By Mike Zacchio
Hudson Valley is off to a fast start in the debut Empire State Cup in Syracuse after opening the showcase with victories over Central and Long Island on Thursday.
Rye’s Chris Santangelo netted three goals in an easy 11-6 win over Central, the host region.
Hudson Valley followed that with a 10-8 win over Long Island, which surprisingly is off to an 0-2 start after opening its day with an 8-4 loss to New York City. Santangelo and Hen Hud’s Kevin McDermott each scored twice. Hudson Valley goalie Michael Zingaro of Lakeland/Panas made seven saves.
After beating Western, New York City is surprisingly 2-0. Hudson Valley and New York City are the only teams off to 2-0 starts.
“We’re playing very well,” head coach Lew Janavey said. “Danny Manning (of Yorktown) and Chris Santangelo (of Rye) did a great job facing off for us.
“Some teams have had limited practices, and that’s showing. It looks like we’ve been playing together longer than we really have.”
Hudson Valley has three games today, starting with Adirondack (0-2) at 8 a.m. Then comes a 12:30 p.m. showdown with New York City, followed by a 5 p.m. game against Western (1-1).
“We just have to keep it rolling the way we’re going,” Janavey said. “You can’t take anyone lightly in this tournament.”
