BLOOMFIELD HILLS >> Cranbrook-Kingswood got a late goal from Patrick Neton to survive a Friday night battle against the Marysville Vikings, 3-2.

Neton broke a tie with exactly two minutes remaining in the D3 playoff opener when he cut across the top of the slot and snapped a shot home for what turned out to be the Cranes’ game-winner.

“Coming up the right side, I had some open ice. I took it. I cut to the middle and kind of falling diving shot went to the right spot. It’s kind of a blur to be honest, but it’s really all I remember. It was electric,” Neton said.

Cranbrook had dominated the first period, outshooting Marysville 17-2 to take a 2-0 lead before intermission. The Cranes got on the board with 5:42 remaining in the opening period when Cam Rocchini’s point shot got through all the traffic and found the back of the net. Just 1:25 later, Cranbrook doubled its lead when Caleb Goldstein quickly pounced on a rebound in the slot and deposited it behind the goalie.

But Marysville would come out strong in the second period. The Vikings scored less than a minute into the middle period when Cranbrook turned the puck over in the neutral zone and Ben LaValley barreled down the right side and fired a shot into the top corner to make it 2-1. The Vikings went on to outshoot Cranbrook in the second period and control much more of the game than they had in the first period when the Cranes kept them bottled throughout much of the opening 17 minutes.

“It was a battle. But I give that team (Marysville) a lot of credit and their coaches a lot of credit. They had a game plan, and they stuck to it,” Cranbrook head coach John LaFontaine said. “The second period our turnovers in the neutral zone were awful because they’ve got four guys waiting to pick off passes and go the other way. So it will be a learning lesson.”

Cranbrook got back on track in the third period, holding Marysville to just three shots on goal in final period. But one of those three still found its way into the net off the stick of Luke Thick, whose quick shot from the left circle tied the game with 6:07 to play.

“We gave up two shots in the first period and three shots in the third. Then, we got outshot in the second 11-6, so we played two-thirds of the game the right way,” LaFontaine said.

Cranbrook (16-8-1) advances to the regional final next Wednesday. The Cranes will face Warren De La Salle after the Pilots defeated Grosse Pointe Woods University Liggett 2-0 later in the night at Wallace Ice Arena.