Worthington — Just a year ago, the idea of Thomas Worthington leading a Capital Hockey Conference (CHC) division might have seemed far-fetched. But after Friday’s win over rival Worthington Kilbourne, the Cardinals’ confidence is soaring, and their unbeaten start to the season is impossible to ignore.
Thomas Worthington head coach John Pishowicz credited the team’s improvement on the ice to the resilience of a program rebounding from a 5-22-1 season.
“All of our coaches and players said they weren’t satisfied after last year. Anyone can look at our record and say it isn’t what we wanted,” Pishowicz said. “In the offseason, every one really pulled on the rope. We went from a team that can survive in close games to one that can be elite and win these games.”
With the whole city of Worthington in attendance, the Cardinals displayed confidence against the Wolves. Thomas Worthington never trailed, and after a pair of early third period goals, the Cardinals pulled away for a 6-2 victory over Kilbourne in Friday’s Wotown Showdown.
Rhett Hall opened the scoring in the first period, forcing a turnover on the shorthand and turning a man disadvantage into a breakaway goal, giving Thomas Worthington a 1-0 lead after one period.
Keagan Crowley, who scored two goals on Friday, spoke about the Cardinals chemistry and growth offensively.
“This team is so much better, and we are playing as a team,” he said. “We really developed our forecheck, which helps put pressure on teams and score goals.”
After Mark Schreiber tied it for Kilbourne in the second period, Crowley answered with a goal to put the Cardinals back in front, 2-1, heading into the third.
The Cardinals pulled away in the third period with two quick goals, one by Lucas Bernardi and Crowley’s second, scored in less than a minute. They added a pair of empty-net goals from Rhett Hall and Noah Stark, while Kilbourne managed a late goal from Jacob Lee, capping Thomas Worthington’s 6-2 victory.
No one at Thomas Worthington needed motivation to face Kilbourne, but the implications of such a big win provide a boost of momentum heading into the post-Thanksgiving stretch.
“If we keep playing like that, I don’t think we will lose,” Crowley said. “This was a great win for the guys.”
It’s the second straight win for Thomas Worthington over rival Kilbourne, dating back to last season, and it keeps the Cardinals atop the CHC White Division alongside Dublin Coffman, with six points through three games.
With a massive crowd on hand, Pishowicz looks at the community as a whole as the team, not just the guys on the ice.
“There is an administration that has bought in and really helped us get where we are at,” he said. “Last year, we didn’t get very many students here, but now I think we showed we deserve to get a crowd here. If we can feed off this energy each game, we are going to be fine.”
The Cardinals face Linsly in non-conference play on Saturday, while the Wolves take on Springboro before closing the weekend against Olentangy Berlin on Sunday.
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