Page 26 - WLC YEAR 2 (FINAL WITH ADS)_Neat

?We are extremely proud of the entire Little
Capitals organization,? AYHL
commissioner Gene Palecco said. ?We
congratulate them on their accomplishment
and we know that the Little Capitals will be
great ambassadors for the AYHL at their
national championship events.?
The U16 team battled hard in their
championship game against the Tampa
Scorpions, to whom they had lost 5-4 in a
shootout in the round robin. The Caps
were leading 2-1 with 13 minutes left, but
could not hold off the Tampa onslaught in
the final period, losing 5-2.

The U18 team was down 4-2 to the Tampa
Scorpions in the third period, but fought
back to tie it up 4-4 and force the game into
overtime. It took two extra fames to decide
the championship. Tampa finally broke the
14U A ND 15U WIN stalemate and scored in the second OT to
seal the heartbreaking 5-4 defeat. ?It could
SOUTHEA ST DISTRICT have gone either way,? Jablonic said. ?Our
goalie Jeremy Skaife played incredible
game. The shots were 2-1 in their favor. He
CHA M PIONSHIPS was fantastic.?
He said that best part of the weekend was
seeing the camaraderie between the four
he Washington Little Capitals just 18 second into overtime, Brandon Little Caps teams. ?It was great to see all
T put in dominant performances Davis scored to win the championship 3-2. the kids from different teams pulling for
at the Southeast District each other,? he said. ?We?re building a
?They never gave up,? said Dan Jablonic,
playoffs in Huntsville, community here.?
Little Caps Hockey director. ?They showed
Alabama this spring, with all four teams
what it means to be a Little Cap. Each ?This will be a lifetime memory,? Jablonic
(14U, 15U, 16U and 18U) making it to the
player?s compete level, mental toughness says. ?How many kids can say they went
championship game and the 14U and 15U
and character propelled them to victory.? to nationals? Very few. They can count
teams winning Southeast District titles.
themselves among the best of the best.
The 15U team was undefeated in Rocket
The Little Caps teams combined for an
City, beating Team Maryland (3-2), ?This is also a great chance to showcase
11-5 record over the course of the
Thunder Hockey (3-0) and the Carolina Jr. our program, and let people know what the
tournament and outscoring their opponents
Hurricanes (6-3) in the round robin. In the Little Caps are all about,? he added. ?Our
54-35.
championship game against the Hurricanes, philosophy of building a competitive
?To get to Sunday and have all your teams the Little Caps out-chanced Carolina 18-9 program by focusing on long-term player
play, that was a good day for us,? said Little and outshot them 34 to 25. Owen Morgan development is working. We are growing
Caps Hockey Director Dan Jablonic. ?It?s a scored two goals while Michael Kramer in the right way, with teams that are more
great moment for our program. You can and Reid Leibold added one apiece, for a and more competitive every year at every
look back and say, all the hard work and the 4-2 win. level.?
kids doing the right thing paid off.?
The 14U championship game was a
nail-biting thriller, as the Caps faced a
rematch with a Thunder Hockey team that
beat them 3-1 in the round robin. Thunder
dominated a good portion of the game, but
goalie Lincoln Crosby put on an incredible
performance to keep the Little Caps in it.

Down 2-1 with just 20 seconds left in the
game, Brad Freyberger got the puck to
Tyler Mercier who scored the equalizer ?
putting the game into sudden death. Then,

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