(JEC sports) In a year with a repeat of the month of Adar, perhaps it was only fitting that the YMSSA Middle School White Division championship game would also be a repeat performance. Once again an undefeated JEC Thunder team would be taking on the 6-2 Hillel Heat, this time on Monday March 11 at TABC in Teaneck.
The two teams, who have developed a close rivalry over the last two years, both entered the game with star players capable of stealing a game for either team. For the Hillel Heat, it was eighth grade goalie Eddie Dweck who has proven all season long that he is capable of single handedly shutting down teams, while for the JEC Thunder it was eighth grader Aharon Erez who has proven to be the driving force for the JEC offense throughout most of the last two years.
Right from the beginning it seemed that JEC showed up prepared as they quickly put lots of pressure on Hillel goalie Eddie Dweck who made multiple saves. A few minutes into the game, JEC defenseman Justin Taub managed to keep the puck in at the point and get a shot on net. While the shot missed its mark and went high and wide, the rebound came off the wall and out on the other side of the net to Zev Rosen who buried the puck to give the JEC Thunder an early 1-0 lead which they rode to the end of the first period.
As the second period began, the Heat began to slowly crank up the offensive pressure and wrestle control of the game back from JEC. After two consecutive penalties were called against JEC, the Heat managed to have a man advantage for close to three minutes of play, and a full two man advantage for almost 30 seconds of play. While Hillel managed to generate numerous strong shots on net during their advantage, goalie Mosher Kaminer was more than up to the challenge as he continuously made save after save to keep the Heat off the scoreboard. As time dwindled in a closely played second period, leading scorer Aharon Erez was moved back to defense, where with one minute left, he managed to intercept a Hillel clearing attempt and placed a high rising wrist shot past the Hillel goaltender to give the JEC Thunder a 2-0 lead to close out the second period.
Entering the third period, each team traded opportunities early, yet neither team seemed to control the play. Just before the halfway mark of the third, Hillel’s Isaac Escava managed to get around the JEC defender at the point to create a 2-on-1 opportunity for Hillel. He found Eli Gindi in the high slot with a perfect centering pass, and Gindi made no mistake, beating the JEC netminder with a rising one timer to tighten the game at 2-1.
While it seemed that Hillel had finally found a way to get back into the game, JEC managed to survive the pressure. With just under five minutes left to play, JEC managed to keep the puck in at the point, and after a strong low shot on net by Zev Rosen, Jacob Krause banged home a rebound to give JEC a 3-1 cushion. With just under two minutes left in the game, Joey Krausz one timed a great centering pass from Rosen down low, and put a shot through the legs of the Hillel netminder to give JEC a commanding 4-1 lead.
In one final push, Hillel pulled their goalie with roughly a minute left, and Krausz put in the empty netter to seal the Thunder’s 5-1 victory. With the win secured, the JEC Thunder managed to once again finish their season with a perfect 10-0 record, as they did last year!
Congratulations to all the players, coaches, parents and school administrators who managed to make this year such an amazing success!
