A frustrating 0-5 start for the South Windsor Bobcats hockey team would come to a head on Wednesday, January 7, as the ‘Cats traveled to Champions Skating Center in Cromwell to battle the rival East Catholic Eagles.
East came into the game in the exact same boat, making for a game that both teams desperately needed to win.
When the puck dropped, the ‘Cats were quick to get on the attack. Just minutes into the game, junior Carter Cornish, recently moved from defense to forward, would bury the puck into the net to give the Bobcats a quick lead.
It’s been a rough go of things as of late for the Bobcats, but with Cornish’s early goal, they took their first lead since the season opener against Glastonbury, although they ultimately dropped the contest 4-3.
Sophomore goalie Owen Sampson was stellar in the net all game long. With strong play from his defenders, Sampson and company headed to the locker room with a 1-0 lead at the first intermission.
The second period got off to a slow start. Both teams traded possessions but couldn’t find the right shot until a South Windsor penalty gave the home Eagles a power play. East Catholic junior Josh Cline found space and launched a shot from near the blue line that snuck past Sampson to tie the game at one apiece.
Heading into the third period, both squads knew they had to act quick. Luckily for the ‘Cats, senior captain Junior Heredia would do just that.
Heredia got free from the defense and slipped the puck past Eagles goalie Alex Wierbicki. The captain delivered, finally getting his first goal of the season and putting the Bobcats in front with just over 11 minutes left in the game.
Just as all seemed good for the visitors, senior Josh Willoughby was called for a hit that wouldn’t just be called a penalty, but ruled game misconduct. This call ejected Willoughby and forced the Bobcats to play down a man for five minutes. A questionable decision but one that the ‘Cats had to deal with.
The crucial blow seemed to be the perfect time for the Eagles to knot up the score, but Sampson, as well as fantastic play from his teammates, survived the five minute power play without surrendering a goal.
With just a few minutes to go, Bobcats senior Logan Luna, who entered the game tied for the team lead in goals, connected on his fourth goal of the season on a beautiful pass from Heredia. The ‘Cats led 3-1.
Having to pull Wierbicki to try and spark a late comeback, the Eagles would get denied several times by Sampson. After biting off a large chunk of time, East would net their second goal, coming from Cline again, but with less than 20 seconds left.
Needing a miracle, the Eagles would get the puck into the offensive zone, but Bobcats senior captain Evan Dunn stuffed it into the corner, before sophomore Matteo Heredia cleared it out of the zone as the buzzer sounded.
Following the Bobcats first win of the season, head coach Nick Gionfriddo spoke to The Prowl, saying “Glad to get the first win out of the way. This group has battled so much since day one this season but we keep battling. Super proud of this team sticking together against a conference rival and playing as a team. We stayed committed to the process, we played the way we’ve been preaching as a coaching staff.”
Gionfriddo was fond of his team’s resilience, “What I liked most was our response. There were moments where momentum could’ve slipped, and instead of getting frustrated, we stayed disciplined, structured, and kept competing. That’s our identity. We are a blue collar team where everyone puts their heads down and we all go to work playing simple, smart hockey,” Gionfriddo said.
Senior forward and leading goal scorer Logan Luna felt good about the team’s energy today, saying “The boys came in energized, popped one in early, and never let off the gas.”
Now sitting at 1-5, the ‘Cats have an uphill battle if they want to push for a spot in the state tournament, but if they play like they did against East Catholic, they may just be alright.
