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Health & Fitness

Wildcats Top Mt. Carmel 9-3

The University School boys hockey team defeated Mt. Carmel (Illinois) 9-3 Thursday evening.

After a poor performance in the second round of the Joe Raymond Memorial Hockey Classic at the Nagawaukee Ice Arena in Delafield, the hockey team redeemed itself Thursday by playing well and winning the tournament's consolation game. USM thrashed Mt. Carmel High School of Mt. Carmel, IL., 9-3.

The Wildcats wasted little time in taking the lead. In the Mt. Carmel zone, USM's Kenny Servis knocked the puck away from a Mt. Carmel player and it went to Ashton Wackym. Wackym skated past the Mt. Carmel players and moved in on the Mt. Carmel goalie, Kyle Gulley. Wackym made several deft stick moves to deke Gulley. He stuffed the puck through the opening his stick handling created to give USM the lead at 2:10.

The Wildcats never relinquished that lead, and they soon widened it. Wackym got the puck in center ice, skated it into the left circle of the Mt. Carmel zone, and took a shot. Servis got the rebound and passed it out to Joey Judge at the right point. Judge took a shot. Corey Roadhouse tipped it to Wackym near the left goalpost, and Wackym tapped it into the net at 9:24.

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USM scored again during a power play at 14:58 of the first period. Wackym got the puck along the boards in the Mt. Carmel zone. He passed it back to Nathan Burke on the blue line. Burke gunned a low shot through a screen in front of Gulley to make the score 3-0.

The Wildcats went further ahead in the first thirty seconds of the second period.  Roadhouse grabbed a loose puck and skated into the Mt. Carmel zone. He made a drop pass back to Burke who was trailing him. Burke immediately fired it into the net.

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The Wildcats made it 5-0 at 8:58 of the period. Steven Swanson grabbed the puck just outside the Mt. Carmel zone and passed it to Duncan Brown. Brown skated into the zone and fired it at Gulley. The puck rebounded to USM's Ben Walker, who was racing toward the net, and Walker gunned it past Gulley.

USM scored again at 10:25. Taking a face off in the Mt. Carmel end, Wackym drew the puck back to Burke at the blue line.  Burke blazed it past Gulley for his hat trick.

USM's six-goal lead put the clock on running time and caused Mt. Carmel to change goalies. Zack Swanson replaced Gulley in the net.

Mt. Carmel slowed the clock for awhile by scoring the next goal. In the USM zone, Ronan Flaherty passed the puck to  Luke Glover in the left circle. USM's goaltender Bryan Botcher moved out to block Glover's shot. The puck rebounded in front, and Connor Russell shot it in at 10:47.

The clock went back to running time two minutes later. In the Mt. Carmel end, USM's Swanson knocked the puck to Walker along the boards. Walker pulled it off the boards, moved toward the net, and rifled it in to make the score 7-1.

Less than a minute later it was 8-1. Justin Brandt passed the puck to Hayden Brown. Brown skated into the slot and fired a low shot through the legs of Mt. Carmel's Swanson at 13:23. It was the USM freshman's first ever varsity goal.

Mt. Carmel scored again late in the second period. Flaherty took a shot from the point. During a scramble in front of the USM net, the Wildcat defenders did not lift opponents' sticks, so Mt. Carmel's Will Schackmuth tapped it to his teammate Brent Novosel who tapped it into the net at 16:26.

Midway through the third period USM changed goalies replacing Botcher with David Routier. The only shot Routier faced went past him during a Mt. Carmel power play. Sean McDonell passed the puck to Rick Fordon at the top of the left circle. Fordon snapped a shot over Routier's glove at 7:43.

USM scored its final goal in the game's final minute on a power play. Hayden Brown passed the puck to Wackym at the point. Wackym took a shot, and the rebound went to Brandt in the left circle. Brandt shot it in at 16:26.

In the game Botcher made 11 saves, and Routier made zero saves for USM. Gulley made 15 saves and Swanson made 18 saves for a total of 33 saves for Mt. Carmel.

Mt. Carmel is now 18-25. The victory improved USM's record to 7-5. The Wildcats have time to practice to further improve their play. Their next game is not until 5 p.m. on Jan. 7 when they face off against Monona Grove at USM.

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