On Sunday, October 12, the Sewanee ice hockey club played in its inaugural game against Vanderbilt, whose program dates back more than 25 years, at the Ford Ice Center in Antioch, TN. The Tigers were down 5-4 in the third period when they opted to pull the goalie (removing the goalie in exchange for an extra attacker). Vanderbilt scored on the empty net, winning the game 6-4. With over 30 saves on the part of Sewanee’s goalie, and shots on goal by Selby Austin ’17, Kipper Worthington ’18, Jack Grimm ’17, and Peter Eisenbrandt ’17, the Tigers played an excellent game, especially considering this was the first time these 15 players had ever been on ice together.
This past Sunday, October 19, Sewanee saw their first win of the season against MTSU. The Tigers won 3-1, with two goals by Kipper Worthington ’18 and an exciting breakaway by Ben Lucas ’18.
After spending freshman year talking about starting an ice hockey team at Sewanee, Martin Davis ’17 and Selby Austin ’17 saw their dream come to fruition over the summer. Davis contacted coaches from Vanderbilt, Memphis, and Ole Miss, finding out how those programs came to be. Austin rallied the troops, seeing how much support and interest there would be in a program on the mountain. With 20 players total, Sewanee has a full roster, and is starting out in a “stepping stone” league for the SECHC (South Eastern Collegiate Hockey Conference). It hopefully won’t be long before we see them playing the likes of Alabama, Tennessee, Auburn, Ole Miss, and more.
The interest is there, as is the talent, but the results of the funding hearing held on October 15th have left a lot to be desired, being described by Campbell Reid ’17 as, “drastically disappointing”. Currently the guys have been paying out of pocket to buy ice time at the Ford Ice Center just outside Nashville, the newly completed home of the Nashville Predators. At this point in time, it is looking like the ice hockey team has not been granted as much funding as they would have hoped, and while the team will keep playing, they will have to continue to drive themselves for the time being. Ben Lucas ’18 says that, “we’re still trying to get a bus as soon as we can and we’re hoping for a fan bus as well.” Between the cost and the 50-minute travel time, the team has only been practicing once a week on Sunday afternoons so far this year, and never had the whole team been on ice together prior to the first game against Vanderbilt. Despite their lack of experience as a team on ice, Austin said that the chemistry is there, “because a lot of us are friends prior to skating.”
Looking towards the rest of this season, and the future of the ice hockey program on the mountain, the team is looking to grow its numbers and get involved with the community. You may have seen some of the guys out a couple weekends ago wearing their Sewanee hockey jerseys, and you will be able to purchase one for yourself, choosing your own number and picking the colors. These will be perfect to wear to the games, as the team is hoping to have fan buses running in the near future. And if you need any more incentive to go support the team play what this New England-native would argue is one of the best sports on Earth, the Ford Ice Center also apparently has $2 beer specials (obviously, 21+). If you’re not 21 yet, just think of all the Chipotle you can bring back with you. Besides, what else would you do on a Sunday afternoon?
Like them on Facebook to keep up with games, jersey sales, fundraising efforts, and other pertinent information: https://www.facebook.com/sewaneehockey