“It was really a battle of attrition,” Doherty said. “We just had to keep going, keep getting shots, gritty goals. . . . Crazy madness, that’s it. You just got to keep pounding on this goalie, and eventually he’ll give up one, and he did in OT.”
It was a long journey to the championship game at Gardens Ice House in Laurel, a rematch of last year’s WCAC final. The Cadets (20-5-4) lost to Gonzaga (19-7-2) early this season, then they notched a win, a tie, and another win against the Eagles just weeks before Friday night’s title fight.
For junior goaltender Jack Faricy, who made 31 saves and secured shutouts for the entire WCAC playoff run, the victory was surreal. He made a key save in the third period when an ill-timed line change gave Gonzaga an opportunity to rush him alone in goal. But the Eagles couldn’t get the puck past him.
“I can’t form words right now,” Faricy said in the heat of celebration before gaining his composure. “I just knew one of us was going to break. I’m going to break, or that other goalie is going to break. So I just told myself, ‘I’m not going to break.’ ”
The Cadets’ celebration was tempered by the knowledge that their season is far from over. They head into the Mid-Atlantic Prep Hockey League playoffs next week, in which they will be chasing Interstate Athletic Conference champion Landon.
Earlier on Friday, Paul VI overcame a fraught final period to clinch the WCAC’s lower A division title with a 4-2 win over Good Counsel.
Good Counsel (10-5-2) began the third period trailing by three goals but staged a brief comeback, getting two quick goals from forwards Declan Gallagher and Gavin Senko.
A power play and a stretch with an extra man after the goalie was pulled in the final minutes weren’t enough to finish the comeback as the Panthers (19-5-1) added an empty-net goal to secure their second consecutive conference title.
“We kind of weathered the storm early,” said Panthers senior left winger Rocco Somma, who scored in the final minute of the second period.
“It was pretty electric,” senior center and team captain Sean Robert Sarda added. “. . . The back-to-back win kind of solidifies that we’re here now.”