Buffalo, N.Y. -- When the final buzzer at HarborCenter sounded, history was made.

Syracuse (24-1-1) captured its first NYSPHSAA championship with a 4-2 win over Suffern (22-2-2) on Sunday. The Cougars were led in scoring by Stephen Matro, Phillip Zollo and Ryan Eccles, who scored two goals.

“Since day one, this was the goal,” said Syracuse coach Neal Purcell. “We knew we had the team this year. They sure put the work in.”

After a scoreless first period, both teams were able to find their offense in the second. Matro struck first, followed by Suffern’s Ben Burns who tied the game at 1.

Coming off a hat trick in the state semifinals, Zollo scored a wraparound goal with 1:08 left in the second, giving Syracuse a 2-1 lead going into the third period. As a mulit-sport athlete from Westhill, Zollo claimed the second state championship of his senior year.

“He’s going to finish with a state title in soccer, a state title in hockey and who knows, maybe one in baseball,” Purcell said. “You don’t get that often.”

Before the game started, Corcoran senior Eccles was named the Division I Player of the Year. His first goal of the night came unassisted, as he took it upon himself to go the length of the ice to score from the right side, giving the Cougars a 3-1 lead. Suffern countered with a goal from Ryan Schelling.

With a little over six minutes remaining in the game, Suffern left its goal unattended and Eccles iced the game by taking a shot just outside of the center of the rink. When the puck zipped into the net -- making the score 4-2 -- he celebrated by sliding over to the Syracuse fan section.

This long shot by Ryan Eccles just clinched it. Dagger goal with 20 seconds left. Syracuse leads 4-2 over Suffern. pic.twitter.com/7JAiFpI60r — Mike Curtis (@MikeACurtis2) March 10, 2019

Syracuse, formerly known as Corcoran, is comprised of an extension of schools within the Syracuse City School District who have combined students for athletic teams that can’t field a full hockey team on their own. This year’s team includes players from Corcoran, LaFayette, Marcellus, Onondaga, and Westhill.

After the game, Zollo praised the fans for their commitment to the team.

“The whole Syracuse community came out to support us, and I love them all,” he said. “For our team, some schools have 60 kids, some have 120. We combined them all in order to compete, and we love the support we’ve gotten from our schools.”

Made up from nine schools in the Syracuse City School District, the Cougars have a team dynamic unlike many other teams in Central New York.

As the clock hit zero, Syracuse players threw their helmets and sticks in the air and embraced each other. In the same moment, Suffern players fell to their knees in defeat.

With Syracuse and Skaneateles both winning on Sunday, Section III sweeps the 2019 NYSPHSAA Boys Ice Hockey Championships. This is first time since 2004 that one section has taken both the D-I and D-II titles, and fourth overall.

Section III last swept in 1985 with Liverpool and Rome Catholic both winning.

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