Worth the wait: St. John's captures its first WCAC hockey championship by beating DeMatha, 2-1 - The Washington Post

jarangoyange.blogspot.com

When the horn sounded at the end of the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference Capital championship game Friday, the St. John’s players threw their helmets, gloves and sticks in the air to celebrate a 2-1 win over DeMatha.

The celebration was a bit premature — the clock was fast, and there were actually a few seconds to play, so the Cadets strapped their helmets back on and got ready for a faceoff.

No matter — just 3.5 seconds of waiting before the Cadets confirmed the first WCAC championship in program history at Gardens Ice House in Laurel.

“To begin this year, we all felt like we had a chance and that we were kind of cheated out of it last year. But to come in here and win this, it’s the best feeling in the world,” senior captain Andrew Kurowski said. “These guys deserve it more than anything.”

The Cadets (17-2-3) did not play last year amid the pandemic. Two years ago, St. John’s lost in overtime to DeMatha (14-11-2) when a puck deflected off a Cadets defenseman’s facemask and into the net.

“To come out here and put it away before overtime was huge,” Kurowski said. “They were the guys we lost to that first year, so it really felt like a revenge tour. Same game, WCAC championship, so you couldn’t have asked for a better opponent to win this WCAC championship against.”

Kurowski tied the score at 1 with a shorthanded goal late in the second period. He skated the puck out of his team’s zone and into DeMatha’s on a breakaway, creating a one-on-one opportunity that he was able to put past Stags goalie Dominic Sciorilli.

As time wound down in the third period and another overtime loomed, St. John’s scored its winner.

With commotion in front of the Stags’ net, Connor Hall positioned himself in the slot to retrieve a possible loose puck. The sophomore forward was in the right place — the puck came out right in front of him. “I just picked it up, shot it from the slot and hoped for the best, and it happened to go in,” Hall said of his goal with 2:35 remaining.

Cadets junior goalie Chase Hornbecker — “the backbone of the team,” per Coach Gregg Marinari — had 27 saves. The sole goal he let in was scored by Jeremy Wilson, a close friend off the ice, with an assist from Ryan Arendes.

“I knew if I stopped pucks my team would come through for me and score, and they did, and I love them for that,” Hornbecker said.

The game was the fifth between DeMatha and St. John’s this season. DeMatha had won the most recent meeting Feb. 11, but St. John’s was victorious in the other matchups.

Both teams qualified for the upcoming Mid-Atlantic Prep Hockey League tournament.

Bishop Ireton wins Metro title

Bishop Ireton took control in a four-goal second period to beat Good Counsel, 8-2, in the WCAC Metro championship game. Junior Jacob Middel led the way with a hat trick.

St. John’s girls win easily

Adblock test (Why?)

"wait" - Google News
February 19, 2022 at 11:29AM
https://ift.tt/35pwTRz

Worth the wait: St. John's captures its first WCAC hockey championship by beating DeMatha, 2-1 - The Washington Post
"wait" - Google News
https://ift.tt/fyx0gJv
https://ift.tt/rydhaUk

Bagikan Berita Ini