Despite a natural hat trick by Rams senior Tyler Hoffman, Spring-Ford’s hope for a Ches-Mont title were dashed by a big, fast Unionville team in a 7-4 loss at the Ice Line rinks in West Chester last night.
It’s no secret that at times this season, Spring Ford head coach Bill Booth has been less than happy with the effort his very talented squad has put forth in some key situations and especially the first period of some crucial games. After this ICSHL playoff loss, Booth had nothing but praise for the way his Rams played.
“I can’t say enough about how proud of my guys I am,” said Booth. “I would lose every game and not even think twice about it, if we gave that kind of effort against a team that is that good. I think they [Unionville] will probably win the whole thing. They are just a very, very good team.”
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The Indians (11-4-2) took a 1-0 lead on a shot which Rams goalie Pete Esslinger still hasn’t seen, as the puck found its way through a wall of humanity in front of the Spring-Ford goal before hitting the net in the upper right corner of the pipes.
It took the Rams just 31 seconds to get the equalizer as Tyler Hoffman scored a goal on a short-handed break away. Hoffman, who took a feed out of the Spring-Ford end from Austin Carrig, was able to pull Unionville net minder Chris Sutera to the left before beating him over his glove.
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It would have been easy for the Rams attack to get out of sync in the first period, which featured numerous penalties and six power plays. Despite the uneven flow of the game, the Rams pressure was relentless in the early going and produced more quality scoring chances than did Unionville. For the game, there were sixteen penalties called and fourteen power plays awarded.
“When there are that many penalties called, it’s tough to get into a rhythm,” said Booth. “I thought our guys responded very well. They did not quit at anytime during this game. Pete was screened on their first two goals, but other than that, we did a great job letting him see the first shot.”
Spring Ford (8-7-3) gave up a power play goal to give the Indians a brief 2-1 lead before Hoffman took center stage again, by lighting the lamp on the man advantage to even the score at 2-2 to end the first period.
Esslinger, who stopped 28 of 35 shots, was outstanding at times, making two great glove saves in the beginning of the second period to keep the game knotted at two until back-to back goals by the Indians had the Rams digging out of a hole.
Despite the 7-4 final, Spring-Ford’s defense played solidly and made some incredible plays, most notably Mike Giovinco, who blocked four Unionville shots to keep the Rams within striking distance.
On one of the most spectacular plays that would not show up on the score sheet, freshman defenseman Sean Narrigan made a goal saving poke check to deny Unionville sniper Kevin LaDow cherry-picking attempt in front of the net. At the time, Narrigan's effort kept the game a one-goal affair.
After the Indians claimed a two-goal advantage, the Rams climbed to within one again on Hoffman’s third goal of the game, an unassisted wrist shot in the left hand corner on which Sutera never had a chance.
In a third period that was marred with eight penalties, the closest the Rams could get was to within two goals as Unionville settled back into a 1-2-2 trap defense to prevent a Spring-Ford comeback.
“We battled all night,” added Booth. “I can’t ask any more than that as a coach. We have had moments this season when we have had let downs, but that wasn’t the case tonight. We didn't lose the game. They won it.”
As a result of their success during the regular season against some quality competition, The Rams have qualified for the prestigious Flyers Cup tournament.
It is the first time in club history that the Rams have been selected to compete for the Flyers Cup, as Spring-Ford will be one of only 16 teams in eastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey to compete in the 2011 class AA tournament.
The winner will receive the “Flyers Cup” and have the opportunity to play the winner of the “Penguin Cup” (western Pennsylvania champion) for the overall class AA State championship.
“To be invited to the Flyers Cup is such a big honor,” said Booth. “We will have some practices this week and get ready to play the best teams we will ever face. This is a testament to how hard these kids have worked and how far our program has come in a very short time. I want my guys to get ready to play hard, but I also want them to cherish this, as these kinds of chances don’t come along very often.”
The Rams, who are seeded 11th overall, will travel to the sixth seeded Central Dauphin on Wednesday, March 9th at Twin Ponds East. The winner will advance to play the winner of the Avon Grove/ William Tennant first round game.
