SEATTLE, WA - Back at home for their second game of 2016, the SAAS Cardinals (2-0) played host to the Providence Highlanders (1-0) for their first time on the field in 2016. It was just Monday night that Coach Scott Pattison led his group to their first victory over Newport, 7-5. Early injuries and illness had Coach Nate Morris playing with only a deck of 10 players on Thursday night, but the short roster didn’t translate into any lack of effort from the visiting side as they hung with their opponents for a full four quarters.

It was a defensive struggle in the first frame, both sides excelled fundamentally at keeping action away from the crease while the two goalies were seeing the ball well and making athletic stops from the early minutes of the game on. After back and forth transition, #31 Patrick broke the ice a few minutes into the game, his first goal for the Cards. Answering back with a strong effort of his own, #24 Walsh buried the first Highlanders goal of 2016, the last score of the quarter to tie the game at 1-1.

The entire SAAS group tightened things up over the next 12 minutes, starting to move the ball well on offense and playing fundamentally sound defense on the other end. Their efforts resulted in 6 unanswered scores led by a pair of goals for #44 Trent and a solo shot by #4 Healy before #31 Patrick stepped back into the spotlight for two solid tallies, earning him the hat trick and closing the half at 6-1.

In the third quarter, we saw an aggressive attack from the Providence offense only to be stopped in their tracks by a towering defense that played completely in sync. The Highlanders were able to slow down the force of the SAAS offense, limiting them to only two goals in the quarter, the first from #23 Feinstein and second from #28 Callaghan.

The final quarter of play wasn’t much different from the first, with the exception of SAAS subbing out to get the bench some quality minutes. Defense did their part for both sides and the goalies bailed them out when they were called upon. Another goal from #23 Feinstein would be the final goal of the night for the Cards and still fighting, #7 Dave found the net once more for Providence before the final horn sounded, closing the game with the second SAAS victory, 9-2.

Continuing to give their best effort for another 12 minutes, the visitors were able to produce an incredible effort for a squad playing without a single substitution. Young energy and strong goaltending will be the backbone of the program as they take on the season. Providence will get a few days to get back to full strength before they host Overlake (0-1) next Tuesday night. Gearing up for their third game in the opening week, SAAS sets their sights on Seattle Prep (2-1) in what should be a solid test for the Cardinals as they face a solid Metro D1 opponent. By Mark Donahue.