The varsity hockey team is having yet another solid season under Head Coach Mr. Pat O’ Rourke. The team’s record stands at 27-5-3 after winning the Miami (Ohio) tournament, the Meadville, Pa. tournament, the Purple Puck tournament in Washington, D.C., which featured top teams from five states and the District of Columbia, and the Baron Cup. They were runners-up to Toledo St. John in the Padua Tournament. The team is 2-1 against St. Edward on the season.
This year’s team has caught some people by surprise, as it was expected to be a rebuilding year. “We lost 13 seniors from last year’s very talented squad,” said Coach O’Rourke. “We have reloaded mostly with youngsters that many people thought were a year away, if they knew them at all. A lot of pundits predicted us to finish in fifth or sixth place in the division, but, so far, we have exceeded expectations. A lot of credit for that has to go to our three senior captains, Miles McQuinn, Alex McNulty, and Joe Malone.” Saint Ignatius ended up winning a record fourth consecutive division championship in the Greater Cleveland High School Hockey League.
“One of the challenges that faces us as we make the stretch run is to stay humble and keep working hard,” said Coach O’Rourke. “Sometimes, players can get heady when they have some early success — the trick is to never forget what got you there in the first place, which is hard work and persistence.”
Last weekend the team played US in a thriller that went into five overtimes. The Wildcats were leading US in the Baron Cup Semifinal by a score of 3-1 with 12 minutes and 4 seconds remaining in the third period before US came back to tie up the game. The game was decided when Danny Brogan scored off a perfect pass from Beck Shultz in the 5th OT. In an interview with Eddie Dwyer, Brogan said “When I got here, I found out I wasn’t dressing, but then coach told me I should dress.
We started playing and using three lines. I was out there with Beck (Schultz) and Jared (Stepka) and we started flowing really well together.” Coach O’Rourke’s game time decision may have been dumb luck, but Brogan came through. Brogan continued to tell Dwyer,”This was just how the state tournament is going to be. We loved it.” The Hockey ‘Cats went on to defeat Shaker Heights the next day, 4-1, to win their second consecutive Baron Cup title.
Congratulations to the Wildcat hockey team for their great performance this weekend, and make sure to follow them as they start their playoff run with the District Tournament beginning on Feb. 18th against Avon Lake in Brooklyn.
