Submitted by Alex Rotundo
Goals came in bunches in the Jr. B Spartans home opener against the Elora Mohawks at the Doherty Arena on Sunday night. The evening began with some fanfare as the players were introduced to the fans in their new home arena, with Thorold Mayor Terry Ugulini speaking briefly before the game and partaking in a ceremonial face-off.
Elora jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead with goals from Hyatt Welsh, Dean Sealey and Tyler Healy within the game's first 10 minutes. Jacob McMillan scored the first Spartans goal in Thorold 14 minutes into the game to make it 3-1, but Zack Cameron and Nathan Bolger added two more goals for Elora to give the Mohawks a 5-1 advantage after the first period.
The Spartans had a great start to the second period, with goals from Mitchell Geoffroy and two from Connor Aquanno, putting the Spartans within two in the period's opening minutes, which they held until Trent Spear added two goals, along with Logan and Zack Cameron scoring for Elora in the period's final five minutes to put Elora ahead 9-4 after two periods. Reid Edmands and Alex Gaston scored for the Spartans to put them within three goals with 10 minutes remaining, but Hyatt Welsh's second goal of the game in the final two minutes solidified Elora's 10-6 win Easter Sunday.
Special teams was a major reason for Elora's success on Sunday, converting on four of seven power plays and adding two short handed tallies. By contrast, the Spartans could only muster one power play goal on seven opportunities. Spartans now sit at 1-1 and will host Guelph on Sunday, April 28 at 7 p.m. in their next home game.
