The Road to the Cup has begun. This past weekend, the St. Louis U. High Hockey team faced off against Chaminade, Rockwood Summit, and CBC. SLUH won two of its three games, safely securing a spot in the next round of the playoffs.

“It's the playoffs and every game matters,” said junior Max Sextro. “We didn't want Monday against CBC to be a win or go home so we really needed to win against Chaminade and Summit. We were just trying to pull our games together and get a win.”
Having tied Chaminade 3-3 earlier this year, the Jr. Bills looked to take the win when it counted the most. However just 43 seconds into the game, a penalty by sophomore Barret Grawe gave Chaminade a man advantage on the power play. The Jr. Bills strong defensive play held off the Red Devils attack and successfully killed the powerplay. 

With only 1:21 left in the first period, Chaminade started the scoring, taking advantage of a 3-on-1 with time winding down in the first period. 

But SLUH countered. Senior captain Matt Warnecke scored with 6.6 seconds left after a toe drag created space for him to get a high shot over the right shoulder of Chanminade’s goaltender. 

“We went down 1-0 late in the first and I went out there with 15 seconds left in the period and we forced a turnover. Then, I put a good shot towards the net,” said Warncke. “It was big to get even before the period was over and after that we started to get going.”
The second period was a battle of defense with neither team able to break the tie until sophomore Henry Searfin scored with 40.5 seconds left for a 2-1 lead; junior Ben Winklemann had the assist.

Although down 2-1, Chaminade was not going away. With 12:31 remaining in the game, the Red Devils had possession in SLUH’s defensive zone. A Chaminade defenseman ripped a shot from the blue line that clanked off the post and richotected away from goal. 

Shortly after that scare, the Jr. Bills stepped on the pedal in the offensive zone and added two quick goals to seal their win against Chaminade. 

With 11:53 remaining, Warnecke netted his second goal of the night with a shot from the right faceoff circle that found its way just inside the left post to make it 3-1.

“I went out in the third after Serafin scored to put us up 2-1 in the second and knew if we got another one it was going to be over,” said Warnecke. 

A Chaminade tripping penalty just seconds after the third goal gave the Jr. Bills the man advantage, and they wasted no time scoring. A goal by senior Brock Massie, assisted by Winkelman and Warnecke, secured the 4-1 win. 

“(The win) was a huge boost of confidence and it had a ton of energy,” said Sextro. “It really boosted us into Saturday.”

SLUH faced Rockwood Summit on Saturday at 8:00 p.m. at Affton Ice Rink. 

In the first period, Rockwood Summit found the net once, giving the Jr. Bills a deficit to make up over the next two periods. With a win Saturday night, the Jr. Bills would give themselves an almost automatic berth into the next round of the playoffs. 

“We knew we needed to win again at Summit,” said Sextro. “It was a tough start and we got down early but we knew we were a lot more skilled than them, we were just playing down to their level. We knew a win was just a win.”

After a scoreless second period, SLUH stepped on the gas in the third. Winklemann’s goal with 10:50 remaining tied the game at one. But the Jr. Bills were looking for more than a tie against the 10th seed in the playoffs. And the captain, Warnecke, answered the call once again. With less than 2 minutes left, Warnecke beat the goalie blocker side to give the Jr. Bills a 2-1 lead and secure them a spot in the next round of the playoffs. 

“We were all happy,” said Sextro. “We knew we were going to move on which was huge for us after last year. A lot of the guys remember being eliminated in the round robin.”

After two consecutive wins, the Jr. Bills faced CBC on Monday night, their final game of the round robin. A 1-0 loss to the Cadets, who outshot SLUH 28-11, gave the Jr. Bills their first loss of the round robin, but they still advanced in the playoffs. The No. 5 seed, SLUH, will face the No. 4 seed, Marquette, who they have played twice earlier in the year, losing both of those contests by a combined three goals. 

“We need to focus on shutting down their two offensive players who have scored almost all their goals especially against us,” said Sextro. “We have lost to them twice but we all know in the locker room we can beat them. We all believe.”

The Jr. Bills will face the Mustangs on Friday at 8:25 p.m. and Monday at 7:20 p.m. The winner will advance to play either De Smet or Rockwood Summit. Attendance is limited to two family members per player.