It was a disappointing weekend for the struggling Dartmouth club hockey team, with back-to-back losses at home. The team's home winning streak of two wins was brought to an end with a heart-wrenching loss to the Lowell Lock Monsters on Saturday and a loss to Skidmore College on Sunday afternoon.
The club team brought their best game to date against one of the top teams in the Eastern Junior Hockey League on Saturday. Led by the offensive skill of Peter Hanbury '03 and Halsey Coughlin '03, the club team jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first period. In the second however, the Lock Monsters fought back and put away three unanswered goals in three minutes. The club team added another goal by Hanbury, but in the last seven minutes of the third period, gave up two tough goals, to drop the game 5-4. Team co-captain Hanbury said after the game, "We played a great team and played up to their level. We had strong fan support which was great, and it was a heartbreaking loss. But we have a strong dedicated squad and I'm real proud of the way we played."
Defenseman and co-captain Justin Poitras '02 also had a few comments on the game, "I was real proud of the way some of our younger guys played. They dug hard in the corners, used their body and their sticks well and played a high caliber of hockey against a tough team. This was a fun game."
Up next for the team was Skidmore College. Chris Rubinate '03 made 52 saves on 64 shots as the badly out numbered club team dropped a 12-9 decision. With only two lines against a full squad from Skidmore, the team managed to put nine on the board. The offense was led once again by Hanbury along with senior Bill Burgess, while sophomores Jon Webster and Tony Balsamo continued to sacrifice their bodies for the team. Transfer Alex Tee '03 led the defence, with help from Steven Joseph '05. Christa Teplicky '03 played strong despite the rough and dirty game that the Skidmore team brought to Thompson. Rubinate dropped the gloves late in the third period after a questionable call involving a player from Skidmore running him and scoring a goal. A melee ensued which resulted in the club team being short handed, placing the fast paced offensive battle just out of reach.
Injuries could hurt these weekend warriors, as the physical toll from this weekend was high. Rugged sophomore Tony Balsamo is questionable due to an elbow injury received in the Skidmore game that required 4 staples, and Coughlin sustained a deep cut by a skate in the game against the Lock Monsters. The team looks forward to completing their season next weekend at home against Babson College on Saturday and a strong club from Union College on Sunday.
Asked what to expect out of the team next weekend. Poitras said, "Expect two good games against good teams. Its our last weekend and for some of us its our last games ever in a college setting. I know I want to go out and have a lot of fun, and I know the rest of the guys do too."
