Ava DiNola
After a devastating loss in the 2024 state championship final against Cheshire High School, the EHHS Boys Co-Op hockey team took down Cheshire in this season’s state championship. On March 23rd, the teams met up at Quinnipiac University, for a rematch of last year’s season, ready to play their final game of the season. The Yellowjackets were able to finish off their record-breaking season and bring home a state championship for the first time since 1998.
After both Cheshire and East Haven won during the semi-final round of the playoffs, the teams knew that they would be meeting again for a rematch. Senior Assistant Captain Cameron LaCroix said, “[Last year’s loss] made us want to win even more, especially because it’s on a bigger stage.” Cameron explained how last season’s defeat stuck with the team and fueled their determination throughout the year. The team’s mindset was to just stick to the game playing, because they knew that they could win.
They had the fuel and the mindset, but they needed to handle the pressure. Cameron thinks the team was “[V]ery confident. We were looking to play for each other. We preach that in the locker room.” The message of teamwork became a huge piece of their season; it became their motivation every time they stepped on the ice. Throughout the season the team leaned on each other with their unbreakable bonds. Cameron said, “Everyone had super strong bonds with each other. It was like a family.” He added that those relationships off the ice made them stronger during games, “And I think that helped the team, just being able to play for each other, and just being so close with each other.”
The coaches also kept the team motivated. Senior Tanner Walsh credits the coaches for their motivation, “Our coaches really kept us motivated after what happened last year and we just kept going from that and we built off it.” He recalled how the coaching staff constantly encouraged them to push harder and reminded them how much progress they have made, “From the first practice Coach Bill [Demetriades] was saying that we have another good group and we needed to just finish what we started last year.”
While the coaches helped the team stay motivated leading up to the championship, they needed motivation in the final game no matter what. When asked about a key moment that defined the win for Tanner, he said “Honestly it was the first goal that Lorenzo [Defillio] scored. I knew if we just got to their goalie early and just ruined his confidence, we would be good. He really kept them in their previous game against Amity. After that we were up 3-0 and I knew that we had to just keep going.” Tanner took away from the past four years: “To just honestly cherish every moment and just go 100%.”
This championship is a testament to the unwavering dedication and resilience of our players and coaching staff. Their hard work throughout the season has culminated in this well-deserved victory, bringing immense pride to our schools and communities.