Oxford varsity hockey team earned a much-needed victory over Avondale on Wednesday, Jan. 19 after a couple of week’s of uninspired hockey.
Junior Nolan Chapman’s hatrick was enough for the Wildcats to earn a 7-4 victory over Avondale, pushing their record to a league best 6-1-1.
Before facing off against Avondale, the Wildcats went 1-2-2 in their previous five games, including their first league loss, a 6-3 defeat at the hands of West Bloomfield on Saturday, Jan. 15.
They started slow against the Yellow Jackets, falling behind 1-0 with under 11 minutes left in the opening period. Senior Tim Perks tied the game at one midway through the first and Chapman scored his first goal of the evening late in the first, giving Oxford the 2-1 lead.
The second period saw a ton of action, with five goals being scored between the two teams. Avondale tied the game at two twenty seconds into the second period and had an answer everytime the Wildcats took the lead.
The game was tied at four through two periods.
Sophomore Stephen Fritz and senior Nick Hocker each scored for Oxford in the second period.
The Wildcats came out and dominated the third period, outshooting the Yellow Jackets 18-4 and scoring three goals in the period. Chapman tallied the game winning goal at the 12:35 mark, and he and Hocker added insurance goals with less than two minutes left to give the Wildcats the 7-4 win.
Fritz finished with a goal and two assists in what head coach Dave Hague called his ‘best game of the season.?
Senior goalie Patric Hanson finished with 18 saves in 22 shots.
‘We took advantage of some opportunities and It was nice to get the win tonight and our boys finished the game strong,? Hague said.
The Wildcats improved to 7-1-1 in league play after they dominated and shut out Troy 8-0 on Saturday, Jan. 22.
Eight different Wildcats recorded goals and sophomore Oscar Alexandersson stopped all 10 shots he faced.
‘We were real proud of the boys tonight and they played three complete periods,? Hague said. ‘It was our best effort of our season. We played within our system…the boys earned it.
Oxford will face Bloomfield United on Thursday, Jan. 27 at the Detroit Skating Club before heading home to face Port Huron on Saturday, Jan. 29.