Bishop Hendricken’s boys hockey team earned a massive 2-1 win on the road against La Salle Academy this past Saturday. It follows a 4-1 loss to the Rams in the Ed Walsh Cup on Dec. 21. The …
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Bishop Hendricken’s boys hockey team earned a massive 2-1 win on the road against La Salle Academy this past Saturday.
It follows a 4-1 loss to the Rams in the Ed Walsh Cup on Dec. 21. The four-time defending state champions have now won back-to-back games since their first in-state loss of the season to Moses Brown.
“I really think that set the tone for tonight,” sophomore forward Nick Stevens said. “We wanted that bounce-back win and I think that really motivated us.”
La Salle called on junior goaltender Jesse Humes, while Bishop Hendricken had senior Colin Murray between the pipes. Murray opened with two shutout periods in goal, a stark contrast between the three goals he allowed before being pulled in the second during the Ed Walsh Cup.
“He wanted to prove himself,” coach Mike Soscia said. “He had a great game right there. We’re very fortunate, Murr played a great game and we probably have the two best goalies in the state.”
The Hawks found their footing on the ice early following a roughing penalty against La Salle freshman Luca Marenghi. It took the Hendricken power play unit 40 seconds to find the back of the net.
“We’ve been working hard and we’ve been struggling a little bit, but we’re starting to find our own,” Soscia said. “The power play was clicking a little bit last night [against Pilgrim] and continued into tonight.”
Frank Tillinghast fed a pass from the point to Mason Crain at the wing. Crain’s shot rebounded off the boards behind the net, finding Stevens in front for the game’s first goal.
“We worked on [power plays] this week in practice,” Stevens said. “I just got lucky that it bounced off the wall, gave me a nice one-timer.”
An early goal had Murray and the Hawks ahead quickly after being shut out in the first period of their last meeting against the Rams.
“La Salle is a great team and they’re well coached,” Murray said. “Getting that first one, it’s like a monkey off our back. We got a little momentum, got going, and pinned them for a while after that.”
Hendricken finished the first period with a second score. Tiernan Leahy sent a shot inside with just under two minutes remaining in the period, deflecting off of a defender and Ben Tamul found the loose puck for a near-post putaway.
Second-period action went scoreless, despite three total penalties in the period. La Salle had some of its best scoring opportunities of the period on an early penalty kill for a Declan Sullivan cross-check. Shane Gaudreau took back-to-back shorthanded breakaway attempts down the ice, forcing a couple of great saves by Murray.
Although an away game, Hendricken’s fan base made themselves at home. Chants rained out for Murray after making the crucial stops.
“Mangate gets an A-plus tonight,” Murray said. “You could tell they were here, they were loud and it was good stuff tonight from them.”
The Rams finally entered the score column nearly six and a half minutes into the third period. Tyler Garofalo passed from the corner up to the blue line for Tripp Peterson, firing it across as JD Plante tipped it past Murray to cut the deficit in half.
Coming down to the wire, Hendricken played strong and aggressive enough to prevent La Salle from pulling its goalie for as long as possible. The Hawks’ keep-away left the Rams with under 30 seconds remaining before they could pull Humes off the ice.
An extra attacker wasn’t enough to produce the tying goal, bringing La Salle’s undefeated season against in-state opponents to an end. As the final buzzer sounded, the Bishop Hendricken bench exploded out and swarmed the boards near the Hawks’ student section.
“Without them, our games aren’t as fun,” Stevens said. “They bring all the motivation that we need and with them here it really makes a difference.”
A busy schedule lies ahead for Bishop Hendricken, gearing up to face four in-state opponents across five days. The third game in that stretch is a rematch against the Rams, slated for Jan. 31 in the Hawks’ home rink at Thayer Arena.
“We just take one game at a time, we know what it takes,” Soscia said. “Our goal is to be there in the end.”
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