In a matchup between the Oswego State Lakers and the SUNY Potsdam Bears, two teams who entered the day with identical records, Oswego State was able to prove their talent in this afternoon’s conference action.
The Lakers, now 3-5 overall, 1-1 in SUNYAC play, got off to a hot start and never looked back. Oswego State’s 17 goals today were seven more than their last three games combined, which were all losses.
The biggest story of the contest was the emergence of freshman Montana Garrett. The Cortland Manor native entered the game with nine goals on the season and nearly duplicated that in a single game with six goals on the day, boosting her total to a team-leading 15.
“I kind of talked to her before the game, I told her to really step it up,” Lakers head coach Britt Howard said. “I just told her to just be confident out there.”
Seventeen seems to be a magic number for the Lakers this season, with all three of their wins ending with a 17 in the Oswego State score column. The team has scored 72 goals in their eight games so far this season, and 51 of those markers have come in their winning efforts.
To start the contest, Toni Laneve put the Lakers up 1-0 just 53 seconds into the game, and that got the offense rolling.
SUNY Potsdam was able to grab a quick 2-1 lead a few minutes in, but the Lakers quickly regained the lead and were able to hold it for the remainder of the contest.
The Lakers would soon turn a one-goal deficit into a 9-3 lead by halftime with sustained offensive pressure from beginning to end. Garrett, Laneve, Kendall Appelbaum and Gemma O’Kane all got in on the scoring action in the first half.
“We’ve just been working together as a unit, especially on the offensive end,” Howard said. “That’s just been our main focus. In this game, and in the next couple of conference games, it’s just connecting the dots from one end to the other, especially connecting with each other and gaining that chemistry.”
Behind Garrett’s big day, the secondary scoring of the senior Appelbaum was also important in the consistent offensive attack the Lakers brought all afternoon.
“Kendall stepped up. I think she really showed up for this game.” Howard said. “Especially on the draw controls, she definitely did well in the midfield area.”
An integral part of the victory in this afternoon’s game was the sustained brilliance by Lakers junior goalie Angela Ponto.
The Syracuse native was able to stand strong through two early SUNY Potsdam goals in the first 6:29 of the game, making nine saves on 12 shots in the first half.
“[Ponto] definitely played well today. She’s always back there stepping up for us,” Howard said, “We looked great in the defensive end. She’s a great communicator.”
The Lakers will look to continue Wednesday’s success into this weekend where they face another conference match up at home on Saturday, against SUNY Oneonta at 3:00 p.m.
