WINTHROP — Not many people would’ve given the Rockport boys hockey team much of a chance in Wednesday evening’s Division 4 playoff opener at Winthrop.
Heading into the tournament as the No. 28 seed with just four wins to their ledger, the Vikings were tasked with taking on a talented Northeastern Conference power that won 12 games and earned the No. 5 seed in the bracket.
Despite what was on paper, Rockport played lights out for three periods, putting a real scare into the hosts before ultimately falling just short in overtime.
Hayden Wood’s goal with just over a minute to play in regulation knotted things up, but Winthrop’s Paul Ferrara ended things in OT with one decisive strike for a 5-4 victory.
“I’m very proud of our players,” said Rockport head coach Carl Ellis. “Coming back from a two-goal deficit, coming back again to tie it at 4-4 with just a few minutes left … they never quit. I’m just thrilled with the effort.”
It was a heartbreaking way to go out for Rockport, but certainly not a result they should hang their heads about.
After the two teams skated to a scoreless start through one period, Winthrop would take its first lead in the second only to watch as Rockport tied it up two minutes later on the first of two goals for freshman star Matt Heath. Heath took a pass across the middle from Grayson Minich and rifled a wrister home.
Winthrop would regain a 2-1 lead after two periods and increase that to a 3-1 advantage early in the third — but Rockport still refused to go away.
Heath notched his second and final tally 20 seconds after Winthrop built its two-goal advantage, punching home a rebound in front. Then a minute later, Matt Coughlin knotted things up again off another rebound.
The frantic third period continued from there, with Winthrop’s Domenic Spinale putting his team back in front in crunch time. It appeared that might seal the deal, but Wood dropped one home with just over a minute remaining to force OT.
Vikings’ goaltender Aaron Crompton, a senior who has battled injuries this season, came up clutch with a number of big saves throughout to help keep his team in it. He finished with 30 total stops on the evening.
Rockport finishes up the year at 4-17-0, but will have a momentum building performance to lean on as they head into the offseason.
— Sports Editor Nick Giannino contributed to this report. For a more in depth story on this playoff game with more quote please visit us online.
Winthrop 5, Rockport 4 (OT)
Division 4 state tournament, Round of 32
at Larsen Arena, Winthrop
Rockport 0 1 3 0 | 4
Winthrop 0 2 2 1 | 5
Scoring summary First period: None
Second period: W, Joe Pumphret (Paul Ferrara), 4:53; R, Matt Heath (Grayson Minich), 2:28; W, Braedon Loughnsbury (Mike D’Ambrosio), 1:56.
Third period: W, Nikita Rossi (D’Amborsio), 9:11; R, Heath (Matt Coughlin, Ben Sperry), 8:49; R, Coughlin (Ryan Fazio), 7:34; W, Domenic Spinale (Pumphret), 2:45; R, Hayden Wood (Minich, Coughlin), 1:06.
Overtime: W, Ferrara (un), 5:26.
Saves: R, Aaron Crompton 30; W, James Lyman 20.
Records: R, 4-17-0; W, 13-6-2.