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Town of Tonawanada Courier /Friday, February 13, 2015
Town of Tonawanada Courier /Friday, February 13, 2015
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Local Sports W W W . C P O W N Y. C O M
Kenmore’s Pray calls it a career By Dave Ricci
COURIER CORRESPONDENT
Tears were streaming down Lauren Pray’s face. In this moment, as every other moment Pray spent on the ice, she wore her heart on her sleeve. And, in this instance, her heart was breaking like never before. The Kenmore Devildogs had just fallen to Section X Massena in the title game of the NYS Girls Hockey championship game that was played at the HarborCenter on Feb.7. Pray was one of the last two Devildogs to emerge from their locker room after the 3-0 loss. After seeing their season end in the state semifinals that past two seasons, falling one win shy of the ultimate goal was too much for Pray to take. Less than 24 hours after one of the program’s greatest wins, beating Alexandria Bay 2-1 for their first trip to the finals, Pray had to deal with the heart break of a title lost and a career that was almost over. “It means a lot, it being my senior year,” Pray said as she struggled to compose herself. “I don’t know. It’s sad that it has to come to an end.” It really was coming to an end in more ways than one for Pray, who does not plan on playing in college. One of the quickest, most athletic and fundamentally sound goalies-girl or boy-in the state Pray certainly has the tools to play at the collegiate level. While college hockey might be a tempting dream
Lauren Pray led the Kenmore Devildogs to the NYS Girls Hockey Championship title game. to pursue deep in her heart Lauren Pray knows nothing from this point forward will equal the ride of these four year with the Devildogs. “I don’t know,” Pray said with her trademark perky laugh after the semifinal win. “I don’t think I’ll ever top this.” Deep inside Pray knows she can hold her own in college. But she also knows that the next stage of her life she doesn’t want anything to
distract her from her studies. “Yeah I’ want to focus on school, too. That’s a big aspect of it,” she said. “I kind of what to go into dentistry.” A four-year starter in goal for the merged team of girls from the Ken-Ton district, Pray, who attends Kenmore West, has been the team’s constant during an amazing run that saw Kenmore win four consecutive Section VI titles, the 2013-14 Federation title and make
three straight trips to the state tournament. “Her head is always in the game,” said teammate Taylor Story. “She works really hard and she saves us a lot of the time. Having her back there always makes it a lot easier to play.” Pray will be the first to tell you that she has benefited from great team play and strong defenders like Ana Orzechowski and Grace Simmons-and that
is certainly true. But make no mistake Pray is the kind of keeper that comes along once every 15 or 20 years. The winner of countless individual honors and team awards a quick scan of the mantlepiece in the Pray household is evidence of what Lauren has accomplished on the ice over the past four seasons. But it’s the things you can’t see that makes Lauren Pray special. Her will to win. Her
passion. She made the saves she had to make and the kind of saves you thought nobody could. She was Kenmore girls hockey. “Lauren has been our backbone for the whole program,” said head coach Jeff Orlowski. “She is the best goalie in Western New York. She is dominant. She’s (emotionally) hurt right now. She’s been ‘Kenmore’ I can’t say enough about her.”
Town of Tonawanda Courier/ Friday, February 13, 2015
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Local Sports W W W . C P O W N Y. C O M
Devildogs fall in state title game By Dave Ricci
COURIER CORRESPONDENT
One day after celebrating one of their most important victories, the Kenmore Devildogs suffered their most heartbreaking loss ever. Section X Massena scored a 3-0 win over the fourtime Section VI champion Devildogs to claim the NYS Girls High School Hockey championship that was played at the HarborCenter on Feb.7. Less than 24 hours before Kenmore had scored a 2-1 victory over Alexandria Bay in Friday’s semifinals.
After stalling in the state semifinal the last two season the win over Alexandria Bay vaulted Kenmore into the state finals for the first time in the program’s short history. “I tell them we’re the second best team in the state,” said Kenmore head coach Jeff Orlowski. “(Sectional champs) four years in a row. You’ve got to hang your hat on that and not worry about losing one game.” Kenmore made full use of their home ice advantage in the semis. They practiced at Lincoln on Thursday, slept in their own beds that night. Went to school Friday then arrived to the HarborCenter about two hours before game time. Alexandria Bay,
meanwhile, had a six hour bus ride through a snow storm and arrived much later than planned. A situation that mirrored what Kenmore went through traveling to last year’s state tournament. Going with the game plan of jumping on Alexandria Bay early the Devildogs scored on two of their first four shots of the night. Ana Orzechowski scored on the opening shot, just 1:30 into the game. “It was unreal. I honestly had no idea I went in,” said Orzechowski. “It was just a shot towards the net and coach Orlowski taught us if you have no lane just shoot, and it was a lucky bounce.” Junior forward Taylor
Story netted what turned out to be the game-winner when she banged home a loose puck that teammate Lina Mirabella wristed at Alexandria Bay goalie Kayla McCabe. “I never really pictured that I would (score the gamewinner) but I’m glad we were able to pull it out,” said Taylor Story. Miranda Kolb got Alexandria Bay’s lone goal with 25.1 seconds left to play in the first period, but that was all the visitors would get as Kenmore goalie Lauren Pray was unbeatable the rest of the night. Pray was also aided by the strong play on defense of Orzechowski, Grace Simmons, Kailyn Burke and Chloe Moore as
they shut down Kolb and Kelsey Bannister the rest of the night. “I’ve got to give all the credit to Ana, Grace, Kailyn, Lauren and Chloe,” said Orlowski. “They were fantastic. They held them off the scoreboard.” But on Saturday it was the opponent that struck first and put Kenmore on its heels early. The Red Raiders got on the board 1:28 into the game when Molly O’Connell fed a pass in the slot to Amber Thomas. Thomas would add another goal with 3:01 left in the game that sealed the win. Playing a physical game, Massena’s exceptionally strong forecheck was able to force Kenmore off the puck.
Still, the Devildogs managed 24 shots on net, but they could not get the puck past Massena sophomore goalie Kyrsten Stone. KC Herne added the empty net goal with 55 seconds to play. After going 6-10 in its first season, Kenmore has built a dynasty of four straight sectional titles, the 2013-14 Federation title and three consecutive trips to the state tournament. As of press time they were still alive in the hunt for this year’s Fed title. “We were second in the state,” Lauren Pray said as she fought back tears, “and that’s pretty good.”
Spataro gets back on the ice for Kenmore East By Dave Ricci
COURIER CORRESPONDENT
In the flash of a moment Joey Spataro wondered if his life would ever be the same and if he would ever step onto the ice again. Spataro, a junior on the Kenmore East hockey team, was with his Bulldog teammates in the first league game of the season against WilliamsvilleEast at Northtowns Center on Dec.4 when he experienced the most frightening moment of his life. Spataro was in the
middle of a scrum for the puck behind the Ken-East net when he appeared to have been checked from behind. Spataro fell hard to the ice and did not get up. Athletic trainers and coaches rushed to Spataro’s aid as he laid on the ice, unsure of what had just happened. “It was really terrifying and kind of eye-opening. Now I’ve got to pay attention to that,” Spataro said prior to the Bulldogs Feb.8 game at the HarborCenter. “I’ve got to make sure it doesn’t happen again.” EMT’s arrived on the scene to also work on Spataro. They stabilized Joey then, as a precaution,
they removed him from the ice on a stretcher as everyone in the rink looked on hoping for the best. For Kenmore East coach Kyle Pray, who is also a hockey day, seeing one of his players wheeled off the ice is among his worst fears. “He was stretchered off as a percussion. They stabilized the neck,” Pray said. “It turned out to be concussion so he was out a couple of weeks. Then he started feeling better, got the clearance to play so he’s been doing better.” In that moment Joey Spararo wondered if he would ever play hockey again. “I was just lost. I was
looking for a familiar face and I couldn’t find one,” said Spataro, who is in his second full season of varsity. “They had me strapped down so I couldn’t move around. I could just tell, I could feel everyone staring. When I was I was down at first I thought this could be the end. But once I got to the hospital they checked me out and I should be back soon.” Spataro was diagnosed with a severe concussion and would miss the next four games. He would return to action in late December when the Bulldogs played in Rome, N.Y. “That rush,” Spataro
said with a smile. “Just to be back on the ice. I love playing hockey.” Pray wore an equally wide grin when he was asked about Spataro’s return to action. That hybrid type blue liner that all teams and coaches would love to have, Spataro has all the traits of a solid, stay at home defender. But he also knows when the right time to join or create an offensive rush. “Joey is a little bit of both,” said Pray. “He does a real good job penalty killing. Positions himself well in that so we use him for that. Offensively, there’s times he loves jumping up in the play and loves being that creative
defenseman that joins the forwards on the rush. So he has all aspects of the game.” Thankful to be healthy and back on the ice Joey Spataro looks at hockey, and life, much more differently then he did before Dec.4. Off the ice, Joey Spataro is just thankful to be healthy and able to still live a normal life. On the ice, well, from this moment forward there is no such thing as a practice going too long. Or a drill being too tough. Every moment on the ice is a blessing. “At least I can be out here and practice and do all the drills,” Spataro said with a smile.