by John Fanta ’13
Six games. That’s the path the Saint Ignatius Ice Cats have to take to win a state title. Last year, the undefeated season was broken by the St. Edward Eagles in the District Title game. With the Wildcats at the #1 seed in the Brooklyn District and the Eagles right behind them, all indications point to a District Final between Saint Ignatius and St. Edward. That is not what Head Coach Pat O’Rourke is holding his team too. He likes the #3 and #4 seeds as well, Holy Name and Rocky River respectively. “I like the Green Wave and the Pirates. They can be tough to handle at times offensively as they have some solid attackers. We cannot assume anything. I love the fact that we do have the experience of setbacks in our schedule. This team (Saint Ignatius) has been through so much adversity, and has continually fought,” the coach said.
The Ice Cats are 27-5-3 in postseason play, with their last loss on the 2nd of February to St. Edward in their regular season finale. Saint Ignatius put up a fantastic Baron Cup run, with a dandy in their semifinal against classy rival University School. In what was the longest game in Baron Cup history, Saint Ignatius found a way behind Dan Brogan’s game winner to edge the Preppers 4-3 in five overtimes. Less than 21 hours later, they took on Shaker Heights, who they controlled 4-1 to win the title. The Wildcats finished #1 in the final Coaches Poll of the season, but that can be set aside now. It’s time for the postseason. “We have had many great achievements, but now is the best time of year. Brooklyn is such a fantastic venue,” said O’Rourke. The Wildcats are led by Mile McQuinn, Joe Malone, Alex McNulty, and goalie Bernie Cook. Miles McQuinn enters the OHSAA State Tournament with 33 goals on the 2012-2013 season. Yes, this team is composed of many “underclassmen,” but they aren’t referred to as that anymore by Coach O’Rourke. He now refers to these guys as “veterans.” On paper, they look to be the best team in the state of Ohio. They have fought back time after time when doubted and they never stop hitting, that’s for sure! Saint Ignatius begins district play at 6 pm on Monday against Avon Lake. The full bracket is below.
Breaking down the rest of the district, I look at the remaining seeds to fill out the top four and tell you about a team “under the radar.”
2. St. Edward Eagles (19-3-2) Tied for 2nd in the Red North West
Although the Eagles missed out on Baron Cup play due to a scheduling miscue that would have put them over the limit of games before the OHSAA Tournament began, Coach Troy Gray and the Eagles are extremely hungry for the state tournament . The Eagles are led by captains Connor King and Gabe Lampron along with assistant captains Hal Lane and Andy Schroeck. On offense, the Eagles have brought back two thirds of their starting line from a year ago with King and Lampron. With the addition of Tyler Harkins to the line, the Eagle offense will be looking for big things out of the trio. Andy Schroeck and Patrick Flannery have stepped up defensively for the Eagles. St. Edward went 19-13-2 on the season, as they fell two out of three times to the Wildcats, but took down Saint Ignatius 5-2 in their regular season finale. They face Garfield Heights on Tuesday at 6 pm.
3. Holy Name Green Wave (23-10-2) Tied for 1st in the Red North East
The Green Wave made an appearance in the Baron Cup Semis as the #7 seed, but sank to Shaker Heights 4-1. They routed Benedictine 10-0 in their first game in district play and will play the winner of this Wednesday’s game between Midview and Brecksville this coming Saturday at 5 pm. They are on the lower side of the bracket. Going 7-2-1 in Red North East league play Holy Name has had some intriguing moments throughout the season, including a 4-3 overtime win over solid Sylvania Northview at the Walsh Jesuit Invitational (1/19).
4. Rocky River Pirates (24-7-1) Tied for 3rd in the Red North East
Rocky River fell victim to Saint Ignatius in the Baron Cup Quarterfinals but could see Saint Ignatius again, that is if they get through a team who may be tougher than people think in the Padua Bruins. The Pirates have many interesting occurrences this year, such as wins over Sylvania Northview (4-3) on 1/18 at the Walsh Jesuit Invitational and Walsh Jesuit (4-2) in their regular season finale. They beat Hudson three times and tied the Explorers once in the regular season. In league play, the ship sailed at a record of 6-3-1. Brandon DeLano, Kyle Kopechek, and Eric Sperli have all been strong for the Pirates in the winter of 2012-2013. They play Padua on Thursday night.
Team to Watch Out For: “They are beginning to peak. Don’t sleep on them because they may be playing their best hockey. It’s a team that Rocky River must watch out for, because you just never know,” said Saint Ignatius Coach Pat O’Rourke. He was referring to the Padua Bruins. Padua has won four straight and has taken their first two tournament games (1-0 over Parma and 9-1 over Strongsville). Yes, they have gone 7-26-0 and have only two Red North East league wins, but I’ll throw the Bruins out there. I don’t see them getting past a solid Rocky River team, but it’s a team to keep an eye on because of their rich tradition. Junior captain Greg Kacsmarik has led the way for Padua, as he had a hat trick last week against Strongsville.
The way I see it: Saint Ignatius is as hard hitting and mentally stronger as ever. I don’t see how teams can get by this physical squad, so I see Saint Ignatius and a “hungry” St. Edward squad reaching the District Final at Brooklyn Ice Arena. It’s certainly one at a time folks, but as a member of the media I love the drama, Keep Saturday, March 2nd on your calendar and clear your schedule out for 3 pm on. Here’s the bracket. You may know what I mean!
It’s a great time of year as the “sweaty palms time” in high school hockey revs up.
Follow me on Twitter @JohnFanta13 and @SIHSSports. E-mail me at [email protected] and follow Ignatius.edu/eddiescorner for more news and stories from Eddie Dwyer. Stay at saintignatiuseye.org for more.
PROGRAMMING NOTE: The SIBN has LIVE AUDIO for all OHSAA State Tournament games. I’ll be on the air with Trent Kennedy ’13, Scott Geyman ’13, and Sean Reynolds ’13. Go to Ignatius.edu/sibn for a complete schedule.
