by Team Reporter & Writer-Nate Gordon
After losing to the Arrows 2-1 just one week ago, Williston Hockey got revenge with an 8-2 drubbing of St. Sebastian’s (St. Seb’s). This is the first time Williston has defeated St. Seb’s since the Wildcats began playing the Arrows in the 2009-10 season.
Williston got the scoring started early—just 2:36 into the first period. Junior forward Tyler Scroggins got the puck directly from an offensive-zone faceoff and hit the top left corner of the goal to score. This is the first of three goals Scroggins had in the game. Junior forward Brandon Borges was credited with the assist.
After the game, Scroggins said, “I finally got some good scoring chances, but we pulled out the win, which is the most important thing.”
Three minutes later, St. Seb’s tied the game when an Arrow skated down the right side of the rink and scored on a backhand shot.
Williston scored the next four goals, though, two in the first period, and another two in the second.
Senior forward Max Willman gave Williston a 2-1 advantage, with 7:58 to go in the first, when he scored from the slot. Scroggins and Borges were credited with assists on the goal.
With just under four minutes to play in the first period, Scroggins scored his second goal of the game. It was a rebound goal from the shot of junior defenseman Jo Labrecque, who had the assist on the play.
Going into the second period, Williston had a 3-1 lead, but Head Coach Derek Cunha was not satisfied. He was not pleased with the inconsistency of play, especially in the defensive zone. He believed the Wildcats had given the Arrows too many scoring opportunities.
Six minutes into the second period, the Wildcats widened their lead to three goals when junior forward Jack Gethings redirected a shot by Willman. This was Gethings’ first goal as a Wildcat. Borges also had an assist on the play.
Less than a minute later, junior forward Rourke Ferguson increased Williston’s lead when he scored a back-door goal on a pass from senior forward Anthony Mantz.
St. Seb’s then decreased Williston’s lead to three goals when an Arrow scored on a shot right in front of Williston’s net.
With just over one minute to go in the second period, Borges brought Williston’s lead back to four when he netted the puck on the right side of St. Seb’s goal. Willman was credited with the assist.
Before the third period, with Williston holding a four-goal lead, Cunha reminded his team of a game in last week’s tournament when St. Seb’s overcame a three-goal deficit to beat Albany 4-3 in overtime. This was a reminder for the Wildcats to not think they could coast to the finish, which they did not.
In the third period, Williston scored two periods and gave up none.
The first goal came with just under ten minutes to go, on the power-play. Scroggins hit the back the net, which completed his hat trick. Willman and Borges had the assists.
The second goal came 1:01 later when junior forward Brandon Bork netted a pass from senior defenseman Seth Cupak.
When asked after the game what he thought the biggest difference was between this game against St. Seb’s and the first, Scroggins said, “We just brought the intensity, we knew we should have won the last game. It feels good to finally get some redemption.
As Williston has throughout the season, it got tremendous production from its first line. Scroggins, Willman, and Borges combined for five goals and seven assist in this game.
Tomorrow, Williston will play a double header against Nobles and Berkshire. The first game, against Nobles, is at 10 a.m. and will be held at St. Seb’s. The second game, against Berkshire, is scheduled to start at 6:30 and Nobles will be the host.