BROOKLYN — Tim Murphy didn’t get a chance to see how a new lineup for a power play would fare.
“That was the first time we sent out that line,” Murphy said. “They didn’t get to work much together,”
Maybe next time — and there will be a next time for North Olmsted.  The Eagles got a goal from Sam DeJoy 10 seconds into a power play with 4:33 to play that broke a 2-all deadlock and carried North Olmsted to a 4-2 victory over Elyria Catholic in a district tournament semifinal game Thursday.
Scoring so quickly didn’t allow the North Olmsted coaching staff time to see whether it had a good combination for its one-player advantage.
“It was the first time we had Sam and Chad (Murphy) at the points,” Murphy said of the abnormal power-play alignment. “We had a play set up but never got to use it.”
DeJoy’s tiebreaker came on a slap shot just inside the blue line.  The eventual winner happened 58 seconds after Chad Murphy had tied the score.  Murphy got the last goal with an open-netter with 11.6 seconds remaining.
North Olmsted (23-6) plays the winner of Saturday’s St. Ignatius-Brecksville game on Wednesday at 7 p.m. EC bows out of the tournament with a 16-12-1 record.
“I guess it was a game of peaks and valleys,” Tim Murphy said.  “It was a well-played game for both teams.  We are both led by high-end players who were determined to do well tonight.”
Elyria Catholic’s high-end performer, Richie Baker, gave the Panthers a 2-1 lead 4:34 into the third period on a goal in close following passes from Justin Saunders and Pat DeSouza. The Panthers had just seen a goal waved off with 4:19 gone in the third.
EC had an excellent opportunity to put the game into overtime. North Olmsted’s Logan Beach, who scored the Eagles’ first goal, was charged for roughing with 40 seconds to play. Beach was also assessed another two minutes for unsportsmanlike conduct.  Had the Panthers’ scored in regulation, Beach would have still had to serve two minutes for the unsportsmanlike conduct call.
The Eagles didn’t have to pay for the transgression even after EC removed goalie Brad Moore. DeJoy poked away the puck along the sideboard. It slipped past an EC defender and Murphy picked it up and sent it into the unguarded net.
Coach Murphy didn’t mind the excessive displays of emotion from some of his players.
“I was ready to stick a mirror under the noses of a few of them,” he said. “This time of year it is emotional, and this team has come together. All three lines played well for us. We got some quality minutes from some guys who haven’t played that much.”
“We had a good shot with the power play at the end,” EC coach Dave Phiel said. “Both teams played really hard. I’m proud of our guys. Our play carried over from the Trinity game (a 6-0 victory Saturday). Our team and theirs match up well. We know each other and know each other’s tendencies. I don’t think you can match up two teams better than these two are matched.”
Contact Steve Byrne at 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com.

North Olmsted 4, EC 2

North Olmsted    0    1    3    —    4
Elyria Catholic    0    1    1    —    2
FIRST: No scoring. Penalty: NO, Ronnie Soltesz (interference), 1:23.
SECOND: 1. EC, Mike Freeh (Richie Baker, Chris Andrews), 1:02; 1. NO, Logan Beach (Sam DeJoy, Chad Murphy), 8:30. Penalties: NO, Sam DeJoy (roughing), :46; EC, Brent Zifcak (hooking), 1:39.
THIRD: 2. EC, Richie Baker (Justin Saunders, Pat DeSouza), 4:34; 2. NO, Chad Murphy (Sam DeJoy, Logan Beach), 9:29; 3. NO, Sam DeJoy (Ronnie Soltesz), 10:27; 4. NO, Chad Murphy (Sam DeJoy), 14:48. Penalties: NO, Chad Cullinan (hooking), 4:49; ec, Brent Zifcak (holding), 10:17; NO, Logan Beach (roughing, unsportsmanlike conduct), 14:20.
Shots on goal: North Olmsted 7-14-13—34, Elyria Catholic 6-6-13—25. Goalies: NO, Zech Laughbaum (25 shots, 23 saves), EC, Brad Moore (33 shots, 30 saves). 

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