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Costa skates to second So Cal championship
by Paul Teetor
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The repeat United Hockey League Champions celebrate following Saturday’s championship game at the Staple Center. Photo by Ray Vidal |
Two seasons, two championships for the Mira Costa hockey team. An amazing feat -- but pulling off a hat trick next year figures to be even harder.
"Last year, there were 16 teams in the league. This year there were 29 teams. Next year we expect to have 40 teams," coach Scott Whitcomb said after his team’s heartstopping 7-6 win over Thousand Oaks in the finals of the United High School Hockey League.
After posting an 11-0-1 regular season record, the Mustangs got a bye in the first round of the playoffs and then won three more games to get to the final.
The Mustangs were up 6-2 in the championship game, held Saturday at the Staples Center, with just four minutes left in the game when Whitcomb replaced goalie Kasey Sitchler with his other goalie, Gary Stark, who shared goaltending duties all season long.
"I basically had the luxury of two starting-quality goalies all year long," Whitcomb said.
This time, however, with the end of the game looming, the defense let down and Thousand Oaks scored three goals in three minutes to pull within 6-5.
But forward Kyle Fukumoto scored a goal that made it 7-5. That ended up being the winning goal when Thousand Oaks scored once more with 57 seconds left to make it 7-6.
Sitchler rushed back into goal and the Mustangs held on for the final minute to capture their second straight championship.
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Goalie Kasey Sitchler dives for one of his 31 saves in the Mustangs’ championship victory against Thousand Oaks. Photo by Ray Vidal |
"Kasey Sitchler was unbelievable in goal. He had 31 saves and made some incredible gets. I can’t wait to see the tape of the game just to see him in action," Whitcomb said.
Whitcomb also praised Stark despite the late defensive swoon when he took over from Sitchler.
"Gary played well for us all year. He did a stand up job," he said.
The coach also singled out Robert Earl, who scored three goals in the championship game, and seniors John Balk and Jason Hastings.
"All three of them were great leaders for us," he said.
The Mustangs have now won the first two high school hockey championships in Southern California and are riding a 20-game winning streak going into next season.
"I think I just got lucky with all the hockey talent at Mira Costa," Whitcomb said. "Our talent is head and shoulders above everyone else." ER