Milkman's Two Goals Lead Bulldogs Over Wootton
With the win, the Churchill Bulldogs secures its lead in first place with a 10-1 record.
Photo By: Howard Bernstein / GamedayMD.com | VIEW GALLERY
Spencer Trone was tested early and often during the game against Wootton and came up big on many plays.
Photo By: Howard Bernstein / GamedayMD.com | VIEW GALLERY
Wootton and Churchill played a hard fought game that included a lot of solid hits all over the ice.
Photo By: Howard Bernstein / GamedayMD.com | VIEW GALLERY
ROCKVILLE, MD - It was a packed house at the Rockville Ice Arena Friday evening as the Wootton Patriots matched up against the Winston Churchill Bulldogs on the ice.
Undoubtedly most of Wootton and Churchill's fans were in attendance as the rink barely had any available standing room. Fans lined the rink chanting, "Let's go Pats" and "Let's go Churchill."
Churchill and Wootton gave their fans all they wanted and more. With solid hits all over the ice and end to end hockey action, the fans were energized with the excitement on the ice.
The student support was overwhelming at the rink and brought the rink to life.
Wootton, Churchill and Whitman have been battling for the top spot in the Montgomery East 2009-10 Ice Hockey League.
Churchill entered the game with a 9-1 record having moved to the top spot within the last week defeating Gaithersburg/Magruder. Wootton entered the game with an 8-1 record having lost to Whitman in their last game 6-2 on January 22nd.
Wootton opened up the game scoring with 10:55 left to play in the first period as senior forward Alex Markenson sent the puck past Churchill's goalie Spencer Trone and found the back of the net. Josh Bretner assisted on the goal. Markenson has one goal and ten assists on the season.
With 6:08 left in the first period, Churchill forward Curtis Milkman beat Wootton's senior goalie Keith Zegowitz for the equalizer. He was assisted by forwards Matthew Spivak and Zach Sherker. With the score 1-1, the intensity on the ice increased even more.
Defenseman Matthew Senker put the Bulldogs on top with 1:20 left in the 1st period. He was assisted by forward Zach Arden.
As seconds ticked down in the first, Bretner skated down the ice and shot. As the buzzer sounded, the puck sailed right past Spencer Trone and into the net.
As the Wootton fans leapt to their feet and the players celebrated, the Patriots thought they had tied the game going into the second period. Unfortunately for the Patriots, the goal was called off and Churchill managed to maintain a 2-1 lead at the end of the first.
Milkman struck again in the second period with 8:01 left in the period. This time he was assisted by center Connor Martin.
Less than a minute later, the Bulldogs tallied again. This time it was David Finder who received the puck from Alexander Dourian and went 1v1 with Zegowitz increasing Churchill's lead by three.
Churchill opened the third period with a comfortable 4-1 lead, but relaxing on the ice was in no player's mind as the Wootton Patriots could easily slip right back into the game. Left wing Eric Samuels provided an insurance goal for Churchill with 10:48 left in the third with an assist by defenseman Nick Springer.
A disciplined Churchill team was now leading 5-1. With the feeling of this being a championship game, neither team was letting their guard down.
Bretner who had been on fire all night with his on target shooting finally defeated Trone and scored a power play goal to put the Patriots within three.
The third period seemed to turn in Wootton's favor as Churchill found themselves defending in many power plays situations. Churchill showed a resilient defense with back to back Wootton power plays clearing the puck numerous times down the ice.
Despite their efforts, the long range accurate shooting by Wootton was too much for the Bulldogs to handle and senior defenseman Jonah Guiton blasted a shot on the left side of the rink for another power play goal with 4:16 left in the game. Bretner earned the assist on the goal.
That was all the scoring either team would have and as the final horn sounded, Churchill skated off the ice with a well-deserved 5-3 win. Churchill now owns the top spot in the league with a 10-1 record. Wootton dropped to 8-2 and is in third place.
PLAYERS OF THE GAME:
Curtis Milkman, Winston Churchill Bulldogs - Milkman's solid play on the ice and two goals helped to lift his team over Wootton.
Spencer Trone, Winston Churchill Bulldogs - Trone was a wall for the Churchill defense. Tested all night by Wootton he stopped many shots and earned the win for his team.
Josh Bretner, Wootton Patriots - Bretner, a solid all-around hockey player, demonstrated strong stick skills and a long range shooting ability. He had one goal and two assists in the game.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
Shots on Goal
Churchill - 26
Wootton -32
Churchill Stats
Curtis Milkman - 2 goals
David Finder - 1 goal
Matthew Senker - 1 goal
Eric Samuels - 1 goal
Connor Martin - 1 assist
Alexander Dourian - 1 assist
Matthew Spivak - 1 assist
Zach Sherker - 1 assist
Zach Arden - 1 assist
Nick Springer - 1 assist
Wootton Stats
Josh Bretner- 1 goal, 2 assists
Alex Markenson - 1 goal
Jonah Guiton - 1 goal
NEXT GAMES:
Churchill
February 1, 2010 vs. Severna Park @ Bowie 4:30 PM
Wootton
Febuary 5, 2010 vs. Richard Montgomery/Rockville @ Rockville 9:25 PM
