Third-period goals by Brody Emond and Benjamin Dumais boosted the Maine Gladiators 14U team to a 3-1 victory over the Atlanta Fire in the USA Hockey 14U Tier II 1A national championship in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Monday.

The Maine Gladiators 14U team won the USA Hockey 14U Tier II 2A national championship in Kalamazoo, Michigan, on Monday Submitted photo

The national title is the first for the Maine Gladiators organization. It isn’t the first USA Hockey youth national championship for a team from the Auburn-Lewiston area, though: in 2011, the Lewiston Area Youth Hockey 18U team won the 2011 18U Tier II 1A national championship.

Andrew Clements assisted on both of the Gladiators’ goals in the third period Monday.

Owen Debrody scored first for Atlanta in the first period.

Maine’s Breck Langevin tied the game up at 1-1 in the second period. Colton Daniels and Evan Zavitz recorded assists.

Gladiators goalie Gabe Pomerleau stopped 12 shots in the win, while Conor O’Brien made 26 saves for Atlanta.

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The Gladiators, who went undefeated at the tournament, advanced the national championship game with two wins Sunday.

Zavitz scored in overtime to defeat the Utah Golden Eagles 5-4 in the quarterfinals. Dumais added two goals and Emond and Daniels also scored. Pomerleau made eight saves.

In the semifinals, the Gladiators defeated Team Wyoming 6-1 behind a hat trick from Emond. Daniels, Ronan Newell and Clements also scored. Pomerleau had 12 saves.

Emond (eight goals and four assists) and Clements (four goals and eight assists) led the tournament with 12 points each.

Tier II 16U 2A

The Maine Gladiators 16U team suffered a 6-3 loss to the Ashburn Xtreme of Virginia in the USA Hockey 16U Tier II 2A national championship game Monday in Troy, Michigan.

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William Schnieder had a hat trick and an assist for the Xtreme. Paul Allison scored two goals and Jarrett Ireland added a goal and an assist in the win.

The Gladiators were trailing 3-0 in the second period, then Miles Frenette scored an unassisted goal then helped set up a score by Tanner Anctil to cut the deficit to 3-2. Tate Morse also had an assist on Anctil’s goal.

Schnieder scored his third goal later in the second period to extend Ashburn’s lead to 4-2.

Nick Pelletier scored early in the third period to again get the Gladiators within one. Campbell Cassidy had an assist.

Alison and Ireland added insurance goals in the third period for the Xtreme.

Goalie William Mellen made 25 saves for Ashburn. Aidan McAuslin and Luke Patterson combined to stop 25 shots for the Gladiators.

The Gladiators reached the title game by defeating the Houston Wild 7-1 in the quarterfinals Sunday. Grey Perham had a hat trick, while Cassidy, Owen Galligan, Nick Pelletier and Cody Dionne each had a goal and Patterson made 24 saves.

In Sunday’s semifinals, the Gladiators defeated the Carolina Jr. Hurricanes 2-1. Dionne and Cassidy were the goal scorers, both in the third period, and McAuslin made 20 saves.

Anctil led the Gladiators with eight points (four goals and four assists) in the tournament.

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