Sports
Bears Beat Pinckney and Advance to State Semifinal
Wyandotte's win sends them to Compuware Arena to face Midland on Thursday.
Jake Carlisle picked a great time to play the best hockey of his life.
Carlisle scored Wyandotte’s first four goals and goaltender Chase Schmittou made 19 saves as the Bears advanced to the Division 2 state semifinals by beating the Pinckney Pirates 5-2 on Tuesday at Chelsea.
“Everyone was playing good tonight,” Carlisle said. “We were all hustling hard, and the pucks went our way tonight.”
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With the victory, Roosevelt improved its overall record to 25-3 and will face Midland in the state semifinals at 5 p.m. Thursday at the Compuware Arena in Plymouth. Midland (22-4-1) advanced with a 9-1 victory over Port Huron Northern.
“We knew that they (Pinckney) were a good team, and this is a good one to get behind us,” Roosevelt head coach Mike Quint said.
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Early on, it appeared that Wyandotte was on an easy path to advancing in the state tournament.
Roosevelt generated numerous scoring chances early, but Pinckney goaltender Colin Longeway made several great saves, including a diving glove save across the crease in front of the net.
Carlisle soon put the Bears on the board when he scored his first goal of the game, sending a shot past Longeway. Assists on the goal went to Kovalchik and Mayhew, and Roosevelt took a 1-0 lead into the first intermission.
In the second period, the Bears came out strong again.
Carlisle scored his second goal of the night on a tip-in, and the rout appeared to be on. But Pinckney’s Mark Capaldi backhanded a goal in off of a rebound, and the Bears' lead was cut to one.
Carlisle responded. He picked up a natural hat trick with just over six minutes left to go in the second period.
His goal gave the Bears another two-goal lead and sent the Roosevelt crowd into a frenzy.
But Pickney hung tough. JP Maracani helped the Pirates convert a 5-on-3 advantage when he put a shot past Schmittou to cut the Bears’ lead to 3-2 at the end of the second period.
Midway through the third period, Carlisle netted his fourth goal, beating Longeway with a wrist shot.
The Bears defense held, and Kyle King scored an empty net goal late to start the celebration for Roosevelt.
“This is a special team, they only come around once in a lifetime,” Wyandotte assistant coach Joe Peterson said. “These kids are all a family.”
Tickets for the state semifinals at Compuware Arena are $6 and are available online.
