Hockey
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Physical Shaker ends Rocky River's state title run
As the second period was coming to a close, Rocky River looked to get to the intermission with a 2-1 lead against state-ranked Shaker Heights.
To that point, the Pirates and goalie Jake Nicholson had survived a relentless barrage of 31 shots by the Red Raider offense. The 32nd one, however, found its mark.
Senior forward Connor Siwik used a rebound opportunity to his advantage, zipping the puck past Nicholson for the tying goal with just :38.9 seconds left. In the third period, Shaker Heights kept the pressure on and came away with a 4-2 win over the Pirates in the semifinals of the OHSAA Hockey Championships Friday afternoon at Nationwide Arena.
The Red Raiders, ranked fourth in the final state poll, went on the next day to defeat defending state champion Sylvania Northview, 3-1, to win...
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CHAMPIONS! River tops Namers for district crown
It was not the ideal start, and things did not look pretty early on for the Pirates of Rocky River.
The fourth-seeded Pirates fell behind, 2-0 to third-seeded Holy Name in the Final of the Brooklyn District. Rocky River had trouble penetrating the zone, and defensive breakdowns cost them.
“Going down 2-0 in this game is obviously not the way you want to start,” said Rocky River head coach Chris Cogan. “But I kept telling the guys, there’s tons of time left. Battle back because there’s a lot of hockey left\"...
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Video: River ends marathon with another WSC title
Last weekend wasn’t just another tournament weekend for the Rocky River hockey team. It was a marathon on ice.
The Pirates played eight games in just under 88 hours last weekend, culminating in an 8-2 win over Midview Monday morning that clinched yet another West Shore Conference championship. As they raised the championship trophy as noon approached, no one could blame them for being a happy, but tired bunch.
The journey started Thursday at 8:30 p.m. when the Pirates opened WSC play...
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Eagles top Westlake, advance to SWC title game
In an up-and-down season, the North Olmsted hockey team found itself on a bit of an upswing heading into the 2013 Southwestern Conference Tournament.
That positive trend continued Saturday as the Eagles opened SWC play against Westlake. After a hard-fought 6-3 win over the Demons, the Eagles split their next two games and advanced to the SWC championship game Monday afternoon at the North Olmsted Recreation Complex.
Westlake, despite wins over Avon Lake and Brecksville in its next two contests,...
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River skates past Mentor, keeps pace in division
After a shutout win over Padua Friday night, the Rocky River hockey team was back on the ice less than 24 hours later for an important Red North East Division game with Mentor.
Eric Sperli and the Pirates, however, proved up to the task. Sperli, River’s leading scorer, scored a hat trick to help push his team to a 6-1 win at Hamilton Ice Arena Saturday afternoon. That made the Pirates 8-1 overall heading into this week’s Thornton Park Tournament.
“It was a big weekend for us with two division games,” said Pirates head coach Chris Cogan, whose team moved into first place in the East Division with a 3-1 record. Walsh Jesuit...
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Fast start gets Amherst past North Olmsted icers
Chalk it up as a lesson learned.
The North Olmsted hockey team picked a bad time to get off to a slow start as two-time Baron Cup II champion Amherst paid a visit Saturday afternoon. The Comets took advantage and scored three goals in the first period alone, coming away with a 5-2 win in a GCHSHL game at the North Olmsted Recreation Complex.
With the win, Amherst remained atop the White West Division with a 3-0 record. The Eagles fell to 1-1 in the division and 3-2 overall despite playing the Comets...
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Sperli's goal in second OT gives River tourney title
Through 53 minutes of hockey, visiting Hudson had matched Rocky River shot for shot, goal for goal. With the game heading into a second overtime period, the large Monday night crowd at Hamilton Ice Area was on the edge of their seats.
It took just 47 more seconds for a majority of those fans to go home happy.
That’s when the senior duo of Kyle Kopecheck and Eric Sperli teamed up for the game winner. Kopecheck’s pass found Sperli out on the right wing for the deciding goal as the Pirates edged the Explorers...
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Video: Westlake icers get third season underway
The Westlake hockey team got it’s third season underway last weekend as the Demons made their first appearance in the Rocky River Thanksgiving Tournament.
The Demons are also beginning their first season as members of the Greater Cleveland High School Hockey League. They will compete in the White Division West with Amherst, Brecksville, Elyria Catholic, Normandy and North Olmsted.
Westlake went 2-2 in...
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Mustangs next: Demon icers get first district win
In this season of firsts, the Westlake hockey team managed to add one more this week.
On Wednesday, the Demons won their first ever OHSAA district tournament game with a 4-0 shutout win over Lakewood at Brooklyn’s Coyne Recreation Center. The win also gave the Demons their 20th victory of the season.
Westlake, now 20-7-2, will take on Strongsville Wednesday at 6 p.m. The Mustangs, who play in the Red Division North, bring a record of 14-12-1 and a six-game losing streak into the game...
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Avon blanks Redmen for first district tourney win
With 5:53 gone in the first period, center Eric Novakovic flicked the puck past Parma goaltender Nate Tracy from close range to give Avon a 1-0 lead.
That goal will go down in Avon hockey lore as the Eagles’ first OHSAA tournament game-winner in program history.
Novakovic went on to score three more goals and goaltender Kory Carter registered a shutout as Avon topped Parma...
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Baron Cup: Second period run gets US past River
The moment University School killed off a Rocky River power play, the tide started to turn in Thursday night’s Baron Cup quarterfinal.
Senior Kevin DeGulis, who had just served a two-minute penalty for roughing, saw his opportunity as soon as he hit the ice. With the puck right in front of him, he beat the River defense to the punch and got off a shot to the left of Pirates goalie Jake Nicholson.
Nicholson stopped the shot taken from the circle, but the puck bounced right to the oncoming Tyler Dalton...
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Avon, Westlake approved for entry into GCHSHL
After two years of growing their programs from scratch, the Avon and Westlake hockey teams are taking the next step in their development.
Both programs have been accepted into the Greater Cleveland High School Hockey League and will begin division play during the 2012-13 season. Westlake is taking the biggest leap, moving into the White Division West, while Avon will compete in the Blue Division West...
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Video: Pirates skate past Hudson for 24th victory
The Rocky River hockey team moved to 24-5 overall and 7-2 in the Red Division South with a 5-3 win over Hudson at Hamilton Ice Arena.
The win, however, followed a 4-1 loss on the road to Walsh Jesuit that gave the Warriors the division title. Walsh Jesuit clinched on Sunday with a win over Holy Name, finishing 9-1. Rocky River will close out the regular season at home this Saturday...
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Eagles looking for consistency after weekend split
After a Saturday afternoon loss to White Division East leader Solon, North Olmsted head coach Tim Murphy summed up his team’s performance.
“We’re really not consistent,” Murphy said after a 4-2 loss to the Comets on the North Olmsted Recreation Complex ice. “We never really got going. We had some things that got us out of rhythm.
“We’ve got to put together more consistent play...
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Hockey: Despite loss, Demons continue to grow
So far, the 2011-12 hockey season has been one to remember for the fledging Westlake program.
The Demons, in just their second year of existence, take a record of 18-5-1 into Saturday night’s game with Avon. Last weekend, they went 3-0 in pool play at the Southwestern Conference Tournament and advanced to Monday afternoon’s title game.
Awaiting them was defending Baron Cup II champion Amherst...
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Pirates' marathon weekend ends with WSC crown
Playing a seventh game in four days didn’t seem to phase the Rocky River hockey team.
Just ask Elyria Catholic.
The Pirates, coming off a tough loss to Shaker Heights on Sunday afternoon, regrouped in a big way Monday morning. They scored six power play goals and a pair of shorthanded goals to manhandle the Panthers...
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Bay icers step up, but fall short to Westlake, 3-0
Since mid-December, the Bay hockey team has gone through a tough stretch of games.
But even in Wednesday night’s 3-0 loss to Westlake, Rockets head coach Rick Kirk had reason to be optimistic about his young team’s future.
“We had 32 shots on net tonight, so that’s a pretty good showing for us,” Kirk said after his team’s loss to the Demons at Hamilton Ice Arena in Rocky River...
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Video: Pirate icemen show Eagles no mercy, 11-1
Rocky River dominated North Olmsted, 11-1, on Wednesday at Hamilton Ice Arena. In the process, Pirates head coach Chris Cogan picked up his 100th career win. Larry captured all the action with his photos and video.
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Video: Bay hockey loses to Parma, 3-2
The Rockets dropped a tough 3-2 decision to Parma in their third meeting of the season Sunday at Winterhurst. The Redmen scored a goal in the game\'s final seconds to pull out the win...
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Westlake icers close out strong in win over Eagles
Seems like it was only yesterday.
Just a little over a year ago, Avon and Westlake started their respective hockey programs. Since then, the Eagles and Demons have gotten to know each other well, even sharing practice time on the ice from time to time.
On Saturday, the two club teams met on their shared home ice at the North Olmsted Recreation Center. The Demons, thanks in part to an early goal by freshman Nathan Greenberg...
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Hockey: First line coming up big for 6-0 Pirates
So far, so good for the Rocky River hockey team.
The Pirates are 6-0 this season heading into Sunday\'s second rematch with Hudson at the Kent State Ice Arena. When the two teams last met, River rallied for a 7-4 win in the Thanksgiving Tournament title game at Hamilton Ice Arena.
The Pirates are coming off a 12-2 thrashing of Elyria Catholic last Sunday where Tyler Harkins knifed through the Panther defense...
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Experience paying off in Demons' second season
One year ago, the Westlake hockey program was hitting the ice for the first time. A roster full of freshmen and inexperienced players went through its fair share of growing pains as the season went on.
But the bottom line was this: The blueprint for the program was finally off the planning board and put into action.
With the 2011-12 season now underway, the Demons have put all of that learning experience to good use...
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Pirates fight off Explorers to regain tourney crown
Last year, Hudson came into Hamilton Ice Arena and won Rocky River ‘s annual Thanksgiving Tournament championship. Monday night, the Explorers hit the ice determined to repeat.
An equally determined band of Pirates would have nothing to do with that scenario.
A big save from goalie Jake Nicholson on a penalty shot and a breakaway goal by Tyler Harkins with 3.8 seconds left in the second period set the tone. The ensuing three-goal outburst in the third period sealed the deal...
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