SJP shocks BC High in OT
FRAMINGHAM — After missing his first shot attempt, senior defenseman Will Perry didn’t miss on the second go-around, sniping the game-winning goal in overtime as fourth-seeded St. John’s Prep continued its remarkable Super Eight run with a wild 3-2 victory over No. 2 BC High.
“Completely unforgettable,” Perry said. “I already kind of forgot it, so I guess not that. I kind of blacked out once it went in.”
Understandable. After rifling a rocket into the BC High net through traffic, Perry raised his arms in shock, as his teammates chased him into a corner, the crowd roaring him on.
“Again, I’ve been (coaching) a long time,” St. John’s Prep coach Kris Hanson said. “This is my 13th year here, and I did seven years before that at Salem High. So 20 years of doing this. Certain games always stick out in your memory, as kind of being special, and I think this is going to be one of those instant classics.”
After sleepwalking through the first few minutes of action, St. John’s Prep (13-5-5) was provided a gift, as BC High turned the puck over in its defensive end. Ned Malolepszy hauled the puck in, then took off on a breakaway, sniping the upper-left corner of the cage to give them a 1-0 advantage just 5:21 into action.
Then, after BC High (15-5-4) was whistled for cross-checking at the 2:57 mark of the second period, St. John’s Prep converted 16 seconds later, as Malolepszy notched his second goal to make it a 2-0 contest.
However, whenever you go up against BC High, you know they’re going to find an answer.
Just 3:35 later, BC High freshman Ryan Flaherty took a shot on net, which deflected off St. John’s Prep goaltender Noah Dorsey-Sorofman. However, the puck immediately bounced to an oncoming Michael Dragon, who collected the rebound and fired it into the net. Suddenly, BC High was only down 2-1.
With 5:34 left in regulation, St. John’s Prep was called for tripping. Half a minute after the call, BC High junior John Logan uncorked a bullet, finding the net to even the score at 2-all, sending the game to sudden death overtime.
About one minute into the extra session, Perry attempted a shot from just inside the blue line to no avail. Just seconds later however, the puck came back to him.
“I just collected it, and I looked over to my partner,” Perry said. “But I didn’t see anyone coming to me, saw I had space. … I just put my head down and I shot it, and it went in.”