TEN YEARS LATER
Brock Badgers men’s hockey and basketball teams headed to nationals together for first time since 2008
“You’ve taken teams and you want to lead them to water, but not all of them drink, this group everyone drank the water.”
MARTY WILLIAMSON
Brock men’s hockey head coach
Exactly 10 years later.
2008 was the last time both Brock men’s hockey and Brock men’s basketball qualified for the national championships.
It was also the last time the Brock Badgers men’s basketball team was crowned Canadian university champion.
Brock University brass is hoping for a repeat not only on the court, but on the ice in 2018.
The men’s hockey team is off to Fredricton, N.B., after going 6-1 in the post-season. The Badgers entered the playoffs as the fifth seed in the OUA West Division standings before sweeping aside fourth ranked Laurier and top-seeded Guelph, in two straight games, respectively, and then defeating the York Lions in three games.
Brock trailed Game 3 against York 2-0 just 4:08 into the contest but Clint Windsor made 51 stops, while Cosimo Fontana scored once and added two assists in a 3-2 comeback victory at York Saturday night.
“It the longest minute of my life watching the clock run down, and that final save by Clint,” Brock head coach Marty Williamson said. “Seeing our guys win was exhilarating and exhausting at the same time.
“I don’t know if I’ve been through a game like that — that looked so ugly at times for us and then turned so positive, and Clint was just fantastic in the third period.
“It’s been a special journey this year, it really has. It’s a special group of guys.
“You’ve taken teams and you want to lead them to water, but not all of them drink, this group everyone drank the water.”
The Badgers will now host the Queen’s Cup, a one game Ontario final against McGill Saturday night at Seymour-Hannah Sports and Entertainment Centre before heading east for the nationals which begin March 15.
Puck drop Saturday is set for 7:15 p.m. And while the Brock men’s hockey team was planning its eastern road trip Sunday night, the Badgers men’s basketball team found out they too would be heading east for the national championships.
Despite dropping a 69-63 decision to the Ryerson Rams last week, the Badgers’ 21-3 regular season record was more than enough to qualify them as a wildcard team that will head to Halifax for the eight-team finals that begins on Thursday.
The Badgers enter the USports final 8 as the seventh seed and will open play against the secondseeded Calgary Dinos at 2 p.m. this Thursday.
Brock head coach Charles
Kissi was almost speechless when the official word came down Sunday night.
“Absolutely unbelievable, incredible,” Kissi said.
“Five years of hard work has equated to this incredible opportunity.
“To be able to have a vision, and put a pretty solid plan together and then to eventually execute that plan is pretty special.”
Kissi was also quick to mention the tie-in with both Brock men’s basketball and hockey qualifying for the nationals 10 years apart.
“It’s pretty creepy but it’s fun, and I hope this time we both get a championship,” a smiling Kissi added.
Badger Bits: Windsor leads all goaltenders in OUA playoff saves with 283, and is tied for wins with six, while Fontana is tied for second in playoff goals with six and points with 11 ... The Badgers hockey team will be ranked either third or fourth depending on the result of Saturday’s Queen’s Cup Final against McGill ... Tickets can be purchased at the Brock University Welcome Desk in the Athletics Department, $5 for students, and $10 for adults ... Four-time OUA all-star Dani Elgadi — 17.3 points, 9.3 rebounds per game during the regular season — leads Brock men’s basketball.