallied the lone goal for the Jaguars (3-4, 0-2).
Riley Baye recorded 22 saves in goal for Bay Port, and Parker Besaw made 24 for Ashwaubenon.
The Pirates struck just 3:36 into the game when Ribar skated in uncontested from the center circle and put a shot past Besaw for a 1-0 lead.
“We actually made a mistake on the first goal,” said Bay Port head coach Mike Buchan. “Fortunately, Aaron was back-checking and the puck squirted out to him and he did the rest. It set the tone for the game.”
It took the Jaguars almost seven minutes before they registered their first shot on goal.
The Pirates took that margin into the second period when Hyska scored just 23 seconds in for a 2-0 lead.
“I saw a lack of focus out there today,” said Ashwaubenon head coach Matt Golden. “We fanned on a lot of passes and shots. It wasn’t our best game.”
Just minutes later, the Jaguar’s Kaden Appleton had a blue-line shot go off the right pipe through traffic.
With 6:19 left in the middle period, Ashwaubenon took a bad penalty for roughing and the Pirates made them pay.
With Bay Port working the puck around on the power play, Jenquin scored on a slap shot 80 seconds later for a three-goal lead.
Liam Golden scored near the end of the second period off the assist from Teig Driessen to close the scoring.
Ashwaubenon pulled Besaw with just over a minute remaining and had some chances, but the Pirates were up to the challenge.
“We didn’t give them many shots in the final period outside of the final minute,” added Buchan. “We can play better hockey, but it was an important win for our team and we remain on top of the conference.”
Box Score
Ashwaubenon: 0, 1, 0—1
Bay Port: 1, 2, 0—3
Shots on Goal
Ashwaubenon: 5, 9, 9—23
Bay Port: 8, 6, 13—27
