Men's hockey loses in semis

As you walk into the Kreitzberg arena, you look around and the seats are empty because everyone is on their feet standing up. You can barely hear yourself think because of all the cheers. You then realize: This is Norwich hockey.

"The fans are unreal, they really picked it up this year. Everyone is supporting us, and it really means a lot to us," said Kyle Thomas, a 21-year-old sophomore from Waltham, Mass., majoring in criminal justice.

People from Northfield and the surrounding towns come to support Norwich hockey. The students are also great supporters.

"Coming out to see everyone packed in the house before the game even starts really gets us going and motivated," said Thomas.

The Cadets show how motivated they get from the crowd through its undefeated in-conference record at home this season.

"This year has been pretty well, we are doing better and getting better as each game comes," said  Alex Dubois, a 23-year-old sophomore from Sherbooke, Que. Canada, majoring in business and accounting.

This year the Cadets won the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) championship. They beat Babson College two years in a row in the championship game.

"That was a huge game for us, because everyone thought that if we would have lost that game we wouldn't have received a bid for the [NCAA] tourney," said Thomas. "We really needed to win, so we wouldn't have to wait to hear from anybody else."

"The Babson game was real tough, going into OT [overtime] we felt like we had the momentum," said Shane Gorman, a 19-year-old freshmen from Trumbull, Conn., majoring in communications. "We knew if we continued to play hard we would get the win."

The Cadets began the run for defending their National Championship title after beating Curry College in the first round, 5-1, at Kreitzberg Arena. The team then travelled to Plattsburgh State College on March 12 for the NCAA quarterfinal game.

"We have already played Plattsburgh twice this year and lost to them both times," said Gorman. "We know what to expect from them, so I think it's our turn to come out and win."

"We feel real confident despite the two losses; we are a much different team now than before," said Dubois before the match. "It's not much to do in preparation. We know what to expect and it's just going to be a battle of who wants it more."

The Cadets won in overtime, 3-2. Senior and captain Chad Anderson scored the game-winning goal.

"This season is everything I expected. Some people were saying that we would not make it back or be in the position we are right now because of the talent on the team," said Thomas. "But we use it as motivation, and now we are expected to be back in the frozen four."

The Cadets took their talents to Minneapolis, Minn., where they played in the semi-final game on March 25. They faced off against the Green Knights of St. Norbert College. The Cadets came up short in a hard fought battle, 3-2. The Cadets out-shot the Green Knights 41 to 18.

The Cadets finished the season 22-6-3 overall and 15-1-3 in conference.