K 374: Congratulating the Hobart Men's Ice Hockey Team upon the occasion of capturing their third consecutive NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey Championship on March 30, 2025

 Assembly Resolution No. 374 BY: M. of A. Gallahan CONGRATULATING the Hobart Men's Ice Hockey Team upon the occasion of capturing their third consecutive NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey Championship on March 30, 2025 WHEREAS, This Legislative Body has long valued athletic excellence at the professional, collegiate, and school levels, recognizing exceptional achievements, outstanding accomplishments, and national championships; and WHEREAS, Excellence and success in competitive sports can be achieved only through strenuous practice, team play and team spirit, nurtured by dedicated coaching and strategic planning; and WHEREAS, This Legislative Body is justly proud to congratulate the Hobart Men's Ice Hockey Team upon the occasion of capturing their third consecutive NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey Championship, held on Saturday, March 30, 2025, at Utica University's Nexus Center; and WHEREAS, The game of ice hockey is often a game of inches, a favorable bounce of the puck, a poke-check executed perfectly or timed a second off, a hit that lands or a shooter gets through, a shot blocked, or your goalie screened; in a game the disc can skim the post and either go in for a goal or ricochet out; hockey, a game of inches, is a game where repeating as national champions three years in a row is improbable and difficult; and WHEREAS, To the praise and applause of their excited fans, the storied tradition of intercollegiate athletic success at Hobart and William Smith Colleges has again risen to a new level when the Hobart Men's Ice Hockey Team bested Utica University in a hard-fought 2-1 victory in overtime; and WHEREAS, The achievement further cements Hobart College's reputation as one of the most solid and consistent Division III programs in the country, finishing the season with a 29-1-1 record, consistently ranked among the top Division III programs in the nation; and WHEREAS, The Hobart Statesmen program has been built by Head Coach Mark Taylor, who for the past 25 years, has brought together skilled collegiate hockey players to create a team balanced by outstanding defense, wise strategy, and teamwork, where every player was prepared to get the job done one shift at a time; and WHEREAS, Hobart Hockey took advantage of home ice in downtown Geneva's fabled "Cooler" with an undefeated 16-0-0 record, their third consecutive undefeated home rink season, racking up an impressive 52-0-0 home record during their 3-year championship run; and WHEREAS, This year's Hobart Hockey Championship team continues to be a program built on defense, demonstrated by a truly outstanding 127 goals while allowing only 32 goals against, a shot on goal advantage of 1309 to 684, 12 shutouts in their 31-game run, allowing only 4 goals in the NCAA tournament, and becoming the first team to capture three consecutive national titles since Middlebury College in 2004-06; and WHEREAS, The resilience under pressure of the 2024-25 Hobart Hockey team was further exemplified in the NCAA tournament marked by three one-goal victories, two overtime wins, and tight and competitive play by all three rivals challenging Hobart in every hard-fought period of the championship tournament; and WHEREAS, Celebration and recognition is shared by the current and past parents, alumni players, college leadership, and boosters who have supported Hobart Ice Hockey for decades; the leadership of former Athletic Director Bill Stiles, who made the decision in 1977 to elevate the decades-old Hobart Club Hockey Team to the NCAA Division III program greatly inspired the success of the team; now, therefore, be it RESOLVED, That this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to congratulate the members of the Hobart Men's Ice Hockey Team: Mavrick Goyer, Nick Dimatos, Bauer Morrissey, Josh Doolan, Cooper Swift, Ethan Mulhearn, Tanner Daniels, Brandon Sacchetti, Dominic Schimizzi, Matthew Iasenza, Luke Aquaro, Adam Mendelson, Heikki Virtanen, Mason Mara, Easton Ryan, Austin Mourar, Matthew Perryman, Shane Shell, Calum Chau, Tristan Fasig, Conor Lally, Chris Duclair, Kahlil Fontana, Connor Shibley, Damon Beaver, Connor Elliot, Ryan Remick, Ignat Belov, Logan Gotinsky, and Tamas Toth; Coaching Staff: Head Coach Mark Taylor; Assistant Coaches: Niko Kovachis and Derek Berry; Hockey Operations Assistants: Joel Stoneham and Victor Cutting; and Support Staff: Athletic Fellow Emeritus John Halfman, Athletic Fellow Julie Kingery, Associate Director of Athletic Communications Mackenzie Larsen, Assistant Athletic Director for Equipment and Operations Kevin McDonald, and Assistant Athletic Trainer Sara Moore upon the occasion of capturing their third consecutive NCAA Division III Men's Ice Hockey Championship on March 30, 2025; and be it further RESOLVED, That a copy of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be transmitted to the Hobart Men's Ice Hockey Team.