In a battle of two of the top goalies in the Lehigh Valley Scholastic Ice Hockey League, Tristen Collins (Salisbury) had a hard time of stopping shot after shot. Ben Wykosky of Freedom had one blemish to an other wise flawless night, as the Patriots handled Salisbury/Whitehall 6-1 at the Steel Ice Center in Bethlehem last Monday night.

Three first period goals, one of which came on the shorthanded end, put Salisbury/Whitehall (1-5-2) in a hole they could not dig out of.

"They [Freedom] really took us out of the game right away," said head coach Rich Crowley. "We were very shorthanded tonight. We had three injuries and two kids with the flu. We only had eight kids tonight."

Earlier in the season, these teams played to a well-played 0-0 draw. Freedom's depth and speed was just too much.

Collins found himself staring down oncoming breakaways in different periods. He still ended the night with 31 saves, some acrobatic ones coming in the third period.

"He's a great player," noted Crowley.

Crowley's son, Michael, of Whitehall, tallied the lone Salisbury/Whitehall goal in the second period when he raced down the ice and made a nice move and slipped a shot over the left shoulder of Wykosky.

There is still some hockey to be played before the season comes to an end. Crowley believes that his team shows heart and will fight back.

"I'm disappointed with the result, but they didn't give up," added Crowley. "They played their hearts out the whole game. We had the deck of cards stacked against us a little bit, but I'm happy with the effort they showed."

Salisbury/Whitehall does not suit up again until after the holiday, a showdown with Pleasant Valley/Quakertown on Monday, January 7th at the Steel Ice Center, a game that they won one month ago.