The Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School varsity hockey team brought some much needed joy to the grieving Parkland community by winning the state championship tournament Sunday afternoon.
Congrats to the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School varsity hockey program on leaving Southwest Florida as state champions! Good luck in nationals March 22-26 in Plymouth, MN. Photo credit: @AMcDevittTV. @NBC2 @ABC7SWFL pic.twitter.com/B7jAIc7AP6
— Joe Putrelo (@Joe_Putrelo) February 25, 2018
The Eagles had entered the elimination round of the Lightning High School Hockey League Tier 1 state title as the fourth and lowest seed after losing each of their round robin seeding games on Saturday.
After knocking off top-seeded East Lake High School, 3-1, in the Sunday semifinals, Stoneman Douglas bested Jesuit High School, 7-4, in the final later that same day.
WATCH:
Congrats to the #StonemanDouglasHS hockey team for winning the state championship today and moving on to nationals! Tonight on @winknews at 6, hear from the players who say this is something they’ve been striving for all season. pic.twitter.com/AqlLciySir
— Chris Grisby (@ChrisWinkNews) February 25, 2018
Senior forward Joey Zenobi told NBC the team was playing for the victims of the tragedy that claimed the lives of 17 students and staff members. The team dedicated the title to Joaquin Oliver, one of the victims and a friend to several players on the team.
“We came into the game knowing we had to give it our all to get the win,” Zenobi said after Sunday’s games. “That’s what we did and now we get to bring the trophy back to the best high school in America.”
PARKLAND, FL – FEBRUARY 19: People sweep the grounds for evidence as law enforcement officials continue to investigate the scene at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School on February 19, 2018 in Parkland, Florida. Police arrested and charged 19 year old former student Nikolas Cruz for the February 14 shooting that killed 17 people. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)
The league is sponsored by Statewide Amateur Hockey of Florida, not the Florida High School Athletic Association. The Eagles will be granted the opportunity to take part in the high school hockey national championships tournament next month in Minnesota, per NBC.