Council Rock South defeated Council Rock North 7-1 to win the battle for the Harrington Memorial Rock Cup on Wednesday night. To view photos of all the action, please visit the Photo Gallery.
By Mary Jane Souder
WARWICK – The chants began early in the third period of Wednesday night’s showdown between archrivals Council Rock South and Council Rock North.
“It’s all over. It’s all over,” Rock South’s student section chanted in unison.
In truth, after Alexander Drobot (Paul Cloud assist) scored with one second remaining in the second period to put the Golden Hawks on top 4-1, the game was pretty much over.
The Golden Hawks added three more goals in the third period for the 7-1 final, delighting the large and wildly enthusiastic Rock South student section and giving the Golden Hawks the coveted Harrington Memorial Rock Cup.
“Last year and this year our fans really started to recognize how good we are and how much heart we have,” captain Jared Hershman said. “We made a Facebook group this year, and we put our name out there. Our fans did amazing up there. We couldn’t even hear each other on the ice.”
As soon as Wednesday’s game was over, Rock South’s players skated to the packed stands in a spontaneous show of appreciation.
“We really wanted to thank them,” Hershman said. “Lately, we’ve been a great team, and we never had the fans to support us. For them to come out and get hyped up for us, we wanted to thank them. Hopefully, they’ll come out again. They were awesome.”
Hershman accepted the Rock Cup on behalf of his squad.
“It’s an amazing feeling, especially going out there and holding it for my team,” the Rock South captain said. “It’s an indescribable feeling.”
As the two locker rooms began to empty, Rock North coach Eric Tye stood at the rink entrance watching as members of his team headed for the exit.
“I have never been more proud of a team I have had than I am of these guys right now,” Tye said. “If I see any of them walking with their heads down on the way out, I’m going to kick them in the (butt).
“We played as hard as we could as long as we could. It was almost two periods. That goal with no time left in the second period was a backbreaker. If it’s 3-1 going into the third period – my guys just didn’t quit. I have never been more proud of these guys.”
Tye’s pride was well founded as the Indians, despite being outshot by a 14-3 margin, found themselves deadlocked 0-0 after one period. Rock South’s Paul Cloud scored on a breakaway three minutes into the second period, but it took the Indians just over a minute to get that back when Mike Shander answered with an unassisted goal to knot the score 1-1.
“That was definitely a wake-up call,” Rock South’s Thomas Kozior said. “We knew that they could play with us, but once the game was locked even, we knew we had to bring everything we had from there on out.”
And bring everything the Golden Hawks did.
Seven minutes into the period, Mitchell Vaysman (Jeffrey Frese assist) scored what turned out to be the game winner. Jevon Fillette (Frese/Vaysman assists) followed with a goal two-and-a-half minutes later, and when Drobot scored as time expired, the Golden Hawks led 4-1.
“We made some adjustments,” Kozior said. “We just tried to get the puck on net. We were trying to be a little fancy in the first period, but we simplified our game and just started getting pucks on net, and good things started happening for us.”
Good things continued to happen in the third period. Kozior scored on a breakaway to make it a 5-1 game, and then it was Kyle Walter scoring an unassisted goal.
“We turned it on,” Hershman said. “We said, ‘We know how good we are. We have to start playing as a team.’
“They were just trapping us and playing defense. We all just wanted that goal, and when we started working as a team, that’s when we started scoring goals. You see the final score.”
Fillette (Mitchell assist) closed out the scoring with a goal as time expired.
“They’re such a hard-playing defense, but by the time they got to the third period, they ran out of juice,” Rock South coach Joe Houk said. “Coming into the second period, we used the outer lanes, used the outside, and we were able to set up some plays.
“We kind of relaxed a little bit instead of trying to force everything.
The Rock South coach went on to laud the performances of several players.
“Kozior was one of my big guys tonight,” he said. “He’s a second liner and he played well. Jevon Fillette had two goals for us, and he played well.
“Mitch (Mitchell Vaysman) had a couple of assists out there, and Jeff Frese played well. You always expect everything from your top line, but when you start getting contributions from your second and third, that really makes a difference.”
Playing for the Rock Cup in front of a packed house inspired players from both sides to elevate their play.
“It makes it a lot more fun having all the fans here,” Kozior said. “Obviously, it’s a big game because we’re playing North. It’s always a good rivalry, and it’s a lot of fun.
“This is definitely what we love to play for. This is what hockey is all about.”
“We look forward to this game for weeks and weeks,” Hershman added. “No matter how good South or North is each year, it’s always a good matchup, it’s always a good game.
“It’s physical, it’s intense. You’re playing against your best friends. You went to school with these guys for eight years. It’s just a game that’s unforgettable.”
“It’s fun to watch because all the kids are friends,” Tye said. “There’s never any fighting. There’s respect for all the players and coaches. It’s a rivalry, but it’s fun.”
EXTRA SHOTS: Lost in the shuffle of the 7-1 loss was the standout effort of the goalies for both squads. Rock North goalie Hayden Richards turned away 43 shots in a busy night in the net. “My goalie was awesome,” Tye said. “He’s been really good for three years.” Houk, meanwhile, used a trio of goalies. Andrew Depuy, Justin Houk and Blake Stein combined to turn away 23 of 24 shots. “They only had 24 shots, but some of those saves were stellar,” coach Houk said. “I thought all three of them play well.”
COUNCIL ROCK SOUTH 0 4 3-7
COUNCIL ROCK NORTH 0 1 0-1
SHOTS:
Council Rock South 14 23 13-50
Council Rock North 3 11 10-24
POWERPLAYS
Council Rock South 0-for-2
Council Rock North 0-for-2
SCORING SUMMARY
Period 1
(No scoring)
Period 2
CRS – Paul Cloud (unassisted) 3:12
CRN – Mike Shander (unassisted) 4:28
CRS – Mitchell Vaysman (Jeffrey Frese) 7:06
CRS – Jevon Fillette (Jeffrey Frese, Mitchell Vaysman) 9:30
CRS – Alexander Drobot (Paul Cloud) 15:59
Period 3
CRS – Thomas Kozior (unassisted) 3:50
CRS – Kyle Walter (unassisted) 6:45
CRS – Jevon Fillette (Mithcell Vaysman) 15:59
GOALIES
CRS – Andrew Depuy, Justin Houk, Blake Stein (23 saves)
CRN – Hayden Richards (43 saves)
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