Rockfish Cup 2011 Results

RAACE vs. Rockfish Gold (13-4)
Rockfish Gold had an extremely competitive schedule heading into the 2011
Rockfish Cup. The opening game against the Harford County's RAACE team
turned out to be the toughest contest of the day. The 13-4 loss, though
seemingly a blow-out score doesn't begin to paint an accurate picture of the
game. The opening 15 minutes of the game were hard fought to fairly evenly
scores. The RAACE team dominated in the total shots category in the first
half but the 'Fish still managed to stay within 3 points by half time. The
second half brought some apparent adjustments to the offensive and defensive
squads on the RAACE team, the game quickly got away from the Fish.
Nonetheless, Blake Powell put in a strong performance and nailed a pair of
goals, followed by Ryan Baukhages and Jake Lawson with one goal each. Shots
numbered 16 for the Fish and 30 for the other guys. Our face off win ratio
was about 20%.

South River vs. Rockfish Gold (7-6)
Every tournament deserves a "heartbreaker" game -- and the Rockfish Gold
game against South River certainly qualifies; unfortunately, the 'Fish were
on the receiving end. The 7-6 loss to South River was actually decided in
the closing seconds of a very evenly matched game. Here again -- or rather
in each Goldfish game of the tournament -- the home team opened very strong,
holding opponents to few goals overall by halftime. Some classic
give-and-goes kept the 'Fish at pace with South River shooters, Zach
Williams managed a pair of top-shelf goals, David Paulson delivered a
perfectly executed quick-stick goal from a driving pass from Scudder
Sodergreen, Jake Lawson's well-timed elevator kept the game in play and
Corey Chwazik nailed a key, late-in the game goal bringing the 'Fisk to
within reach of a win. However, it was Blake Powell's final-minutes goal
that brought us within one point of a tie. At one point early in the second
half, the Fish were down by four goals -- the team later rallied but the
clock eventually ran out. Our defense had an especially strong game and our
goalie managed his best stat of the day, shots vs. saves (60%). Shots
numbered 12 for the Fish and 16 for the other guys. Our face off win ratio
was about 30%.

Roughriders vs. Rockfish Gold (10-3)
The last game of the day was very much a product of the weather; the heat
was unquestionably taking its toll by the start of this 3:00 game. We think
Coach Spence should change the name of this sweltering annual tournament to
the "fishfry." The score of this final game of the day appears one-sided
but in reality the majority of the goals by the Roughriders were slammed
home in the second half. Again, the 'Fish opened strong, matching shots and
goals in the opening phase of the game. Corey Chwazik scored first with a
hot grass burner from outside, followed by a couple powerful top-shelf goals
by Blake Powell and AJ Crossen. The second half of the game saw the
Roughriders take control and never really let go. In the final game of the
day the Rockfish managed near-parity with the Roughriders in terms of ground
balls. Shots numbered 13 for the Fish and 15 for the other guys. Our passing
also improved over previous games. Our face off win ratio was about 25%.

** Note to self: Too many shaved heads on the 'Fish squad and not enough
flow...the inside word is that this may have affected the overall outcome.
Just saying.