Who needs McDonogh – Saint Andrew’s?  I watched one of the more exciting games I’ve seen all year last night in Ft. Lauderdale as Cardinal Gibbons overcame a 6-1 deficit to defeat Calvary Christian 10-8 on CC’s home field. But before I get into the review of this fun game I need to make a comment that fits not only this game but so many others I attend too: Dear Parents:  MORE CHEERING, LESS COMPLAINING ABOUT REFEREES.  PLEASE. Most of you are not qualified to call a game.  A little knowledge truly is a dangerous thing. Okay,  I got that off my chest . . . This was one exciting game.  It had pretty much everything.  Speed, up and down action, solid looks and passes, great goaltending. So what was the difference?  Simple. 11 penalties taken by each side. EMO scores:  Cardinal Gibbons 5 (all in the second half), Calvary Christian 1. Ball game.     These were very evenly matched teams regardless of their records.  Gibbons had the better athletes and Calvary had the better offensive teamwork.  Calvary dominated face-offs . . . until the fourth quarter . . . and Gibbons made them count. There was some really good talent on display.  Sam Kuebler was a dominant force for Gibbons with 3G/2A and took over the game in the fourth quarter comeback, joined by RJ Breton, who also scored 3G, all in the second half.  For Calvary there was Colton Coffin who scored a hat trick of his own and dominated the circle and David Salvatelli chipped in 3 goals of his own with a bull in the China shop mentality of offense.  Calvary long pole Hunter Ramsay really impressed me with his combination of takeaway skills as well as his stick work off ground balls. And a particular shout-out to the two goalies, Josh Stephenson and Matt Sandelier, who both came up with 16 saves as the teams peppered both cages with shots, combining for 86 attempts. But I’m saving the best for last.  The two head coaches, Adam Bond of Calvary and Doug Britt of Cardinal Gibbons.  Two real class acts.  And friends off the field.  The type of coaches you have no problem trusting your kid to.  With the right balance of competitiveness and sportsmanship.  As well as being pleased to get the coverage.  I’m glad they are looking to work together in the summer. The game itself started off slowly for both teams as CC missed the net early and CG helped out by turning the ball over in the clearing game.  Finally CC broke through on the EMO at 7:11 as Salvatelli took Eddie Holm’s feed from just behind goal line extended (GLE) on the left side and fired home a left wing shot, right-handed to the low short side for a 1-0 lead.  They stretched that out to 2-0 at 3:44 as Bito Pimenta took a crease feed from behind the right side of the net from Chase Knox, making a nice catch down low and one-timing it with the right hand for the second score of the quarter and the two teams went to the second with CC leading 2-0. The second started the same way as Josh Derr continued the CC run, unassisted at 7:43.  Derr cut down the left alley and got off a left-handed shot from about 5 yards that caught the low, far side to make it 3-0.  Then with just 27 seconds left Coffin made it 4-0 after picking up a loose ball and cutting down the right wing, bouncing a right-hand shot from about 5 yards to make it 4-0.  But CG managed to get one back before the half as Trent Motta walked in from the top left wing and fired a nearly 15-yard bullet, beating Stephenson with a high-to-high, short side shot and it ended the half with CC leading 4-1.     In the second half CC came out strong again and at 10:23 they stretched the lead back to four on Coffin’s second, unassisted, as he picked up a loose ball off a rebound and bounced it in from the left front of the net.  At 7:04 CC struck again as Salvatelli scored his second, taking a feed on the left wing , curling right and beating Sandelier with a low, short-side right-hander and it was 6-1 CC, who looked in complete control at that point. But then the penalties started to take their toll.  CG scored two quick EMO goals to start to grab momentum.  First, Andrew Diaz scored unassisted at 6:27, taking advantage of a quick re-start and flying down the center of the field before firing from far out to make it 6-2.  Just over a minute later Kuebler scored his first unassisted on a step-down shot from up top, high-to-high on the left side and it was now 6-3.  The comeback continued on another EMO (CC hurt their momentum with 8 second-half penalties) as CG cut the lead to two.  At 2:29 Breton scored his first, taking Henry Thomas’ left crease side feed from the top left wing, and placing a right-handed, short side shot high.  CC responded with 1:00 left as Coffin scored his third, unassisted, dodging from the left wing to the middle and placing a low, right-handed shot between the legs and the teams entered the 4th with CC leading 7-4. CG came out on fire in the fourth (firing 20 shots at goal in the 4th!) and at 9:53 they were rewarded as James Smith cut the lead unassisted, picking up a loose ball after Stephenson had made a one-on-one crease save on Breton, and getting just enough on the shot to make it 7-5.  Just 79 seconds later CG cut it to one as Smith scored again, this time assisted by Kuebler, again on the EMO, taking a skip pass from up top to the right crease after slipping out from behind and scoring high to the far side.  CG then completed the comeback at 6:55 on another EMO as Breton took Kuebler’s feed from behind right in front and the game was now tied at 7. With 3:37 left CG took their first lead of the game as Kuebler scored unassisted, curling out from left GLE out to the wing and depositing a jump-shot with the right-hand to the high, short side and it was 8-7.  CC responded on a great effort from Ramsay, as he stole the ball short-handed and took off down the field, finding Salvatelli on the right wing and Salvatelli made no mistake with the short-side shot and the game was again tied at 8.  Then Kuebler made the play of the game.  After a timeout to set up a play Kuebler, starting far out on the right side near the sidelines, beat the CC defense down the right alley and put CG up for good with 1:17 left, finishing right-handed on the far side.  CG then added an insurance goal with 51 seconds left as Breton fought off a double-team attempt and found the open cage from in front and the game ended that way at 10-8. A terrific comeback for CG and a heart-breaking game for CC who had been battling injuries most of the season and was looking for this one to keep their recent momentum going.  And a very fun game for this author to witness.  Having to kill so many penalties in the second half definitely wore CC’s defense down and the toll eventually was paid. Thanks kids for again showing why this sport is so entrancing no matter where you are ranked!   Team Statistics Face-offs:  CC 14-6 Shots:  CC 45 – CG 41 Shots on Goal:  CC 24 – CG 26 Turnovers:  CC 21 – CG 18 (only 5 in the second half) Penalties:  11 each   Individual Statistics   CG Sam Kuebler  3G/2A RJ Breton  3G James Smith  2G Trent Motta and Andrew Diaz – 1G each Henry Thomas  1A   CC David Salvatelli and Colton Coffin  3G each Bito Pimenta and Josh Derr  1G each Eddie Holm, Chase Knox and Hunter Ramsey with 1A each   Thanks to Coach Bond and Coach Britt for taking the time to talk to me before and after the game and to Gene Nardi of Photos By Gene for the pictures provided! Gibbons hosts North Broward Prep next after their spring break and Calvary hosts Jupiter Christian next Tuesday.  Good luck to both programs the rest of the year!