Brick Memorial Comes Up Short in Heartbreaker

TOMS RIVER — Just when things seemed to be wrapped up, Brick Memorial  couldn't quite seal the deal.

With a 1-0 lead and a little over a minute remaining in their first-round Handchen Cup game against Toms River South, it finally appeared as if the Mustangs  (9-10-4, no. 51) would close out the win.

But Todd Unger tied the game with 1:15 remaining, and Sam Leone got the winning goal for the Indians with 2:58 remaining in overtime as Brick Memorial fell, 2-1, on Sunday night at Winding River Skating Center.

"It's real tough," Mustangs team captain Jay Franceschini said. "We outplayed them and had a lot of good scoring chances but just couldn't get one more goal."

The Mustangs took the lead with 7:06 remaining in the third period when Colin Trevors threw a body check to loosen up the puck, then quickly passed it to Steven McDermitt, who beat goalie Pat Kearny.

Franceschini shadowed Toms River South captain Jay Malone throughout the game, not allowing him to be any type of presence on offense. 

"I had a lot of fun with it," the captain said. "I'm friends with him, too, which makes it better. He was getting pretty angry."

The Mustangs went scoreless on their only power play opportunity of the night, which came in the latter part of the second period. Brick Memorial also did a good job staying out of the box, as it killed both of its penalties on the night. Kevin Talty made 22 saves, but in the end it wasn't enough as Leone was left alone in front of the net to beat the senior late in overtime.

The Mustangs  now prepare for the state playoffs. Seedings are released on Wednesday, Feb. 23, and they should begin the following week.

"We're happy with what we're doing," Francecshini said. "We played a strong game, just came up short of a goal."