Hockey: St. Charles stymied by University School's defense
Friday, March 8, 2024
By Scott Gerfen
sgerfen@cbussports.com
St. Charles forward Hogan Mickey chases the puck during the Cardinals’ state semifinal with University School at Nationwide Arena Mar. 8. Photo: Kevin Lam
St. Charles ran up against a scoring machine Friday at Nationwide Arena in its OHSAA state hockey semifinal.
Huntington Valley University School blistered the Cardinals 6-0, scoring two shorthanded goals in the first period en route to its seventh shutout in the last nine games.
Since the postseason began, the Preppers have outscored their opponents 40-1.
“We knew they were going to be aggressive on the (penalty kill),” coach Danny Greiner said. “We were kind of doing well there in the first period, and then those two quick goals came and set us back. We were climbing uphill the rest of the game.”
St. Charles goaltender Dylan Fansler covers the post during the Cardinals’ state semifinal at Nationwide Arena Mar. 8. Photo: Kevin Lam
University School’s shorthanded goals by Anthony Messina and Sam Wade, respectively, came 40 seconds apart early in the first period. Wade, who also had two assists, set up Messina’s goal when he beat a St. Charles defenseman to a free puck. He then found a wide-open Messina.
We sometimes sit back, sometimes we’re aggressive,” University School coach Andy Gerow said. “We kind of trust these guys to do their job, and Sam made a nice read where he thought he could beat the guy to the puck, and Anthony then read off of that and got open in the slot and finished the puck.”
Wade said he and his teammates were well-prepared for St. Charles’ power play schemes.
“We knew what they wanted to do on their power play, so we knew what we had to do to get chances off of that,” Wade said. “It doesn’t matter if you’re shorthanded. As a forward, you should be trying to score it all times.”
St. Charles forward Nick Scharfenberger anticipates the puck drop in the Cardinals’ zone during the their game with University School Mar. 8 at Nationwide Arena. Photo: Kevin Lam
Friday’s win sets up a state title contest Sunday against Cleveland St. Ignatius, which advanced with a 6-4 win against Toledo St. Francis de Sales earlier in the day.
St. Charles managed just 17 shots with goaltender Noah Caballero turning all of them away. University School piled up 33 shots.
Sam Robinson had two goals for the Preppers.
Friday’s meeting marked the second this season between the two schools. University School won 3-1on Jan. 12 at the IceHaus, but both teams were not at full strength.
St. Charles earned its trip to state by defeating 2023 state champion Olentangy Liberty 4-2 in the March 2 regional final at OhioHealth Ice Haus. Liberty beat University School 6-2 last season to win central Ohio’s first OHSAA hockey title.
“I told the juniors, sophomores and freshman that we will be back here next year,” said Greiner, whose team closed the season at 24-12-3. “Remember what this feels like, and let’s not feel it again.”
Following their game at Nationwide Arena Mar. 8, St. Charles and University School shake hands on the ice. Photo: Kevin Lam