January 17, 2024 – Story by Ava DiCecca, photos by Joshua Ross
Harbormen hockey played an unbelievable game this past Monday taking down a strong St. Mary’s team 4-1. It was a consistent and impressive showing from start to finish and one of their best performances all season in all three zones. Junior Colin Lasch got the team off to a good start with a goal early in the first period before St. Marys was able to get one by and they went into the second tied 1-1. It was a defensive start to the second but sophomore Cam McKenna turned that around scoring two back to back goals, creating the comfortable separation they needed. Despite having the lead going into the third, they still came out firing and anxious to further separate themselves from the Spartans. Senior captain Travis Rugg found the back of the net on a breakaway goal halfway into the third and put the game away for the Harbormen. On the other end, sophomore goalie Mike Karo was backing his team’s strong offense with an outstanding performance in net. Their ability to make timely goals and stops was a huge difference maker in the game and played a big part in the win. Overall, this was a statement win that allows them to build on the great foundation they’ve established so far this season.
After the game, head coach Tony Messina had a lot of positive things to say about his team’s performance. He commented, “I thought it was one of our best games of the year. We were solid in all three zones. Following up our game the other night we weren’t happy with it so we did a lot of filmwork, we were ready for the game, and the guys performed.” In regards to what they did in preparation for this game specifically, Messina stated, “we knew that they were fast through the neutral zone so we wanted to control the neutral zone and we do that by controlling the forecheck. We had a very good forecheck that maybe kept them off their game a little bit and it helped a lot.”
Travis Rugg had a similar outlook on their performance, “I thought it was a great game, definitely one of the best of our season if not the best. We found a stride and played well for all three periods which is something we have been trying to work on.” Despite being injured for much of the season so far, he has been a powerhouse for the team scoring in three of four games since his return. He stated that his motivation since his return is how anxious he was to get back out on the ice with his team while injured, and so far he has done a great job taking every opportunity to be a difference maker and make up for the time he lost. His energy and ability to make timely plays has been a huge asset to the team, but nonetheless, he stated this was a team effort and team win. Many players stepped up and made big time plays, especially some underclassmen, and in the end that was a main factor in their success. Overall, he believes this game was a “turning point” in their season and they hit the stride they have been hoping to over the past few games.
Another incredible performance came from Cam McKenna who was instrumental all throughout the game and able to consistently make effective and timely plays. He discussed the mindset that allows himself and the team to compete at such a high level every game, stating that the key is “not taking any team lightly. Every team is going to give us their best. We are a top ten team every year so no ones going to give us one of their worst games so we just have to bring it every time.” Much like Messina and Rugg, he stated that this game serves as a huge confidence boost going into the rest of their season as St. Mary’s was a very tough and competitive team. They all shared the sentiment that this sends a message to the rest of the league that they are a force to be reckoned with this season.
Both Messina and his players emphasized how important it was for them to come off their last game with a strong showing and it seems they achieved that in an even greater capacity than they were hoping for. Their practice and hard work on correcting their mistakes from last game clearly paid off and it speaks to the drive this team has to be the best. As they continue to build on all aspects of their game and beat out top teams, they will only become that much stronger and more confident, posing a huge challenge to the rest of the teams in the league.