Skaters attack, fall short
BY STEVE SHEPPARD INDEPENDENT SPORTS EDITOR
Nantucket defenseman Hunter Stojak scored with less than two minutes elapsed against Dennis-Yarmouth Friday night, signaling that the Whalers, skating on home ice before an enthusiastic crowd, were primed to take the game to the visitors.

Luke Daniels passes the puck during Friday night's contest with Dennis-Yarmouth. ROB BENCHLEY/The Independent

And that's how the first period played out, as Nantucket kept the puck in the

visitors' end and reeled off 10 shots on net. Even though D-Y evened the score on a breakaway at the 6:28 mark, Alex Perkins followed by almost sneaking one by the D-Y goalie. Moments later Quinn McCusker flipped the puck home on an assist from Hunter Slade for the goahead score with 2:04 remaining. The Whaler defense, meanwhile, was strong, limiting the visitors to just five shots on net. After one, Nantucket held the advantage, 2-1.

The fast-paced game continued into the second period, but penalties hurt the home team, as Dennis-Yarmouth scored four unanswered goals in the stanza. Nantucket goalie Joe Bopp was put to the test, rejecting several goal attempts with nimble saves, many of them in shorthanded situations. Nantucket successfully staved off an early Dennis-Yarmouth power play, and Bopp held his ground throughout the period. With eight minutes left in the frame Bopp and the defense remained firm, but the visitors, working on another power play situation, found a hole with just three seconds to go in the penalty to tally their fourth goal of the period and take a 5-2 lead.

For their part, the Whalers pressured the D-Y goalie as well, getting off eight shots on net in the period to Dennis- Yarmouth's 9 shots on goal.

Nantucket clamped down in the third period, and denied further D-Y damage. Defenseman James McIntosh capped the Whaler scoring, as he rocked one past the goalie midway through the period for the final, 5-3 tally.

The Whalers visited Bourne Saturday, where Alex Perkins scored in a 3-1 loss.

The team continues to improve with each game, however. "That's what we've been trying to accomplish," coach Kris Marsh said this week. "From the beginning of the season it's been a learning experience - seeing what's out there and playing against more established teams."

The team next skates away and home against Cape Cod Tech, visiting Cape Tech this Saturday before hosting the

team a week from Friday, Jan. 25. I