Sunday May 15, 2016, the Fossil Ridge Hockey team was able to close out their memorable season on a very high note. After playing Chaparral at ICAP in their last game of the season, the boys skated off of the ice with the title of being the Tier II State Champions; they have continued to uphold the Fossil Ice Hockey tradition, adding yet another state championship title to the archives.
On their way to the ‘ship they faced off against some of Colorado’s best high school hockey teams. For the first game the Cats played Ralston Valley and swept that game away with a 9-1 win. With confidence the team then took on Longmont and breezed through winning 8-3. Following those two highs, they laced up to play Chaparral, who gave them their first lost (3-4) in their playoff run. Coming back from that tough loss the boys were fired up and then won against Ponderosa 7-1. Finally, the team got the news, they had made it into the championship game against the only team that was able to beat them once before…Chaparral.
The Cats won 3-0 with goals scored by Garrett Devine the team’s leading scorer (52 pts over the season), Paden Clark (18 pts), and Bryan Lockner (32 pts) which gave them the edge over Chaparral (9-8-1). Starting goalie Kyle Plantz added another shutout to his record, after giving the team unwavering confidence from the net and a strong performance throughout the game. For two periods the play was very competitive and the score sat at 1-0 in favor of the Cats with a goal from Devine. Both teams handled the puck well, and neither was dominating the other. Possession was strong on both sides of the rink, showing glimpses of great play and execution from these high caliber players. It wasn’t until the third period when the Cats kicked it into a higher gear, scoring two more goals from Clark and Lockner. The team’s awareness and decision making made it seem as if it was a team of real brothers, with a very tight bond between each and every player. But witnessing that chemistry isn’t hard to believe if you look at the solid season they had this spring (16-2-1).
Seniors Noah Brownell and Garrett Devine, were quite emotional after the game once they realized their high school careers were over and that their time of being a part of this Sabercat family for 4 years had come to it’s end. Brownell commented, “It’s bittersweet for sure, but winning a championship with a great group of guys around me was the best way to go out.” Followed by Devine’s comment, “I loved high school hockey. It was a great growing time for me in my hockey career and not a lot of people get to say that they won their last high school hockey game but we do and that’s pretty cool in my opinion.”
“All in all it was a competitive, hard earned win yesterday. When the games are being played with that much speed and talent, it feels like the scoreboard reflects that. No one is winning…no one is losing… Every guy out there is giving it his all in order to win.” Commented junior Blake Baer. The players that will be returning next year are excited to start up again next spring. This team, and this season, will be remembered as one of the strongest Fossil has had yet.
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