Verona/Glen Ridge ice hockey team advances to second round of state tournament

GLEN RIDGE – Glen Ridge senior assistant captain Owen Gleeson had two goals and five assists, getting a hand in all the goals, to lead the 13th-seeded Verona/Glen Ridge high school varsity ice hockey team to a 7-4 win over 20th-seeded Woodbridge in the first round of the state Public B tournament on Feb. 22 at Richard J. Codey Arena.

Glen Ridge freshman Jake Kuhn, Glen Ridge senior captain Stephen Wenzl and Glen Ridge junior Steven Topping each had one goal and one assist; Verona freshman Jarrod Keating and Verona senior Kevin White each had one goal; and Verona senior goal/assistant captain Liam Blaney made 30 saves for Verona/Glen Ridge, which improved to a 15-8-4 record.

Tied 1-1 at the end of the first period, Verona/Glen Ridge outscored Woodbridge, 4-3, in the second period and 2-0 in the third.

Verona/Glen Ridge will visit fourth-seeded Ramsey in the second round on Feb. 26 at 5 p.m. at the Ice Vault in Wayne.

Verona/Glen Ridge was coming off a 4-2 win over Montclair Kimberley Academy to win the McInnis Cup championship.