SIUE Wins 5th MACHA Championship in 8 Seasons

Cougar Forward Ryan McTigue Named Playoff MVP

  Champion. 1 word that can validate a career for an an individual and a word that can never be taken away from a team, a moniker that defines a team's accomplishment in a given season. The SIUE Cougars clinched their 5th MACHA League Championship on Sunday, February 21st against rival Missouri State, a team who beat SIUE in their last shot at glory in 06-07. The following is a recap of the Cougars drive for 5 during their 3 game championship weekend.

Veteran's Day Remix as Cougars Ream SLU 9-2

  The Cougars have had great luck against the Billikens of Saint Louis University this season, winning on Veteran's day 11-5, and 3-1 in Webster Groves, MO. On Friday, the Cougars looked like the 3rd period team we saw on Veteran's Day.  SIUE drew first blood on a Ryan McTigue goal, scored on determination and grit provided by the Blue Line, banging home a rebound left by SLU goaltender Trey Spiller. SLU would score a power play goal with 4:10 left in the premier period. Ending 1-1, the Cougars outshot SLU 16-7.
  SLU put a short-lived scare into the Cougars, as they took the lead at even strength with just over 4 minutes into 2nd period. 1 minute later, Adam "I dont believe in Haricuts" Gernigan blasted a slap-shot through traffic in front of the net, tipping off of the blade of Tim Dolan, tying the game a 2. This would start a string of 8 consecutive Cougar goals, starting with 2 by Alex Edwards and a backdoor layup by Jared Ippolito before the end of the middle frame, putting the Cougars up 5-2 after 2, shots 29-11.
  The Cougars were relentless, blasting in 4 in the 3rd, 2 each on Trey Spiller and Jason Magusiak. Cory Beck and utility man Brandon Janczak scored within a minute of each other, sending Spiller to the showers. On a picture perfect forecheck, Cory Beck and TJ Henson harrassed a SLU defenseman, Beck stealing the puck and passing to Henson, who buried a backhand shot between the legs of Magusiak. Geoff Grimes scored the Cougars final goal with 2:19 left, giving the Cougars a 9-2 win in Game 1. Brandon Becker had a solid warm-up before the 2nd round, stopping 16 of 18 for the win.

Tim Dolan Hat Trick leads Cougars past Iowa 6-3

  SIUE split the season series with the Iowa Hawkeyes, losing Game 1 7-1 and taking Game 2 3-0. The Gold team played Game 1 with many players sick from the pre-game meal, and with a day's rest, got a split of Iowa.
   Alex Edwards lit the lamp first for SIUE, working in all alone and beating Jeremy Posner low right with just under 8 minutes remaining in the first. Iowa struck right back, scoring at the 7:14 mark past Becker. Although the period ended 1-1, SIUE outshot Iowa 16-9, even after 2 Iowa power plays.
  Sensing the momentum, Coach Thatcher called on the red line to start the middle frame, and in the blink of an eye Captain Mike Dolan sniped top-cheese on Posner, 6 seconds into the period. The Cougars kept firing on Posner from all angles, and would find paydirt with a Tim Dolan tip from an impossible angle, giving the Cougs' a 2 goal lead. The Hawkeyes again would answer quickly, cutting the Cougar lead in half. Cory Beck would send the Cougars into the locker room up by a pair, scoring on what seemed to be a harmless 1 on 1, but beat Posner glove side with 8:12 remaining. Both teams would squander power plays before the second period elapsed, as it ended 4-2 SIUE.
   In the 3rd, both teams knew the next goal would be pivotal. Each team traded chances, and the physical play increased, as neither team was willing to back down. Midway through the 3rd, Brandon Becker turned back to his roots, and threw a two-pad stack on a wide open Iowa shooter, stoning him on a glorious backdoor opportunity. After winning the ensuing faceoff, Tim Dolan broke through all of Iowa's personnel and scorched Posner on a breakaway, giving SIUE a 5-2 lead. Iowa had their chances to come back, including a double-minor with 6:04 remaining in regulation. SIUE held steady for 3:57 of the 4 minute kill, but the Hawkeye's tallied, giving them a pulse with 2:07 left. Tim Dolan netted his first bullshit-career hat-trick, scoring on an empty cage, giving SIUE a 6-3 victory. Becker played outstanding, stopping 34 of 37 Hawkeye shots.

Sweet Revenge for SIUE, Blasts Mo State 5-1, McTigue MVP

   It had been 4 seasons since the last time SIUE lost Missouri State in the MACHA Gold Championship back in 06-07. Only 6 players on the current SIUE Gold squad had played in that game: Mike Dolan, Ryan McTigue, Brandon Becker, Bret Edwards, Adam Gernigin and Dan Guarino, and they wouldn't let that happen again. This season, Missouri State had the chance to win both tiers of the MACHA, as Missouri State - White beat RMU-Peoria 5-3 in the Silver Championship in the earlier championship game.
   From the drop of the first puck to the end of the first period, this game was dead even on the board in both the shot category and the scoreboard, as neither team could convert after 20 minutes of play.
   Missouri State started the 2nd Period with a power-play, but would finish the period playing from behind. Immediately after the Ice Bear power-play expired, SIUE tilted the ice toward goaltender Mike Poepping. Chances came in waves, the first started off of a strong forecheck by TJ Henson, stripping an Ice Bear of the puck deep in the zone. Henson then dished the puck to Ryan McTigue, who threw a wrist shot through traffic, off of Cory Beck while being pushed into the net, and past Poepping. Jared Ippolito doubled the lead on a short-handed breakaway, getting Poepping to bite on a backhand deke, bringing the puck back to his forehand and sliding the puck into the empty cage. The second period ended 2-0, shots 37-30 SIUE.
   SIUE went into the final period of the season knowing they were 20 minutes away from bringing the MACHA Championship back to its former home for 4 consecutive years. They also knew that Missouri State has been a resilient club in its history, as they came back from a 3-0 deficit to win their first championship against 6 of these Cougars. McTigue tightened the SIUE stranglehold on the game, pounding home a rebound to put the Cougars up 3. Time couldn't drain any slower, and the Ice Bears would tally with 12 minutes remaining, which would be Becker's only mistake this game. He was as cool as the other side of the pillow, stopping 42 of 43 shots. For a 5 minute span, the Ice Bears were all over SIUE until they coughed up a power-play, by taking two penalties of their own. Nick Wehrle broke through on the power play, pounding a 60-foot howitzer past Poepping, regaining a 4-1 lead for SIUE.
  The final goal of the game summed up the season for Geoff Grimes. Through persistance and hard work, any player can create their own breaks. Grimes, who throughout the season was a smashmouth gray line player, was moved up to the Yellow line in Kendall Price's absence due to an injury sustained against RMU-Peoria. After a solid shift, Grimes dumped the puck in to get a change, and on his way to the bench, he would watch Mike Poepping fall to the side of the net, as a puck redirected off a partition and found its way into the net, and cemented this Cougar team's place in MACHA history.
   With a 5-1 victory, SIUE notched its 5th Championship in 8 years. Ryan McTigue was named the Gold Playoff MVP, and Brandon Becker was unbelievable, stopping 101 of 107 in the 3 game tournament. This weekend personified what Cougar Hockey is all about: 21 players coming together as one unit, going all the way.