by Patrick McGuire ’14
At the most recent winter sports rally, Pat O’Rourke, head coach of the Saint Ignatius Hockey team, uttered the controversial yet confident words ”We’re gonna win states.”
These words represent the hard work and dedication that a well-coached hockey team is ready to deliver to Wildcat High. The 2013-2014 Wildcat hockey team showcases yet another strong team for coach O’Rourke. From top to bottom, Saint Ignatius has a hard-nosed and tough type of hockey. The ‘Cats feature four strong and fast lines that can allow the Wildcats to make a run deep in the playoffs.
Coach O’Rourke can rely on the athletic and fast-paced first line players of Ethan Whitney, Matty Geither, and Aidan Spellacy as well as Seniors of 2nd and 3rd lines like Beck Schultz and Brian FitzGerald. The 2013-2014 also have stifling defense which, as the saying goes, wins championships. In the defensive zone, Nick “Bone Saw” Gajkowski and Kevin Spellacy as well as the pair of Riley Ellis and Logan Sellers present strong senior leadership for the young sophomore goalies, Wes Deacon and Dylan McKeon.
As coach Pat O’Rourke can see, this Wildcat hockey team has a perfect balance of speed and defense, upper and underclassmen. Look for the Wildcat hockey team, with their own brand of hard-hitting and fast-paced hockey, to compete deep into the OHSAA playoffs and compete for another state championship.
