CANTON – If how Cole Sweet performed between the pipes for Archbishop Williams though an overwhelming second period was a blessing, what followed Wednesday night was a miracle.

Despite falling behind in a big way as visiting Canton dominated with three goals and a 24-5 shot advantage in the second frame alone, the Archies (7-4) somehow stormed back for a signature 5-3 nonleague win at Canton Sportsplex. Casey Kelly’s goal early in the third period was the first of three that Archbishop Williams scored within a 3-minute, six-second stretch, and Ben Sylvester’s go-ahead goal at the tail end of the run was one of four in the frame overall.

It all started with Sweet, though, who stood on his head in that second frame to pick up 21 of his 33 saves on the night despite allowing three goals. The Bulldogs (9-2-1) couldn’t jump out in front more than two scores, and the Archies made them pay for it.

After an up-and-down start to the season, this was a major victory for Archbishop Williams.

“We’ve been working on this all year, is dealing with adversity,” said head coach Chris Cunningham. “We responded well in the third better than my expectations. Scoring four goals in the period is not something you want to rely on every game, but unbelievable the way they came together. … (Canton) is such a good program, I told these guys, ‘This is a statement game. You can kind of make some noise with a big W tonight.’ We’ve been looking for it all year.”

When Archbishop Williams finally got one past Canton goalie Colin Davis (16 saves) in the first frame for an early lead, it did so as part of a 7-4 shot advantage that produced far more pressure than the Bulldogs were able to muster. Canton had a few chances, but the Archies’ blue line quickly defused every rush.

The second period told a far different story, though.

The Bulldogs flipped momentum right out of the first faceoff, needing just 22 seconds to tie the score when Colin Blake finished off a rebound after Sweet stopped Brian Middleton’s shot on the breakaway. Canton brought all the pressure in the world from there, using its forecheck to keep the puck in the offensive zone for the gross majority of the period. Sweet saved shots from every angle, making a couple diving stops to keep the score tied before a Bulldogs power play delivered an AJ Thomas goal for the 2-1 lead.

Even that took six shots on net during the man-advantage to finally break through. Canton’s Michael Thomas tallied another one for an insurance goal just 30 seconds later, but the damage of a two-goal deficit heading into the final period paled in comparison to what it very well could have been.

“Cole played great,” Cunningham said. “His game tonight, he really saved us. Kept us in it until the offense came alive.”

Came alive, it did.

Shortly after Canton killed a penalty that leaked over from the second period, Archbishop Williams cut the deficit in half about a minute into the third when Kelly buried a Sylvester rebound. Much like the Bulldogs did to them, the Archies then tied it 31 seconds later off a powerful wrister from Matthew Keenan at the top of the faceoff circle.

The Bulldogs charged back with a few quality bids, but to no avail against a locked-in Sweet. They then continued their struggles to clear rebounds on their own defensive end, and Sylvester took full advantage from the high slot to jump out in front, 4-3, with 10:55 to play.

“We just really wanted it more, we played like a family in the third period – had each other’s backs, came with a different intensity,” Sweet said. “I owe it to my team to come back from a two-goal deficit. Really, overall, a good team effort. … Canton is a powerhouse team, they can compete with the best of them. It was really huge.”

Back-and-forth play ensued, and Canton even got another power play late for the chance to make a run. But that came after Sean Murphy’s breakaway goal extended the lead to two, an advantage Archbishop Williams wouldn’t surrender the rest of the night.