Pennington girls basketball
By: Mike Molaro
Even though it is the holiday season, the Hopewell Valley Central High School boys ice hockey squad was not in a festive mood.
The Bulldogs were on the wrong end of a three game losing streak three games that, to a man, they know they could’ve won. They were angry and ready to take out their frustrations against their next opponent.
Somebody had to pay, and unfortunately for Nottingham High, the Northstars were next on HoVal’s schedule. The Bulldogs blitzed Nottingham’s defense for 41 shots on Dec. 23 en route to a 13-3 domination at Ice Land in Hamilton. For the Northstars, it was a case of wrong place, wrong time.
"We practiced pretty hard leading up to the Nottingham game," HoVal coach Rob Siris said after the triumph. "Our intensity level was high. We had the frustration of having two games slip by.
"We were ready for anyone today."
Senior defenseman Gregg Amato led the offensive barrage with five goals and two assists, while freshman forward Tom Rush had three goals and two assists, junior forward Charlie Knights added a pair of goals, sophomore forward Eric Doran had a goal and four assists, freshman defenseman Drew Scanella had a goal and two assists, and junior forward Alex Laughlin had a goal and an assist.
Senior forward Pete Carroll and sophomore defender Tom Kawalec each contributed three assists, junior forward Hank Whitman had a pair of assists, and senior goalie Jake Lurie made six saves as the Bulldogs (4-3) scored early and often.
"We scored 50 seconds into the game, and it just went from there," Siris said. "We were disappointed with the three losses because we had a chance to win each of those games. The guys were ready to play hockey.
"We changed our lineup a little bit for this game. We knew we had to be more physical. We were moving our feet, and that made it difficult for us to get hit. It was nice to have all our guys back in the lineup."
HoVal reviewed the setbacks to Notre Dame, Morris Hills and Bridgewater and understand what adjustments needed to be made.
"After every game we watch film," Siris said. "We also sit with the statisticians to see where our shots and the opponents’ shots are coming from. We do this as a team in a classroom and see what works and what doesn’t."
With a week between games until they skate at Toms River South this afternoon, the Bulldogs primary objective during the off time was to stay sharp.
"We gave the guys off for Christmas and the day after, but we’ll practice every day this week to keep our game legs," Siris said. "We’ll do a lot of team activities. The guys have definitely been focused, and they know what needs to be corrected.
"Against Notre Dame, we made bad decisions, and that was corrected. Against Morris Hills, we ran out of gas because we were missing three guys. Bridgewater was our game, but we didn’t clamp down defensively. The guys are learning what it takes to play defensive hockey."
The 4-3 record has Bulldog fans excited about what could be, but the head coach knows there could’ve been a couple of more Ws.
"I have high expectations," Siris said. "I would’ve liked to have our entire lineup against Morris Hills and Bridgewater. I have no doubt we would’ve won both games at full strength.
"I want to see wins late in the season and in the state tournament. A tremendous positive for this team is that it is evident we are learning after each game."
HoVal beefed up its schedule this season in preparation of what it hopes is a nice ride in the state tournament.
After Toms River South, the Bulldogs skate against West Windsor-Plainsboro South at 4:45 p.m. Monday at Ice Land.
They then take on North Jersey power Montclair at 5:15 p.m. Jan. 8 at Ice Land.
Siris believes his team will have an opportunity to pull out a victory in each game.
"Realistically, from here on out, we have the ability to win every game," Siris said.
"The talent is there."

