SAULT STE. MARIE — The Marquette Senior High School hockey team warmed up for its trip to this weekend’s Michigan Public High School Hockey Showcase with a two-game sweep of Port Huron Northern at the Sault Ste. Marie Tournament on Friday and Saturday.

The Redmen defeated the Huskies 6-2 on Friday and 5-1 on Saturday because of their strong defense, according to MSHS head coach Doug Garrow.

“It was a very successful weekend, coming away with two victories … and allowing only three goals,” he said. “I think our team defense was exceptional and that starts with not only the two goalies, but with the defense and forwards coming back and helping out in the defensive zone.

“We will need to continue to play that way this weekend when we travel down to Chelsea.”

The Redmen play at the Arctic Coliseum in Chelsea on consecutive days, facing Lake Orion at 2:15 p.m. Thursday, Macomb Dakota at 4 p.m. Friday and Holland West Ottawa at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Those are among the 44 games to be played at the event running from Thursday to Sunday.

On Friday, senior Gaetano Cammarata scored two goals and assisted on another as Marquette built a 3-0 lead late in the second period and 5-1 early in the third.

Freshman Liam Beerman stopped 21 shots in the MSHS goal to earn the victory, making seven saves each period. The Redmen forced Port Huron netminder Steven Fleet to stop 33 shots, including 14 in the final period when MSHS scored goals by Cammarata, junior Joseph Luke and freshman Jacob Garrow.

Marquette built its lead on an unassisted shorthanded goal by sophomore Cole Ranta and a Cammarata- and Jakob Peterson-assisted power play goal by junior Ansel Frost in the first period.

Frost and senior Ryan Baldwin had assists on Cammarata’s second-period goal.

Third-period assists were credited to seniors Andrew Fedrizzi and Lucas Guertin and juniors Evan Kroll and Dylan Baldwin.

On Saturday, sophomore Jack Sides led the Marquette offense with two goals 29 seconds apart in the first period along with a third-period assist.

Cammarata had two assists.

Sophomore Owen Riipi opened the scoring 58 seconds into the game with one of Cammarata’s assists, but the Huskies tied it about 4 1/2 minutes later.

Sides then found lightning twice in a short span in the final two minutes of the first period to make it 3-1 after one.

After a scoreless second period, Ranta added insurance with about 3 1/2 minutes to go with Sides assisting in a shorthanded situation, which was followed by Frost notching a power play goal with an assist going to Cammarata with 1:56 left.

Other MSHS assists went to Ranta, Guertin and Peterson as junior goalie Brennan Hakkola made 18 saves for the victory.

Marquette forced PHN goaltender Randy Falk to make 30 saves, 16 coming in the third period.

Information compiled by Journal Sports Editor Steve Brownlee. His email address is sbrownlee@miningjournal.net.