News

Update 3/12/20: USA Hockey has canceled the 2020 National Championships.

With their win of the Tier I New England District Regional 2019 Championship, South Kent Selects Academy’s U15 Wallingford Hawks team has punched their ticket to the USA Hockey National Championships.

The U15 team has had a fantastic 50-8-1 season so far, and is currently ranked #4 in the nation. It is no surprise that during the New England Championships, against the top teams in our district, including the Northern Cyclones, the Rhode Island Saints M, and Seacoast Spartans, that they went undefeated, earning themselves the New England title.

“We are extremely proud to have been able to win our region and have the chance to compete for a National Championship this spring. From Day 1 of training camp in August this group has been fully committed to each other and the process. The way that they push themselves day-in and day-out is impressive, and we cannot wait to keep building for what is our ultimate goal in Plymouth this April,” said Ryan Ward, U15 Head Coach. “Right now we are working every day to fine tune our game and keep getting better. The boys are never satisfied and continue to prepare for what is ahead of us. All of the credit goes to the players and our leadership group for making sure our team is laser focused on the task at hand.”

“The feeling of winning Regionals, and punching our ticket to Nationals, was great. We put in lots of work at the start of the season, which I think showed at Regionals. Knowing so early on that we were heading to Nationals has been a huge advantage, allowing our coaches to work on player and team development, and giving them the opportunity to try new things that would be too risky if we did not already have that assurance,” said team captain Vinny Borgesi, fourth form. “Winning Regionals gave us the boost of confidence we needed, and stepping on the ice at Nationals is going to be a great feeling. This is our time to show the world what South Kent Selects Academy U15 is built for. We have worked so hard all year for this one week in April. Every single kid on this team has eyes on the prize and is pumped up.”

“This season has been a dream come true. We are a team full of great players, but more importantly great people. From day one, we all came in with one common goal- winning a national championship. Over the course of the season we have worked towards making that goal a reality. During this time we bonded and created life long friendships while winning a lot of games, learning lessons, and developing as players and young men. We are very happy with our success so far, but we are not close to being done yet. Plymouth is a business trip for us, not a vacation. We are going to take the hill,” said Tyler Stern, fourth form.

The USA Hockey National Championships U15 games will be held in Plymouth, Michigan from April 1st-6th.

Good luck to our student-athletes as they compete at the highest level of youth hockey in the nation! Congratulations for making it to the tournament and fighting for another national title – you have made us proud.