USA Hockey Adult Hockey

Special to USAHockey.com

Winning the 2012 USA Hockey National Championship in the women’s 40-and-over division is one thing.
Winning the championship game that went into triple overtime is another.
That was the story for the Quarry Cats, a team that plays out of Floyd Hall Arena on the Montclair State Campus in New Jersey.
Lis Kostro scored twice for the Quarry Cats and then Cathy Ronan assisted on Susan Fauchere’s game-winning goal in what turned out to be a 3-2 victory over the Westchester (N.Y.) Wildcats.
As overtime followed overtime, it became a battle of mind over matter for the Quarry Cats, who were 4-1 in the tournament.
“It probably was a little of both, but more of the physical aspect,” Dawn Scarangella of the Quarrt Cats said. “Mentally, we were there and were ready to win that game [the Quarry Cats had already beat Westchester during the regular season]. When the game finally ended there was a feeling of exhilaration. It was like, ‘Oh, my gosh! I can’t believe we did it.’”
Other teams that were scheduled to play after the Quarry Cats-Westchester game might have felt some relief the game didn’t go any longer, considering the 40-and-over finals faced off at 8:30 on a Sunday morning.
“We were the first team on the ice Sunday morning,” Lisa Thompson said. “By the end of the game, in the sixth period, the [Ellenton, Fla. Ice and Skating Complex] was mobbed because people heard our game was in triple overtime.
“When we looked up in the stands, there were a lot of people. To look up and see 11:02 left in the sixth period was quite remarkable.”
What also was remarkable was the fact that the Quarry Cats were the first team that represented Floyd Hall Arena to win a national championship.
“For the over-40 women’s team to be the first team out of Floyd Hall to win a national championship added to the excitement and the accomplishment of winning,” Thompson said.
That accomplishment meant even more to Scarangella.
“We were poo-pooed on the side,” she said. “It showed that we can do it, and that it’s worthwhile for us to play hockey. Our team should be recognized just as the men’s teams are recognized when it comes to playing hockey. Because we’re over 40, doesn’t mean we’re not hockey players.”
Besides the aforementioned quartet, other Quarry Cat players were Linda Backshall, Lauren Fenton, Nikki Gaeta, Lorraine Gowans, Juliee Joshee, Karen Kent, Sandy Mantione, Claudia Marcos, Carol Rizzo and Coret Smith while the coach was David Fenton.
Lauren Fenton was an interesting story in her own right.“Lauren sent me an email four years ago, and at the time we lacked a goalie,” Scarangella said. “She was known at the rink by one of our former coaches. We had a game one evening and our goalie was sick and couldn’t play.
“I called up Lauren and, with no questions asked, she stepped in. And the next year she played for us.”
And as a result, Fenton wound up tending goal on a national championship team.
“It was a pretty intense game, and Lauren allowing only two goals was amazing,” Scarangella said.
The Quarry Cats are an outgrowth of the girls’ program at Floyd Hall Arena.

“The girls’ team was just starting out, so there were women who were new to hockey,” Thompson said. “The [women’s] program has evolved over the last decade.
“This year, because of the popularity of the girls’ program and because there was so much more interest, now we have three teams because we had so many girls who graduated out of the girls’ program. In addition, there were so many women who were new to the sport and wanted to play.”
The C-level team plays in the United Women’s Hockey League Blue Division; the C/D team plays in the UWHL’s White Division, and the D team plays non-league games against teams in the Mid-Atlantic area.
Due in large part to Marcos, the Quarry Cats eventually played in the USA Hockey National Championship in the women’s 40-and-over division.
“Claudia heard about this over-40 tournament in 2010 and we have a fair number of players over 40,” Thompson said. “She said ‘Let’s go down and see how we do.’”
The initial team failed to reach the finals, while the 2011 team did reach the finals only to lose and finish second.
“Our expectations [in 2012] were to try to win,” Scarangella said. “The last two years we came so close each time. We said ‘We’re going to do it.’ We basically had the same team we had the last three years and we did it.”
In Thompson’s opinion, winning a national championship made an indelible impression on the players’ minds.
“USA Hockey runs a great tournament,” she said. “They make it a very special event. You bring home a banner and they make it special. We knew that from being there the last two years.”
There was something else that also factored into the equation that led to the Quarry Cats finishing on top.
“We’re not a bunch of players that get together once in a while,” Scarangella said. “For many years we’ve been friends. This group of people that goes to these USA Hockey tournaments has a friendship.
“We’re teammates and friends. It gives us an edge because we know each other on and off the ice.”

Story from Red Line Editorial, Inc.