A defeat for the Skaneateles ice hockey team in Saturday’s Section III Division I final against CBA/Jamesville-DeWitt would not mean the end of its season. Still, when it lost, 4-0, to the Brothers, it meant that the state no. 1-ranked Lakers would have to win a state tournament game on the road if it wanted to come back to Utica for the March 14-15 state championships. It marked the third time in four years that Skaneateles lost a sectional final, having fallen 5-0 to Oswego in 2012 and 2-1 to Auburn a season ago. The Lakers’ last sectional championship was earned in 2008. Skaneateles had gone 1-0-1 against CBA/J-D in their regular-season meetings, tying the Brothers 3-3 at Allyn Arena on Dec. 17, and then rallying from a two-goal deficit late in the third period to prevail 3-2 in the Feb. 6 rematch at Onondaga Nation Arena in Nedrow. In both of those games, though, the Lakers got a glimpse of the Brothers’ qualities, including the work in goal by Gabe Vinal, who would proceed to stymie Skaneateles with a sectional title at stake. Each side started with caution, but as the first period wore on, Skaneateles got the better of the flow of play, putting consistent pressure on the Brothers’ defense. But Vinal was up to it, stopping all nine shots he faced. Meanwhile, CBA/J-D was patient with its own attack until a 39-second outburst late in the opening period produced a 2-0 Lakers deficit. Zach Taylor got it started at the 13:17 mark, taking a pass from Sam Mueller and jamming at the puck amid a scramble in front of the Lakers net until it trickled past Skaneateles goalie Garrett Morse. Before the Lakers could respond, at the 13:56 mark Connor Flanagan stretched the Brothers’ margin to two, taking Cole Fowler’s pass from the right side and poking it into the net. Skaneateles would not lack for chances to catch up during a second period where it held CBA/J-D without a shot more than 10 minutes and applied relentless pressure, but still couldn’t get on the board. Three different times in that period, the Lakers had power plays. Every time, CBA/J-D killed them off, a combination of defensive tenacity and Vinal turning back a series of point-blank chances. All told, Vinal made 11 saves in that second period, and other times Skaneateles missed the target, too, including a point-blank look by Raymond Falso late in the frame that flew over the net. Every Lakers fan knew that Skaneateles trailed by that same 2-0 margin in their last meeting with the Brothers and rallied. But with 8:25 left, Taylor, on the power play, ripped a shot from the left slot past Morse, with Mueller and Tanner Coleman earning assists. The Brothers’ defense never let Skaneateles answer, holding them to five shots in the third period. And Taylor added an empty-net goal with 1:11 left to complete his hat trick. Skaneateles will need to beat Section I champion Pelham Saturday at 3 p.m. on the Pelicans’ home rink, called the Ice Hutch, for a spot in the state “Frozen Four” – and just might play CBA/J-D again, since they are in the same half of the state tournament bracket. The Lakers met Pelham Jan. 3 in the finals of the Duke Schneider Memorial Tournament at Allyn Arena, prevailing 2-1 over the Pelicans. The rematch has a lot more on the line.