Hard work and determination are what make Moriah’s Elementary School hockey team a success. When those qualities joined together with a committed parent body, a supportive school administration and some extremely talented hockey players, this team became a champion!

With a stingy defense led all season long by Captain Bryan Alter, Assistant Captain Max Srulowitz, Benjamin Barth and Zeke Chernoff, coupled with highly skilled offense men, Assistant Captains Solomon Freilich and Aaron Abecassis, and a talented goaltender, Charlie Freilich, this team cruised to the top of the northern division.

After coming off a disappointing 2011-2012 season, preseason HAYMISH Hockey rankings had few expectations for this team. But that didn’t worry first-year coaches Ari Pruzansky and Yoni Orlofsky. “At the start of the season, no one had any expectations for this kind of success. No one except our team,” said Pruzansky. “We knew we had the right mesh of talent and personality to ultimately succeed.”

And succeed they did.

This past Thursday night, the Moriah Mighty Ducks strolled into JEC to compete with the Kushner Cobras for the HAYMISH Hockey Championship. After several minutes of fiercely competitive back-and-forth hockey, eighth-grader Harry Kramer broke the tie with a beautiful, sliding shot past the Kushner net-minder. Over the course of the game, 7^th grader Joseph Tropp and Aaron Abecassis each added two goals, with Solomon Freilich and Benjamin Barth adding their own goals to complete the offensive onslaught. This was more than enough offensive firepower for stellar seventh-grade goaltender Charlie Freilich to secure the win. The final score was 7-4.

Moriah Principal, Rabbi Moshe Derlich told the Jewish Link of Bergen County, “The victory was great, but what made it extra special was the high level of sportsmanship these boys brought to the game.” These sentiments were echoed by Coach Pruzansky. “They didn’t just win, but they played the right way. Yes, they are high quality players, but more importantly, they are high quality kids.”