Rye Hockey Advances to Section Finals in Bizarre 6-4 Win

The Rye Hockey Team withstood a power outage at Playland and a furious comeback effort to advance to the Section 1 Division 2 finals, taking down Byram Hills 6-4 across two separate days. The first 40 minutes or so out of 51 were played at on home ice for the Garnets before a blackout inside Playland forced the game to continue at Hommocks Park rink today, Friday 2/28. Rye led 4-1 after action on Thursday and managed to hold on for a 6-4 win to earn the right to take on Pelham for the sectional championship.

“Even a blackout couldn’t stop us,” Head Coach Pete Thomas told MyRye.com. “We weathered the storm and earned the 6-4 win to advance to the section one championship.”

Tyler McDermott scored a hat trick to lead the way for Rye, and Will Niejadlik continued a strong season with the game-winner on Friday evening. Jamie Morris and Dean Kim also struck to account for Rye’s impressive offensive performance. Fernando Mosquera made 30 stops, including impressive work on Thursday night, to earn the win.

The Garnets will take on Pelham in a matchup that appeared unavoidable from the start, like it is many years. The teams split the season series, with both the Garnets and Pelicans winning on home ice. Rye will look to clinch the Section 1 Division 2 title on a neutral site – Brewster Ice Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 5:00pm on Sunday, March 2. Watch it here. Watch the first 80% of the win vs Byram Hills here.