by Richard Graham

 

Losing to the University of Missouri - St. Louis Tritons in last year’s National Collegiate Roller Hockey Association championship final didn’t sit well with Lindenwood University’s players and coaches. Determined to avoid the collective sour stomach that the team suffered in 2009 upon losing to their Great Plains Collegiate Inline Hockey League rivals, the Lions were on a mission to regain their Division I title in 2010. There were, however, some bumps in the road in Lindenwood’s march to the finals this year, starting with their very first game at the Silver Creek Sportsplex in San Jose, California.

 

The Lions were dominated by the State University of New York at Buffalo Wings in that game, losing 7-2, and taking needless penalties that led to three Wings’ goals. Lindenwood then defeated Michigan State, 5-2, before tying UMSL, 4-4, and limping into the elimination round with an uninspiring 1-1-1 record. A 10-0 shellacking of Hofstra and a 9-1 walloping of Rhode Island, however, got Lindenwood back on track –just in time to meet up with UMSL again. It was anyone’s game after the second period, when Lindenwood led, 4-2, but goals by Travis Bokina and John McGuinness 34 seconds apart broke the game wide open in the third period, and the Lions mauled the Tritons’ chances for back-to-back NCRHA Division I championships.

 

The win over UMSL gave the Lions a matchup with a team that had gotten onto the radar screens of knowledgeable collegiate inline hockey fans – the Arizona State Sun Devils. The Sun Devils began the Western Collegiate Roller Hockey League season with a loss, but then reeled off 19 straight wins to set a WCRHL record. While many people were focusing on Lindenwood, UMSL, Buffalo and Michigan State as favorites to win the tournament, Arizona’s march to the Division finals was as impressive as it was under-the-radar. The Sun Devils burned rubber in six straight games, defeating Rhode Island (10-1; North Texas (6-4), Florida Atlantic (4-2), Rutgers (4-2), Michigan State (5-4) and Buffalo (9-1).

 

Could the upstarts from a state known more for coyotes and cacti defeat the roller hockey juggernaut of Lindenwood University, a program that had won seven NCRHA Division I championships in the past eight years? That’s what the spectators in the bleachers and lined up against the glass surrounding the rink came to find out. Armed with air horns, cowbells (more cowbell!) and some of the healthiest-lunged fans in the country, the large Lindenwood contingent with their matching black T-shirts made sure they’d be heard.

 

After player introductions and a recording of the national anthem over the rinks public address speakers, the Lindenwood fans didn’t have long to wait to make their voices heard. Just 13 seconds, in fact. That’s when John McGuinness scored on an assist by teammate Michael Inouye. McGuinness, the Lion’s assistant captain, had spent almost as much time in the penalty box as on the rink in earlier games, and it was clear his focus in this game was on the Arizona State net. Four minutes and 41 seconds later, McGuinness scored another goal, on the power play, with an assist by Travis Bokina, as Sun Devil Stephen Sperry sat in the penalty box for interference.

 

With 3:24 remaining in the first period, Bokina scored for Lindenwood, assisted by Michael Inouye and Joseph D’Amico. The period ended with the Lions up 3-0 on 12 shots, but perhaps even more telling, with Arizona State held without a shot on goal. (Shots evened out in the second and third periods, with the Sun Devils getting 12 and the Lions 13, but on the scoreboard, it was almost all Lindenwood.)

 

Four minutes and 24 seconds into the second period, the Lions increased their lead to 4-0 on a goal by Sean Sullivan, with “Johnny Mac” McGuinness getting the sole assist and his third point of the game. Late in the period, Sun Devil Captain Alex Dodt was whistled for tripping, and the Lions made him pay just 1:11 into the third on a power play goal by Sean Sullivan, assisted by Inouye and Bokina, making it 5-0. Tyler Koressel salvaged a measure of pride for Arizona State, scoring the Sun Devils’ only goal of the game on assists by Brian Ganz and Will Heinze. That spoiled Lions’ goaltender Dave Thomas’s shutout, but he probably didn’t mind, because as the time clock wound down and the final buzzer sounded, his Lindenwood teammates raced from the bench and mobbed him in joyous celebration.

 

John McGuinness, Travis Bokina and Sean Sullivan of Lindenwood were named the game’s three stars.

 

“Their depth killed us; the full bench rolling at us the whole time, and we were gassed probably half way through the second period,” said Arizona St. Coach Nick Boyarsky. “I’m proud of the boys for picking up and actually hanging with them and not folding.”

 

Boyarsky singled out his team’s goaltender for praise.

 

“Clay Taylor was just absolutely phenomenal in that game; not giving them anything,” Boyarsky said. We gave up a couple of power-play goals to them, and there’s not a lot he could do about that, but on odd-man rushes and breakaways, he was there the whole time and doing his job.”

 

“It’s disappointing, but we did have a good tournament,” Taylor said. “We did a lot better than most people thought. We came in thinking we could beat them, but they were the better team today. We look forward to being here next year, with the exact same team, but hopefully, a different outcome.”

 

Sun Devil forward Tyler Koressel said that his team was pleased with their overall performance in the tournament, despite the loss in the final.

 

“We didn’t really expect to be here, and we’re just happy to be in the national championship game,” Koressel said. “We never gave up the whole entire time; we’re actually pretty happy with how we played, even though it was a pretty lopsided score. We were pretty exhausted. At least, I was. We were stoked to be here; hopefully we can continue that next year. This is my freshman season, so I’ve got at least four more years left.”

 

Ian Mackie, Lindenwood’s assistant coach, said the Lions’ win was all about desire.

 

“We just wanted it,” Mackie said. “The first period, we allowed no shots against. Last year left a sick feeling in our stomachs; there was no way we were coming home this year with a sick feeling in our stomachs. Last year, that team put a little dent in people’s minds, to let ’em know, ‘Hey, we’re here.’ This year, they turned some heads, played outstanding hockey, skated fast, but a short bench kills you in this game.”

 

Alex Dodt, Arizona’s captain, wouldn’t use his team’s short bench as a crutch.

 

“It definitely affected us, but I’m not going to use it as a big excuse,” Dodt said. “Sure, if we had a bigger bench we would have played better, but we weren’t ready for ’em. Skill-wise, I absolutely think we could hang with them, but we were not ready for their system. We were in the box a lot, but they weren’t penalties like stupid hacks or something. We were getting beat because of the way they were moving the puck and the way they set up their breakout and the way they pressured our breakout.”

 

“We played our best game at this tournament against a team that we really respected,” said Lindenwood Coach Ron Beilsten. “That team ran up a bunch of goals on a great Buffalo team, so our team was really expecting that out of them – we came in prepared. We were good on our special teams again today, and that seems to be a big deal.”

 

When it comes right down to it, the entire Lindenwood team was special.

 

“It definitely takes a little bit to let go of the sting of losing that game, especially when you feel like you should have been in it a lot more than you were. But it is what it is. A lot of things we could have done differently, but we’re definitely happy that we made it that far.” – Alex Dodt, Arizona State’s captain

 

“This is the first time that there have been this many teams contending. I know Lindenwood took it, but them being beaten in round robin is unprecedented. Arizona State, Buffalo, Michigan State, UMSL, Lindenwood – all had a very legitimate chance of winning. And it’s never been like that; it’s been two teams – maybe. Lindenwood got beat in the B division, which is the first time that that’s ever happened, so in general, I think that parity is increasing, which is very good for the league and this tournament is a lot of fun.” Alex Dodt