|
Falcons work overtime to become National Champions |
|
|
Kruzich rightfully earns MVP honors
by Steve Quinn
Sports Reporter
LAKE PLACID, NY - One thing can definitely be said for the entire National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament -- goaltending was the key to sending the championship game into overtime.
It was a tournament where three of the four goalies were freshmen, with the other netminder being a senior.
In the championship game, wich took four overtime periods to complete, BG's Gary Kruzich made one spectacular save after another, and his counterpart, Minnesota-Duluth goaltender Rick Kosti, did the same.
Kosti, one of the three freshmen, made a tournament record 55 saves in the championship game and had a total of 83 saves for both the semi-finals and the finals. His strong efforts earned him first team honors in the tournament and he could have easily been selected as the tournament's Most Valuable Player if the Bulldogs would have won.
He also displayed strong goaltending efforts in the semi-final game Thursday against North Dakota and held the Sioux to just one goal in 29 attempts to lead his team to a 2-1 overtime victory.
Kruzich, however, also performed nothing short of spectacular when he continued to stop the Bulldogs in pressure situations. One of those situations came in the third overtime when UM-D outshot BG 6-0 and Kruzich prevented all six shots from entering the net.
"I like pressure," Kruzich said. "But four overtimes is too much. I might get a nervous breakdown at 19 years old. I thought we were going to miss our plane."
The freshman from Oak Lawn, Ill. has seen pressure situations in other competition. in the NCAA quarter finals he faced Boston University in the second game of the total-goals series, which was another overtime game.
Going into the game, the Falcons were forced to overcome a three-goal deficit in order to advance to the final four. In winning 5-1 and advancing, Kruzich displayed remarkable skill in holding the Terriers to a single goal.
One reporter in the press box said, after watching Kruzich for just one period, BU might have a tough time scoring. he then began to collect as much information about the 5-foot-6 freshman as he could.
Another reporter said he didn't think Kruzich knew where he was at becaue any other freshman goaltender would certainly show more nervousness than he showed.
Besides amazing the reporters who saw Kruzich play for the first time, the BG goalie came through in both overtime games, a total of five extra periods, and held his opponents scoreless.
And after the strong display against UM-D, as well as 25 saves against Michigan State in the semifinals, Kruzich received a just reward in being named the tournament's Most Valuable Player. He surrendered just five goals in 157:11 of play.
In the semi-final, Kruzich only let one shot in the net, and in that time a Spartan player rested on top of Kruzich, preventing him from any chance of stopping the puck.
It might have been tough for the 35 media who selected the all-tournament team to decide between Kosti or Kruzich for MVP, but they did not make a wrong choice in selecting Kruzich.
Anyone who watched him shut down UM-D for four overtime periods, and stop a flurry of last minute shots from MSU, knows what he did to help the Falcons capture their first NCAA title.
With all the pressure situations Kruzich has faced this season, next season's games might seem like practice, but after playing as much as he did, I doubt the MVP will want to see a tray of ice much less a sheet of ice until that time.
(Originally appeared in the March 27, 1984 BG News.)
|
Columns 
