Pirates’ Katz ready for final chance at county hockey crown
By: Justin Feil
Jeff Katz remembers few of the details of his first Mercer County Tournament final with the West Windsor-Plainsboro High South ice hockey team.
He knows it was close. He remembers some calls going against the Pirates. And he remembers not playing a second of South’s 3-1 loss to Notre Dame three years ago.
"Win or lose, I wanted to get in that game," said Katz, who was a freshman then. "Now I have my chance."
The Pirates’ senior goaltender stopped 33 shots in a 4-2 win over Hopewell Valley in one MCT semifinal Wednesday on the heels of turning in a 4-0 shutout of top-seeded Pennington in the MCT quarterfinals Monday. He’ll try to do the same for the No. 8 seed against a second prep team, as No. 2 seed Hun defeated No. 3 Notre Dame, 3-1, in Wednesday’s other semifinal. Hun defeated Steinert, WW-PS’ state tournament first round opponent Tuesday, 11-1, in a Monday quarterfinal.
Hun and WW-P South meet 6 p.m. tonight at Mercer County Park. It’s the last crack at a county crown for Katz, who with fellow senior Andrew Shaparin, are the only two Pirates to have suited up for a MCT final before. They want to win this one.
"That would be huge," Katz said. "I’ve never won anything this big, and I’ve been on so many teams. I’ve never won anything worth talking about. This would mean a lot to me."
Between the pipes at the opposite end will be Joe Wirjosemito, who stopped 28 Notre Dame shots to preserve the Raiders’ county chances. It’s Hun’s first county tournament in four years, and they’re proving they’re hungry for it. Hun scored 1:12 into the game off a steal by Joe Pietras and Nick Carter scored with less than four minutes left in the second period to give Wirjosemito all the scoring he’d need.
"The guys played real hard especially when we went down to a 5-on-3 in the second period," said Hun head coach Francois Bourbeau, whose team is 11-5-1. "They had a 5-on-3 and we were able to hold it with no goals. It was a big turnaround. Then we scored quickly.
"When we were shorthanded, it was 1-1. We were able to keep it, and score right away to make it 2-1. It was a big boost. Then we started the third period with one man down. It was a tough game. They offered a good challenge. My goalie did a really good job. He came out and did the best he could."
Katz isn’t one to lose sleep thinking about the other team or its goalie, but he admits the Raiders present a tough challenge. He was among the interested observers of the Hun-Notre Dame game.
"They’re a really strong team," he said. "I watched Notre Dame put up a fight. They played them pretty even. I guess Hun got a few lucky chances or played harder. If we bring our ‘A’ game, we can give them a fight."
If there’s one area that the Pirates can count on, it’s Katz’s goaltending. Now in his third year starting for the Pirates after Mitch DePace - who started the MCT final three years ago transferred to Princeton Day School, Katz was his usual strong self against Hopewell on Wednesday.
"It was a typical big game for him," said WW-PS head coach Brian McGurney, whose team improved to 12-9-1. "Everyone has down games. But when it’s on the line, he shows up. I’ve been probably the biggest member of his fan club for a while. He’s played a lot of games for us.
"His first year, he played in Mitch DePace’s shadow. Now it’s his time. I wouldn’t want anyone else in my net."
Katz wasn’t thrilled with his start to Wednesday’s MCT semifinal. South and Hopewell skated to a 0-0 deadlock after one period, but the Bulldogs got on the board less than five minutes into the second period off a scramble in front of Katz.
"I was kind of slow in the beginning," Katz said. "Then they scored that one goal because I didn’t have that many shots on me. And then everyone stepped it up and that motivated me. It hyped me up and I started playing better."
Katz stopped 19 of 20 shots in the third period, allowing only a 5-on-3 goal with 1:55 left, but the Pirates already had a big enough cushion thanks to a quick comeback in the second period.
Four minutes after Hopewell’s first goal, Justin Berger skated through the middle and put a wrist shot in to tie it. It was the first of four power-play goals for WW-P South. Jeff Katz, the goalie’s namesake forward, scored 1:16 later for the go-ahead goal, then started off the third period with his second of the game, the game-winner, with 13:03 left. Jason Lee added the Pirates’ fourth goal 35 seconds later.
"We’re finally playing the way we’re supposed to be playing," McGurney said. "We’re positionally sound. You play good teams and you still get a win. You play smart hockey and you’re still going to get the win against them."
It may be some of the best hockey that the Pirates who lost six straight games in the middle of the season have played all year.
"Second and third period, absolutely, there’s no doubt about it," McGurney said. "The first period, we were a little shaky. Second and third periods, we played like we’re capable of in all three zones. I’m just pleased with them. I can’t complain about anything."
As it has in the past, the South hockey team came up with an upset win in the MCT. Again, though, it’s an upset to everyone else, not the Pirates, who always at least recently believed they had finals potential.
"I definitely thought it was possible," said Katz, the goaltender. "If you asked me in the middle of the season, I might have been a little shaky on it. Everyone’s come together really well. At the beginning of the tournament, I definitely would have said we could make it."
"For the past I don’t know how many years, these guys have been pulling out wins they’re not supposed to," McGurney added. "Do we win all our games? No. But, there are a lot of upperclassmen on this team, and they step it up when it was most needed. I’m not trying to make it sound like we’re patting ourselves on the back, but I’m not surprised we made it this far."
Hun’s Bourbeau isn’t surprised that his team is in the finals either. There’s a different look from the players after they were again permitted to play in the tournament. And the Raiders are playing well again after losing four out of five games toward the end of their season.
"I think my guys are playing real well," Bourbeau said. "In the beginning of the year, they were playing best. The middle was so-so. Now, they’re about where they belong again. The guys are pretty much where they’re supposed to be. They come out and play well when it’s important. They want to win this. They’ve come on really strong with a lot of intensity."
It should be a matchup of two teams who both want a county crown badly. Both are ready for the challenge.
"Our team is coming together big time," Katz said. "I couldn’t ask for anything more. We’re peaking at the perfect time."