TROY — The Rochester Adams Highlanders were downright unruly guests on Saturday afternoon, thumping the previously unbeaten Troy Colts, 5-0, in a contest between two Oakland Activities Association Red Division members.

Troy had won the previous meeting, 2-0, on Sept 8, but Adams made it clear early on that this would be a different game when Dylan Knott took a pass from Alex Czirmir, made a couple of nice moves in the penalty box and fired it home to stake Adams to a 1-0 lead just 8:19 into the game. Joey Dillon would score six minutes later on a pass from Knott, and the Highlanders would never look back, controlling the game and never giving the Colts much chance to get back in it.

"We came out really focused and knew what we wanted to do, and we finished our opportunities," Adams coach Josh Hickey would say after the game.

After the game, Troy coach Dave Hicklin was clearly disappointed with the result. "Adams came and played well, and we came and didn't play very well," he said.

The overall shot board was even at 10-10, but it didn't reflect the quality of opportunities. Few of Troy's shots were particularly threatening, though Adams' goalkeeper Kevin Soisson was called on to make two tough saves in the second half as Troy was trying to fight its way back into the game.

Meanwhile, seemingly every shot Adams taken was a good one. The Highlanders scored on their first three shots — all perfectly placed balls that gave the goalkeeper no chance to make a save. For the game, five different Highlanders scored. In addition to Knott and Dillon, the Highlanders got goals from Tom Carrio, Justin Wineke, and Sam Suchta.

While fans couldn't help but notice the offensive explosion, Adams coach Josh Hickey was equally pleased with his defense of Matt Szillard, Mickey Biebelhausen, and Joey Censoni after the game. "They really just controlled the game. I can't say enough about them," he said.

At the other end, it was Joey Dillon drawing praise from both coaches as he orchestrated the Adams attack. "Dillon kept it solid in the middle, along with Morley Burns," Hickey would say after the game.

Adams seems to be peaking at the right time. The Highlanders have now won five in a row, including three straight shutouts. "We're on a roll right now, " Hickey said. "I knew these guys had it in them to compete with the best teams in the state. It was just a matter of these guys believing in themselves, and these last two weeks, they seem to be believing."

The Highlanders, now 7-3-2, will try to keep their roll going on Tuesday when they travel to crosstown rival Stoney Creek.

After suffering their first loss of the year, Troy has to regroup in time for Tuesday's game at Birmingham Seaholm. "We'll have a meeting and try to turn it around," Hicklin said. The Colts(8-1-1) still have a lot to play for, both during the regular season and the postseason. Since today's game did not count in the OAA Red standings, the Colts still sport an unbeaten record in league play heading into Tuesday's game against Seaholm.