Verona hockey ready to defend state championship
VERONA, Wis. (BVM) — In a year when so many athletes have lost their season, it is hard to think about anything other than playing.
Being able to go out and compete as a team is something that will never be taken for granted again. However, the appreciation for just being able to play has not quelled the expectation or goal of many teams to achieve success.
In fact, it has enhanced that desire to win because of what it has taken players, coaches and parents to get back to a point where competition can occur.
That is where the Verona High School boys hockey team finds itself right now as it enters the postseason as a No. 2 seed: happy to be playing but wanting to win again.
“They just wanted to play for the high school and wear the sweater at least once,” Wildcats head coach Joel Marshall said. “Now we’re trying to shift gears like, ‘OK that was fun, but now let’s shift gears and try to win. Let’s make this go as long as we possibly can.’”
This desire to keep the season going is even more intense for Verona due the history the program has. Since 2000 they have won nine sectional championships including three straight as well as 11 Big Eight Conference championships.
Last year they caped off a 20-4 season with a state championship, the second in program history and first since 2014.
“The expectations have been here at Verona,” Marshall said.
It’s those expectations and the standard the Wildcats hold themselves to that has helped them get through a season like no other. Especially when the coaching staff was unable to be in contact with them for two months of the season.
When the hockey season began back in late November, Verona High School had not yet approved of the team having a season. To bypass that decision and allow the players the ability to play with each other, a group of parents started a club team.
The team was able to travel and play against both club and WIAA teams while it waited for Verona to make a decision.
“They got creative,” Marshall said.
During this time, whether it was injury or players deciding not to play for the club team, many Wildcats had to step up. Led by the seniors and volunteer parents, coaches players like freshman David Dina became important players in roles they may not have had during a normal season.
Sophomores like Reece Cordray and juniors like Anthony Heinrichs have also been pivotal in the success of Verona through both the club and high school season.
“We definitely have a good group of sophomores and juniors,” Marshall said. “Our leaders on the team, our seniors, may be the most talented class I’ve had here.”
Nate Jurrens, Walker Haessig and goaltender Kaden Grant are just a few of the seniors who have become veteran leaders on a team that is looking to win back-to-back state championships.
That goal became more of a reality when on Jan. 3 Verona High School decided to allow the high school team to compete for the duration of the season and compete in the postseason.
Marshall and his coaching staff were now allowed to be in contact with the team and they got to work. Marshall said it has been a winding road full of speed bumps, dead ends and wrong turns, but they are still making progress.
“We’re making do, we’re rolling with the punches,” Marshall said. “We’ll take what we can get.”
Whether it was traveling hours for a game changing the lineup due to injury or having to make sure they are following protocols to the letter, the Wildcats have overcome each obstacle. They have given themselves the best chance to succeed as they try to end up at the South Wood County Rink in Wisconsin Rapids on Feb. 20.
“That’s where we want to be,” Marshall said.
