On Saturday, Feb. 26 the Monroe Multi Sports Complex was packed waiting to see the biggest hockey game in Monroe history: Monroe vs. St. Mary Catholic Central. An outrageous number of fans all gathered in suspense to see who would win between these two longtime rivals.

     The final score of the game was 4-2 with Monroe coming out on top. It was a tough game for both teams and the pressure was on with the stands completely full leaving only standing seats available.

    In just the first period a long shot by senior Michael Durkin was followed and put in net by junior Gino Taormina. Durkin went on to score a power play goal for Monroe in the second period but was followed by a goal for SMCC as well.

     Junior Gary Simmons scored right away in the third period and was assisted by the team captain, senior Alex Compean.

     “They came out hitting, and we took it and battled back,” said Compean, speaking of the game as a whole.

     SMCC took many shots, but it seemed as if nothing could get past sophomore goalie Andrew Zuckerman. The fourth and final goal for Monroe was a slap shot made by Durkin putting Monroe at a pretty comfortable 4-1 lead in the final period.

     With just two minutes left in the game, SMCC scored placing some fear in the Monroe fans and team. However, Monroe never let up and played hard until the end. Hard play did result in two penalties for Monroe. Falcons coach Jim Baker pulled his goalie giving his team an extra player and quite an advantage for the last 49 seconds of the game, playing six vs. three.

     When the final buzzer sounded, it was clear that all the hard work these players put in wasn’t at all in vein. The team celebrated tastefully as one taking much earned pride in its now 17-7 record as only a two-year varsity program.

     “I think we played the way we wanted them to play,” said one Monroe coach, Jason Clements. “We worked for three years for this game to prove we could compete with a team that can recruit for players.”