ShareSaints Bantam AA Win Columbia, MD Silver Stick Regional Tournament
2012-11-27
Bantam AA Advances to International Silver Stick Finals!
Bantam AA Advances to International Silver Sticks Finals!Bantam AA advance to International Silver Stick Final Tournament in Port Huron, MI
The 2012-13 Saints Bantam AA swept the Columbia, Maryland Silver Stick Regional tournament, earning a trip to the International Finals in Port Huron, Michigan, January 24th - 27th, 2013. The Saints won all five games they played over the weekend, continuing a great start to the season, improving their overall record to 27-2-5 (8-1-2 in NJYHL). The team has already done many amazing things since the opening Labor Day tournament less than three months ago. Bringing the banner back to Sport-O-Rama accomplishes one of Coach Silio's goals - to advance to Silver Stick finals in January. Being able to compete there becomes an important stepping stone over the next four months to help prepare for his other major goal this season - a trip to Nationals in April.
The tournament began with a Black Friday, November 23rd 11:00 am face-off against the Hershey Bears at The Gardens Ice House in Laurel, MD. After a tight early battle, the result was a 5-3 victory. Followed by a big lunch, rest and shopping for some, the boys enjoyed the warm autumn afternoon with a friendly football game on the great lawn of the hotel. As evening approached, the weather turned and focus shifted to the second game of the day, a 10:10 pm start against the Montgomery Blue Devils, laying in wait at their home rink, the Rockville Ice Arena. This game was a seesaw battle where the Saints never managed to pull away, but did hold on in the end to win 4-3. The 2-0 start to the tournament had already guaranteed a trip to the play-offs. What a great day it was for the boys as for one of the first times all year they had a complete, healthy roster!
Saturday just had one game on the schedule, but it was against the tournament co-favorite Delaware Ducks who carried a 17-1-3 season record into the game. Tied 1-1 halfway through the game, the Saints slowly took control with a 2-1 lead and finally got a two goal bulge with about 7 minutes left in the third. 3-1 would be the final as the Saints handed the Ducks just their second loss of the year. It was an important win as the Saints secured the number one seed for the play-off round.
Sunday morning bought a semi-final match-up with the host Howard Huskies who had earned a trip to the play-offs with a 4-1 win against the NJ Bandits the prior day. The Huskies would not be as competitive this day as they fell behind 4-0 after the first. After a quiet second period, the Saints poured it on in the third and pulled away from Howard 10-1, earning a trip to the championship. Not surprisingly, the Delaware Ducks were waiting for revenge in a rematch of Saturdays game. However, for the second day in a row the Saints dominated and managed to play their game to perfection, scoring one in the first period to take a 1-0 lead that would become the final score. The Saints earned a trip to the Silver Stick International Finals by twice beating a team within 24 hours that had not lost since August, including shutting them out for the first time all year! Well done by all, this tournament was another example of how the Saints play as a team and win as a team. When the other coaches and fans give high praise to your team and style of play you know not only are you winning, but playing the game right.
As high school season kicks into gear, three of our scheduled off days will occur in December, along with four important league games and a double-header on 12/8. More details to come soon on the January Silver Stick finals.
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