The first game of the 2017 season was anticipated as one worth watching, despite being at an ungodly hour, eight in the morning. The first clash of the ash of the MHC’s twenty-second season was between the County Clare Cats and the McBob’s Gael Winds. It was McBob’s’ Connor Kilp that would put up the first point of the season. There was no resting on his laurels however, since Clare was immediately on the offensive. Ryan “Nitro” Koppa put up the first point for Clare. A defensive clear from Luke “Fuss” Papenfus opened up the way for captain Kevin “Mac 10” MacDonald to score a point of his own for Clare. It was Kilp that was next to score and also achieve another first: first broken hurley of the season. While he was getting a new hurl on the sidelines, his goalie Nate Baumann made an epic save. After, Koppa and captain Noha “Turbo” Lydel landed back-to-back goals for Clare, McBob’s’ Brian Lynch gave his teammates reprieve with a phenomenal clear. The quarter ended with Clare on top 3-5 (14) over the Gael Winds 0-2 (2).
As a team, Clare gelled quickly and took control of the second quarter. Despite their fierce push, it was McBob’s’ Brian Marsolek that put up the first point. Feeding off of his teammate, Kilp landed a brilliant hook on Lydel, keeping the sliotar from going anywhere. When Lydel, fell short, teammate Mikey “T$” Anderson managed doubled a goal past the Gael Winds Defense. Great saves by Lynch coupled with cohesive passing from his McBob’s teammates gave his team some room to breathe. Thanks to a quick stop from Joel “JT” Travis for Clare, the Gael Winds had to settle for another Kilp point. Koppa was like a dog with a bone and kept firing at the Gael Winds Goal. It was a brilliant stop by Jill Hoverman, keeping the ball in bounds that led to another goal for Clare. The half ended with County Clare at the helm of the game 5-7 (22) over the Gael Winds 0-4 (4).
In the second half, McBob’s picked up their offensive attack starting with a point from Ty Carroll, with subsequent attempts from Kilp and Marsolek. Despite wide shots, the Gael Winds kept shooting. On the other side of the field, the Cats seemed to also be struggling to keep shots in bounds and over the bar
GAEL WINDS COULD NOT TOPPLE COUNTY CLARE CATS
By: Cecilia Nieves