By Amanda Peck
Staff Writer
The Coppell hockey team rose above their expectations for the 2009-10 season and finished with an impressive record of 36-7-3 and a third-place finish in the Texas State Cup Championship.
Before their season even started, the Cowboys earned the title of Summer League Champions with a 12-0-1 record. They also competed in the preseason tournament and came out with a 9-1-0 record.
“I was really excited for the season to start after winning the Summer League and doing so well in the preseason tournament,” senior captain Charlie Busch said. “It is a lot easier to go into the regular season after such a successful preseason.”
Coppell kicked off its play with a good start that only continued to progress as their season went on. They ended their regular season on March 4 with a record of 15-6-2 and qualified for the playoffs.
In what could be considered the first round of playoffs, the Cowboys played Plano West to see if they would qualify for the City Championship Tournament. They ended up winning the two games they played against the Wolves and moved on to beat Southlake Carroll 6-2 in the City Championship Tournament semi-finals.
The Cowboys then played Allen in the finals of the City Championship. Coppell beat the Eagles 4-2 and were guaranteed a spot in the Texas Cup State Tournament. Although Coppell beat both Southlake and Allen in the City Championship, all three teams qualified for the State tournament.
“Beating Southlake, Allen and Plano West put us in a really good position to start the state tournament because they were probably our biggest rivals during the season,” senior assistant captain Brandon Harley said.
In the state tournament, Coppell beat Flower Mound 7-1, lost to Southlake Carroll 7-3 and beat Plano Sr. 6-2 which left Coppell in third place, Allen in second, and Southlake Carroll in first.
This year was the first time since 2003 that Coppell has made it to the state tournament, so the team was satisfied with their season overall.
Not only did the team have a good season, the goalie, senior Derek Willms, was nominated for the Varsity Gold Division “Goalie of the Year”.
“It was my last year to be a part of Coppell hockey, and I just wanted to do everything I could to give my team the best chance to win,” Willms said. “Being awarded Goalie of the Year was just the cap to a great season. I will always remember this season, and I want to thank all my teammates for making it a great one.”
Willms, along with 8 other seniors, will be missed next year as they were a very talented group of players who helped lead the team to the state tournament. However, there are positive predictions for next year’s team as there are still a significant number of players moving up to varsity along with new members coming in.
