Fondy Hockey: Simply the Best

Congratulations to the Fond du Lac boys hockey team for winning their first title in school history this weekend with a 3-1 win over Superior in the state title game at the Alliant Energy Center in Madison on Saturday afternoon.

I'll be the first to admit, I'm not as versed in hockey as the other sports I've broadcasted over the years, but this run to the state title was as entertaining and enjoyable for me as any high school team I've covered.

In a day were people sometimes question a team's road to the state title, there always seem to be someone who says.."Oh their bracket was easy, or this team got beat so they didn't face the best." We'll that is not the case when it comes to Fondy hockey! Those young men, had to knock out Badgerland co-champ Appleton Untied in the Sectional Final just to get to state. No problem: 5-0 Cards. Then once in Madison it was #2 ranked and unbeaten Stevens Point in the quarterfinals. The Panthers were the highest scoring team in the state of Wisconsin with a the WHCA Player of the Year Travis Erstad and another player, Scott Pavelski, who's brother is in the NHL. No problem: Fondy 7 SPASH 3. In the Semifinals, it was #1 ranked and unbeaten Eau Claire Memorial. Goalie Rany Willis collected 16 saves in the 3rd period, some from his belly, as Fondy wins 2-1. Then in the state title game, Fondy looked across at the most storied high school hockey team in Wisconsin history. Superior. The Spartans have won a record 12 state titles and play most of their regular season against teams in Minnesota so they as good as it gets even though their record was a mere 16-9 heading into the final. Fondy is not intimidated though as they get the 3-1 win and the state title.

The thing I like about this run to Madison is that some names made headlines that maybe don't normally get the headlines for the team. Some guys that don't normally put the puck in the net contributed big time. Defenseman Jered Deli and 3rd liner Nate Hansen scored goals in the opener, while Paul Biolo was able to net the Cards first goal against Memorial when he left the penalty box to take a pass from Cody Lettau for a goal. In the title game it was Adam Hettenhaus who on a breakaway put the Cards up 3-1. Fondy's 3rd line as a whole played a large role in Madison, Hansen, Hettenhaus and Luke Baker got lots of ice time and were right there going head to head with some of the top lines in the state.

If you talk about the title though, it starts with goalie Randy Willis. Up in the press box, Willis was the talk of the tournament. His effort in the 3rd period against Memorial, which I mentioned earlier was the talk of the press box of the Alliant Energy Center. Most of the writers were asking "who is this guy and where is he going to play hockey after he graduates from high school?" Those that know much more about hockey were telling me that that was as good of a run by a goalie that they've seen in a tournament. Willis did not give up a goal in the pre-state tournaments as Fondy won all three games 5-0 and then gave up just 5 goals in Madison against the best competition had them talking.

I'd also like to thank Fondy head coach Ryan Sarazin for all of his cooperation down the home stretch of the season. Coach Sarazin was 100% cooperative with me getting ready for our radio broadcasts. If I asked him for anything, he gave it too me. Pregame interviews, stats, or anything, he made it easy for me to get ready for my broadcasts. Even when I asked what he mostly likely considered basic questions he answered them well as I tried to learn the sport a little bit better. We had one off the air conversation about rink sizes in hockey that I found facinating, but to a veteran hockey coach probably seemed very obvious. The coach spent a good five to 10 minutes enlightening me on how the size of the rink can change the way teams play the game. It was very informative to me, but to him was probably boring. He's a class guy and I appreciate everything he did for me down the home stretch of the season as I had my first taste of broadcasting hockey on the radio.

With that said if you are reading this blog and have listened to our radio broadcasts on KFIZ or are planning on listening to the podcasts at kfiz.com, please forgive me if some of my terminology was incorrect or I mixed in a few basketball references, but this was my first year doing hockey so I'm still learning. Don't get me wrong, I've always gone to the Cards games at the Blue Line, but always felt that I didn't know the game well enough to put out a good product. I know the basics from playing EA Sports' NHL Hockey on my Playstation in college. You should have seen the look on my broadcast partner Travis Jones' face when I'd mix in something like "sideline" or "The shot was no-good." I can tell you this, next season, we'll be sure to get more Fondy hockey games on the radio. and I'll be better at it...I hope!

Again, Congrats to the Cardinal Boys Hockey Team on a great year! Lots of guys are coming back.....is there a repeat in the bag? Let's enjoy the title now and think about that in a few months!