About 20 seconds into the second quarter Calvary Christian scored their NINTH goal as Hunter Ramsay took a Ben Stephenson feed in the middle and wound up all alone to go up 9-3 and I was starting to worry about what I was going to write if the game really got out of hand.  Miami Country Day had come in with a 3-5 record and had been beaten soundly three separate times, including a 16-4 loss in their previous game.  Calvary Christian was 4-2 coming in and based on how the game had played out to then it was almost a foregone conclusion in my mind at that early point that it wasn’t going to be a game. At that 20 second mark CC had outshot MCD 18-7 and 13-4 on shots on goal and won 10 of 13 faceoffs to grab the 9-3 lead. Never judge a book by its’ cover. Funny how so many common sayings play out in sports.     Miami Country Day’s kids reached deep down and turned the game around in the second quarter and we ended up with one of the more exciting, if somewhat sloppy games, of the year. And if it wasn’t for a heroic fourth quarter by freshman goalie Ben Fuchs for CC this game would have not made the OT stage, as he made a number of crease side saves in the last three minutes, including a stuff save in the last ten seconds to allow Coltin Coffin the opportunity to be the hero in the second overtime. It was the Luke Baldis show for CC early as he went off for 4G/2A in the first quarter alone and afterwards it shifted to the Austin Weinberg show later in the game for MCD on his 5G/3A, including the assist on Blaise Pronesti’s goal at 2:33 off the fourth to tie the game late. Turnovers were frequent and neither goalie had a good first half as 20 goals were scored on only 29 shots on goal but both hung in there and the defenses started to dig in. CC’s strong long pole Ramsay, a potential D1 recruit, started to hold his own takeaway clinic and chipped in two goals, including the go-ahead goal in the fourth to make it 14-13, only to be matched defensively by MCD’s Alex Hansen in the takeaway game.  One startling statistic is that CC only had FIVE shots on goal in the second half until the second overtime one that won the game, on 19 shot attempts. But eventually the game ended on the EMO, as CC was able to work a wheel play up top and when the defense was slow to rotate Coffin was able to get off a right hand bullet straight away from ten yards out to end this back and forth affair at 2:18 of the second OT. Read the book. The whole book. Because it’s pretty rare that you know the ending before you get there.  

  CC ran out to an early lead.  29 seconds into the game Baldis stepped into one from the left wing from 10 yards and hit the bottom right corner for 1-0.  At 9:55 he replicated the effort from the same spot for 2-0 and at 8:08, on the EMO, Baldis fed Colton Sward from behind the left side of the net to the left wing and Sward hit the top right corner for 3-0.  At 6:24 MCD cut the lead to 3-1 as Weinberg took Zach Hart’s feed from the middle on the right wing and he hit the right top corner but only 20 seconds later Baldis went down the left alley and from the top left and found the low right corner for 4-1. At 3:01 Stephenson started a six-goal 2-minute barrage by both teams, splitting two defenders down the right alley and going to the upper right corner for 5-1.  MCD responded at 2:17 as Matthew Baron took a Hart feed all alone on the crease from the right wing for 5-2.  Then at 1:48 it went to 6-2 as Baldis took advantage of a fast break to cut in to the middle from the left side and hit the low right hand corner.  Just 10 seconds later Coffin scored his first, controlling the faceoff, dodging the defense down the middle and going hip-high to the right side for 6-2.  17 seconds later MCD’s Weinberg picked up a loose ball off the faceoff and pretty much replicated the previous play for 7-3 and at 1:06 Hart took Baldis’ crease feed all alone for 8-3 after one. Coaches, let’s not save that defensive game film to show the youth . . .  

  The second started as mentioned above and at that point CC seemed to think they had this well in hand.  Ten turnovers later is was 12-8 at the half and MCD had life.  At 10:25 Ryan Finvarb started the comeback, splitting the defense up front and going right side, hip high.  Then at 8:25 Tyler Grossman took a Weinberg feed on the right wing and hit the low short side for 9-5 and that was followed at 7:22 by Pronesti’s EMO goal as he stepped into one from up top and hit the low left corner for 9-6.  CC stopped the run at 4:33 as Sward worked behind the net before dodging towards GLE and then beating the defense to the crease before finishing low and 20 seconds later Baldis made it 11-6 as he also worked the left side going between MCD goalie Paul Julian Girard’s legs.  At 2:02 MCD got one back as Corey Altman scored off the crease after receiving Finvarb’s pass from the middle.  19 seconds later CC took back the 5 goal lead as Coffin won the faceoff, went back to gather the ball and then beat defenders first to the left and then back to the middle to and finally hitting the lower left corner but with 20 seconds left MCD capitalized on another fast break as Weinberg slowed down up top and when the defense left him alone, stepped down and hit the top right corner to make it 12-8 after two. Better burn that defensive tape too . . . The third quarter was all MCD as far as goal scoring is concerned and as CC took 13 shots but missed the net on 11 of them and MCD took advantage to chip away.  At 9:03 Altman finished off Weinberg’s full field length dash down the right alley to finish on the crease for 12-9.  Weinberg came off the field after that for cramps but returned later in the quarter.  At 5:27 it was 12-10 as Alex Sayfie took Finvarb’s right top wing feed in the middle, turned right and hit the top right corner and just 18 seconds later is was Finvarb who went solo down the right wing and fired low, as Fuchs got a piece of it but not enough and it was suddenly 12-11.  MCD completed the comeback with just 6 seconds left in the third as Weinberg took a Hail Mary (sorry CC fans but that sports cliche is too good to pass up . . . ) from almost 20 yards away and hit the top right corner and we went to the fourth incredibly tied at 12.  

  In the fourth the teams traded goals as neither could pull away and as the game closed in the chances started multiplying and the crowd reactions intensified.  CC really hurt itself as they took SIX penalties in the fourth to one for CC but that one was a 3-minute stick penalty to start the fourth, putting MCS two-men down to start since they also took a penalty at the end of the third.  And only 9 seconds into the quarter CC took advantage as Baldis took a feed on the left wing from Coffin and was able to step down and finish between Giraud’s legs. But MCD, with the help of CC’s penalties, held off the rest of the 3-minute penalty and regained the momentum, which paid off on the EMO with 7:52 left as Weinberg scored after going down the middle and drifting towards the right before hitting the high right corner.  CC responded at 5:37 to regain the lead as Ramsay went down the right alley before hitting the low left corner, but the penalties caught up with CC as Pronesti netted the game-tying goal as mentioned above.  Frankly it was a credit to CC that they overcame all the penalties to get to OT given how MCD dominated the last three minutes.  Fuchs came up big as CC struggled to get good looks late in regulation. And for the second straight week I got overtime . . .  

  The first OT was light on action as both teams failed to generate a lot of chances although Fuchs made a couple of saves in the first stanza, setting the stage for Coffin’s heroics to end the game. Keep the tape of the second half and the OT’s . . . the kids will want to watch that one more than once. Certainly a lot more fun than a number of Monday Night Football games. Both teams will face a challenge getting up for the next game mentally.  This one was pretty taxing emotionally. CC will be back in action on Thursday, travelling to district rival Pine Crest as is MCD, who travels to district foe Immaculata-LaSalle (for MCD that’s Christian, Catholic, Jesuit, Catholic and Episcopal schools for five straight games . . . hmm, just a scheduling quirk?).  Hope everyone chuckles at that one . . . and that lightning isn’t on the weather forecast for tonight at Oxbridge when I show up!  

    Team Statistics Faceoffs:  CC 22-11 Shots:  MCD 45 – CC 43 Shots on Goal:  MCD 27 – CC 24 Turnovers:  CC 34 – MCD 25 Penalties:  CC 8 – MCD 5   Individual Statistics   Calvary Christian Luke Baldis  6G/2A Coltin Coffin  3G/1A Colton Sward  3G Hunter Ramsay  2G Ben Stephenson  1G/2A   Miami Country Day Austin Weinberg  5G/3A Ryan Finvarb  2G/2A Blaise Pronesti and Corey Altman  2G each Zach Hart  2A Matthew Baron, Tyler Grossman and Alex Sayfie  1G each   Goalies Zach Fuchs of CC had 12 saves and MCD’s Paul Julian Girard made 9 saves for MCD   Thanks to Coach Bond and Coach Bainbridge for talking to me before and after the game.  Adam, all the best wishes to your daughter’s recovery!