Game Recap

Blue Jackets Cup GCHSCHL Championship Tournament Finals
Ice Prowlers home versus the Westerville Warcats
@ the Chiller North
Sunday, February 20th, 2005

Prowlers force a winner-take-all Cup Final game

Less than 22 hours prior to this game, the Prowlers and Warcats (#2, 18-3-2) dropped the puck in the third round of the Blue Jackets Cup GCHSCHL Championship Tournament. Westerville won that game 3-1 (2/19/2005) to put the Prowlers into the tournament's loser's bracket for the first time under head coach Marty LaRoche and snap the team's 13 game winning streak this season. Early Sunday morning, the Prowlers came back to the rink and took care of business against Olentangy (#4, 10-3-1) defeating the Braves 4-2 (2/20/2005) to advance back to the Cup Finals and a chance to defend their 2004 Cup Championship against the Warcats.

The two teams had fought tooth and nail all season, splitting the regular season series 2-2 (4-2 Westerville on 11/07/2004, 4-3 Prowlers on 12/03/2004, 8-3 Westerville on 12/12/2004 and 5-2 Prowlers on 01/21/2005). In their third round game, the teams were tied 1-1 with 3:22 remaining before Westerville scored two quick power play goals to take the victory. With a Westerville victory in this game, the Warcats would win the Cup. A Prowler victory would give the team another game and a single game winner-take-all match for their Cup defense.

Despite the two high intensity games within the previous 22 hours, the Prowlers did not appear to be tired in this match. The team came out strong throwing 6 shots at goaltender Bill Sorokas who was in goal stopping 40 Prowler shots in the teams' first playoff match. Freshman Miles McGrew was equal to the challenge at the other end of the ice as well stopping all 9 Warcat shots, with this game finishing exactly like the first period of their last match, knotted up at 0-0.

The second period was a different story though with the Prowlers rattling off four unanswered goals to take a commanding 4-0 lead. Sophomore Nick Hess started the scoring off 2:25 into the period beating Sorokas (assisted by senior alternate captain Eric Weinhold and senior captain Eric Willard). Forty-one seconds later, Sean Hundley went off for slashing giving the Prowlers the man advantage, and they took advantage with Weinhold scoring on the power play (assisted by Hess and freshman Brandon Goettel). Minutes later, with Hundley again in the box, the Prowler power play produced for the second time with junior Taylor Walcutt scoring (assisted by sophomore Brian Rossi and senior alternate captain Anthony Kantor). As time ran down in the period, Willard was able to bury a rebound shot past Sorokas to give his team the 4-0 lead going into the 2nd intermission.

With a fresh ice cut between periods and a goaltending change, with senior Morgan Rogers replacing Sorokas, the Warcats came out of the gates flying to start the third period. With their backs against the wall, they again rattled off two quick goals with Chris Frampton scoring 35 seconds into the period and Ryan Kreiger following that up just 11 seconds later to bring Westerville within two goals at 4-2. After the quick flurry though, the Prowlers regained their form and dictated the play for the rest of the period. The Warcats pulled Rogers for the final minutes to try and tie the game up, but the Prowler's Nick Hess was able to score an empty net power play goal to ice the game for his team with 20 seconds remaining on the clock to force one more game in the Blue Jackets Cup Finals.

Now these two teams will play in their seventh head-to-head contest of the season to decide the GCHSCHL's Blue Jackets Cup Champion. With only two points separating the teams in the regular season, this series has lived up to it's expectations and the Cup is truly up for grabs as the defending Cup Champs will defend their 2004 title one last time and hope to bring home their third consecutive Blue Jackets Cup when the teams face off Monday night (2/21/2005) at 6:50 PM at the CoreComm Ice Haus.