Despite Tough Year, Raiders Hockey Shows Promise

Scarsdale may have taken its lumps this year, going 7-13-1 and losing in the first round of the Division I sectional hockey tournament. But with just one senior and three juniors on the team, the Raiders are hoping that the experience will pay off in the future.

"I think our team definitely gained a lot of experience, and hopefully some of the things that we learned this year will help us build for next year," defenseman Patrick Johnson said. "We learned from our mistakes."

Scarsdale's potential was evident in the last week of the regular season. The team defeated North Rockland 5-3 on the Red Raiders' senior night, then pushed last season's Division II state finalist Pelham to overtime in a 4-3 loss, and finally matched its season high in goals in an 8-5 win over Fieldston 8-5.

"If you look at our season we definitely improved at the end, so that's always a good sign," coach Jim Mancuso said. "We ended up beating a couple teams that we lost to in preseason scrimmages."

The season came to an end on Sunday when the Raiders lost to defending sectional finalist White Plains 9-4. The defensive end was a problem all season — Scarsdale has allowed 119 goals, 23 more than other teams in Section 1.

"One of the things we need to work on is lowering the shot count and we need to just play to the best of our ability," Johnson said. "I'm confident the kids on the team can find the heart and the drive."

An improved defense will help make up for the loss of the lone senior, Matt Oliverio, who had 51 goals and 71 points, second in Section 1 behind New Rochelle's Richie Prunesti's 53 goals and 79 points.

Patrick Johnson, a three-year starter, will be critical on defense next year, as will hard-working sophomore Will Seider and a pair of freshmen — Sam Blakley, who has good size, and Ben Reisman, who improved tremendously in the final month.

The forward line should be led by first-line center Eric Staropoli, aggressive winger Travis Misarti and Ian Klein, an intelligent player who is always well-positioned.

Klein was second on the team with 15 goals, Staropoli was second with 18 assists and Misarti was second with 27 points this season.

Although it will be tough to replace Oliverio, it's easy to be optimistic about the future of a team where 13 of the 17 players are underclassmen. But Mancuso stressed that offseason work will be important if the team hopes to reach its potential.

"Just because they're getting older doesn't mean they're getting better," Mancuso said. "They need to improve in the offseason."