Boys’ Hockey Cruises To “Spyoung and 0”

After narrowly defeating The Brooks School last Wednesday, Exeter boys’ hockey became the only undefeated team in New England. Big Red entered Saturday’s game with a perfect 11-0-0 record, facing off against a historically strong St. Paul’s program. Through a great team performance, Exeter rose to the occasion and defeated the Pelicans by a score of 6-2.

Upon capturing their twelfth consectutive victory, many returning players were quick to acknowledge former teammate Spenser Young. Young, who has since left Exeter for a higher level of hockey, wore number 12 in his two seasons at Exeter. To commorate their departed defeseman, the boys have been referring to their record as "Spyoung and 0."

Exeter has more tough games ahead, but the team is not too concerned about the future. When asked about the team’s 12-0-0 start, senior captain Ted Hart said that the team has, “done a good job of taking the season one game at a time.”

“We approach every game the same way no matter what our record is.”

Senior assistant captain Sterling Weatherbie echoed Hart’s opinion, saying, “We approach every game the same way no matter what our record is.”

Last season’s team had a similar start to the year, winning 9 out of their first 10 games. Though Hart admitted that last year’s team had a little more talent, he noted that “this year’s team has much more depth, and we understand that a full team effort is needed to win games.”

Lower Graham Rutledge said, “We have a skilled team, but our skill don’t reflect our record.” Instead, Rutledge credits part of the team’s success to their great chemistry.

Upper Peter Christie agreed with Rutledge, noting that, “The chemistry on the team is definitely what's helped us the most. Everyone is willing to battle for each other, and it's hard to beat a team with that much camaraderie.”

“I've never played on a team that's been closer than we are,” said upper Trevor Cosgrove. “We're probably a little too close, but who cares?”

Cosgrove attributes their undefeated record to the team’s tough mentality on defense as well as offense. “The strongest aspect of this team is the two way play of every kid on this team. We work hard in the offensive zone and work even harder in the defensive zone.”

Hart shared Cosgrove’s sentiments, saying that a lot of the team’s success came from the fact that, “Everyone plays hard at both ends of the ice, and we get contributions from all four lines.”

A team is not complete without a strong goaltender, and players were quick to acknowledge post-graduate Bryan Botcher’s great work.

Exeter looks to conquer arch rival Andover on Saturday.