March 3, 2017 at 1:13 p.m.
RIA to host WAHA Bantam 3A state tourney
RIA to host WAHA Bantam 3A state tourney
There is just one difference this time around: Rhinelander is hosting the eight-team tournament at Rhinelander Ice Arena.
The Hodags qualified for last year's tournament and then went 1-2, but this season, the squad feels it has something to prove because it got into the tournament with an automatic bid as the host city.
"It's exciting to be hosting it," RIA head coach Wil Losch said. "The path to hosting is a little bit different, so I think we come in with an attitude where - the host rink always gets an automatic bid - so I think the onus is on us to perform well and show those other teams that we deserve to be here."
If getting an opportunity to play in a tournament for the state championship wasn't enough for the budding teenagers, they also get to compete in front if their friends and family.
Not many athletes get the chance to play for a state title, and even fewer get to do it at their home rink.
"There's not many kids in Rhinelander that get the opportunity to play in a state tourney and then get to do it on home ice," Losch said. "I think it's a little bit bigger deal."
Six players from last year's team are back - Conor Pequet, Jared Arno, Donovan Fritz, Madi Losch, Harlan Wojtusik and Harrison Shinners - and they are looking to better than their fourth-place finish from 2016 in Sheboygan.
The goal is to not only play better, but the RIA players are hoping to win the whole thing.
"Last year was really exciting because we actually qualified for state, it wasn't like state, where were automatically in," said Madi Losch, the lone girl on the team. "So this year we all set goals at the beginning of the year to win state. So, I hope we achieve that goal."
RIA enters the tournament with a 21-13-3 record, but the only team in the tournament they have faced is Marshfield, and hold a 2-1-1 record against them.
Wojtusik leads the team in scoring with 104 points, including 63 goals, while Shinners has 36 goals and 11 assists and Pequet has 35 goals and 34 assists.
RIA certainly has some talented scorers, but they also believe they have balance to keep opponents from focusing on certain players.
"Harlan certainly dominates the score sheet," Wil Losch said. "I think we are a little more balanced than the score sheet says. He gets set up a lot by his teammates. Our No. 2, 3, 4, 5 scorers are capable of putting the puck in the net too. So I'm not too worried about them keying on one person. For us to be successful, we're going to have to have six forwards producing over the weekend."
Several players from last year's team went on to play significant minutes for the Rhinelander High School squad, including Bridger Flory and goaltender Seth Stafford.
Winning and getting to major tournaments like states can often encourage kids to come out for the team or to try the sport, and RIA is hoping that continues this year.
"There's a lot of turnover," Wil Losch said. "Most of these kids weren't out here last year. Even myself - I was a hockey dad on that team, but I wasn't the coach. It does have a different feel, but even from those [six], 'OK, is this becoming a pattern now?' I hope it generates some excitement in our squirt-age kids and they aspire to do that when they get older, too."
RIA opens the weekend against Beaver Dam/Waupun, which beat them in the semifinals last year.
That game starts at 1:15 p.m. on Saturday.
Each team is guaranteed two games on Saturday and one on Sunday.
Nick Sabato may be reached at [email protected] or via Twitter @SabatoNick.
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