By Andy Hutchison

MILFORD — The Staples High hockey team overcame a pair of one-goal deficits, pulling away for a 7-4 triumph over the Brookfield-Bethel-Danbury co-op squad Wednesday at Milford Ice Pavilion.

Tyler DiMaio and Levi Nevstad both had two goals and an assist to pace the Wreckers’ offense.

Derek Wolgast netted a goal and had a pair of assists. Niko Ninios registered a goal and an assist, and Jameson Russell also lit the lamp. Cooper Paul and Jacob Gomez also had assists for the Weckers.

Staples outshot BBD 39-33, while the Wreckers’ netminder Aaron Kail made 29 saves. 

The game was tied 2-2 after the first period with DiMaio and Wolgast finding the net less than a minute and a half apart to turn a 1-0 deficit into a 2-1 lead before BBD answered.

Another quick pair of Staples tallies erased a BBD lead as DiMaio and Russell scored in a span of less than 30 seconds late in the middle stanza. 

Staples seized a 4-3 lead through two periods of play and built on its lead in the third. 

Nevstad made it a 5-3 game before BBD trimmed the Staples lead to a goal at 5-4 midway through the third. 

Once again, Staples had a response with Ninios finding the back of the net just 16 seconds after the last BBD goal to reclaim the two-goal edge. Nevstad capped the scoring with a late goal.

Andy Hutchison has been covering school sports — including Staples athletics — as well as news and feature stories in Fairfield County, since the 1990s. Learn more about us here.