Jake L. celebrates with Landon L. and Owen L. after putting Vikes up 2-1. (Seth L./Staff)
The curse has been lifted: Academy hockey finally adds a tally in the win column. It took five games this season for the Vikings to claim one of their own after struggling to produce a victory last year. Starting on Sunday, the Vikings hosted St. Xavier in Dublin in a rescheduled match. The Vikings played in a tough game, but Landon L’s. two goals and Katie V.’s goal proved to not inadequate in a 3-5 loss.
Friday, December 13, was a bit different. The Vikes came out hungry during the pregame and looked impressive. Up until puck drop under a crowd of three, the Vikings were rallied and ready for battle. Academy started hot with an offensive zone takeaway with Jake L.’s shot being saved by the Lion’s keeper. The Vikings would produce two more offensive chances with Brady M. and Jake S., getting their shots put away.
A new face was in goal for the Vikes: Landon, from the Columbus Mavericks, stepped in for an absent Sydney L. and got active early with a huge four-on-one save to stop Gahanna’s counterattack. Jake L. got back in on the action as he had a shot deflect off a defender before ripping it into the goal for a Vikings lead 1-0. Jake’s goal was unassisted, as he caused an offensive breakdown before taking it himself up the ice. Jake S. reinforced the enforcer role in his first game back, laying the hit stick on a Lions attacker and then deking him into the wall. Landon L. slapped two more shots for the Vikings, and the other Landon flashed the leather for two saves of his own in the first period’s waning minutes.
The second period was a stalemate between the maroon and gray versus the blue and yellow, as both teams struggled to get their offenses going. Owen L., sporting a new pair of maroon gloves, caused a couple of takeaways in the offensive zone but was sent packing twice by the Lions. Brady M. would smack two more shots at the Lion’s goaltender before a late breakaway from Gahanna would result in a buzzer-beater goal and tie the game going into the third. The third period was more of the same until just under halfway through the third when Landon L. would be tripped on a breakaway. After a minute of consulting, the referees decided on a rare penalty shot to be awarded. Jake L. lined up at the center line before embarking on his mission. After a single deke, Jake placed the puck into the back of the net, lighting the lamp, as celebrations erupted on the ice and in the stands. Now, it was just a waiting game. Two more big saves came from Landon. Then, Jake L. would be given a two-minute minor for cross-checking, but the Gahanna power play stood no chance against a ferocious hit by Katie V. Landon and Jake S. would both try to secure a Vikings win but were saved by the Goalie once again. Josh S. got in on the action barely missing the net on a slap shot and dinging off the post wide. The Lions were not giving up but the Vikings seemed to want it more. The Academy defenders would eat two Lions shots off of their shins, and Landon would save three more shots before Scott A. would clear the puck as time expired for a Vikings win.
