BIDDEFORD ”“ James Jamieson had plenty of time to imagine what it would be feel like to score that first varsity goal.
He had much less time to ponder the second one.
Even so, Jamieson’s two tallies helped fuel undefeated Biddeford’s 5-2 win over Kennebunk, Wednesday, at Biddeford Ice Arena.
Matt Jerome, Brady Fleurent, and Tyler Audie also scored for the Tigers while Kurt Oakman netted both goals for a surprisingly pesky Kennebunk squad.
“We like to see guys who are as hungry as us,” said Audie, a senior, and member of two Biddeford state championship teams. “It’s good to see guys step up like that. We’re going to need that to go far this year.”
Jamieson, a junior who had never played varsity hockey until this year, scored in each of the first two periods.
His first came after sophomore teammate Matt Jerome had made it 1-0, 1:32 into the game.
Stationed at the left point, Jamieson let fly a shot that snaked its way in past Rams goalie Jordon Kadlik.
“I just tried to put it on net,” said Jamieson, “and it trickled in.”
A virtual walk on prior to the season, Jamieson had worked his way into a prominent role on the Tiger defense.
However, he hadn’t counted on figuring into the offense, too.
“I imagined it would feel great,” he said. “But when it came, I wasn’t expecting it. It just caught me off guard.”
Clutching a 2-0 lead, what Biddeford (12-0-2) might not have expected was some pushback by the Rams (5-10-1), who are desperately trying to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Kennebunk drew back to within a goal, when at 13:31, Oakman connected from the right circle.
Then, the Rams kept Biddeford hemmed in its own end for large stretches of the second period.
“They’re a hard skating team,” said Tigers coach Rich Reissfelder, “they play their systems well. They have some kids who can shoot the puck, and they have Kadlik, whose a great goalie. He’s won many games for them on his own.”
Said Kennebunk coach Don Hill, “I thought we had a lot of territorial edge. We had the puck in their zone, quite a bit. They limited our quality opportunities. But we did keep it in offensively.”
However, the explosive Tiger attack erupted for three goals before the end of the period.
Fleurent, the state’s top scorer, netted his 25th goal at 8:51, then set up Audie for a shorthander at 13:38.
Jamieson then capped the period when, with 5.1 seconds remaining, he charged to the left post and tapped in Travis Guay’s rebound.
“I joined the rush,” said Jamieson, “and buried the puck. That’s when the celebration started.”
Oakman finished the scoring with a power play goal at 11:41 of the final frame.
— Contact Dan Hickling at 282-1535, ext. 317
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