Written by Aidan McGrath (Fairfield U. '25)
For a Jesuits hockey program that has made a habit out of winning state championships, a 7-12 record heading into postseason play was almost unfathomable. With 19 CIAC State Titles to their name – including a shutout victory over archrival Notre Dame-West Haven just a year ago – Fairfield Prep was eager to make a statement on Wednesday night in a rematch against Xavier High School, a team the Jesuits bested 3-2 in overtime back in January.
Both teams went 1-2 in Southern Connecticut Conference (SCC) play, while Xavier came into Wednesday night's showdown on the heels of consecutive losses, sporting a 7-11-2 overall record. The Jesuits, meanwhile, were coming off a blowout home loss to New Canaan. For both squads, the SCC Semifinal not only served as a clean slate for two struggling teams, but it also provided the Jesuits and Falcons with an opportunity to kickstart a deep postseason run.
Less than a minute into the game, Fairfield Prep was given a power play after a slashing penalty committed by Falcons senior forward Alex Rodriguez. However, the Jesuits failed to capitalize on the early man advantage, as the best chance of the power play came when Xavier's Mike Prestash registered a late shot on net that was smartly gloved by the Jesuits' freshman goalie, Charlie Rodrigue.
Needless to say, Rodrigue stood on his head in this contest. Shortly after robbing Xavier of a shorthanded goal, he made another diving stop after Prestash flung a rebounded shot on the Jesuits' net. Nonetheless, the scoreboard read Fairfield Prep 0, Xavier 0.
There was early frustration on both sides, with numerous puck battles and offside calls serving as a lull in the action. The Jesuits' first real opportunity of the game came via a beaming slapshot off the stick of defenseman Gavin Burke, although it was handily dealt with by Xavier goalie Ryan Galaski.
Back-to-back deflected shots pinned Xavier in their own zone after nearly ten minutes of struggles for possession. Moments later, the Jesuits' pressure caused havoc in front of Galaski's goal, and Prep senior captain James Murphy made no mistake about it, slotting home the game's first goal to give the Jesuits a 1-0 lead with four minutes left in the first period.
Xavier's sloppy possession and carelessness with the puck cost them again less than two minutes later after a botched back-pass allowed Jesuits sophomore Connor Driscoll to chase down the puck and loft a beautiful backhanded shot over Galaski's glove. Prep was able to double their advantage and, after fending off several meager attempts by the Falcons, entered the locker room with a 2-0 lead.
After dominating much of the first frame, Fairfield Prep became the more aggressive team once again – with numerous shot attempts within the first two minutes alone. Despite their domination, however, the Falcons reminded everyone why the previous contest went to overtime, displaying grit, toughness, and winning seemingly every 50/50 puck battle.
Eventually, the Jesuits succumbed to this constant pressure, with Xavier senior Ryan Gerardi capitalizing on a rebound opportunity to cut the Falcons' deficit in half.
Seconds later, Prep senior Liam Keatley rang one off the post after a Xavier turnover gave the Jesuits a two-on-one transition chance. Halfway through the period, Fairfield Prep seemed rattled, and their problems were only exacerbated by an inexcusable penalty for goaltender interference.
Despite being a man down, the penalty seemed to ignite a spark for the Jesuits, as Xavier hardly managed to cross their own blue line despite playing 5-on-4. This raised level of intensity culminated in a mini-brawl behind the Xavier net with four minutes left in the second period, with seemingly everyone besides Galaski involved in the scrum.
The brawl triggered a series of body blows, open-ice hits, entangled sticks, and further heated confrontations between players for the remainder of the period – culminating in a slashing penalty by Henry Schwartz. Nonetheless, the score remained Fairfield Prep 2, Xavier 1.
Still down a man from Schwartz's minor penalty, the Jesuits were able to fend off a potent Xavier power play to retain their slim lead.
Six-and-a-half minutes into the third period, Connor Driscoll showed up in a big way yet again. After sophomore Beny Berges forced a Falcons turnover, he flung a pass to Murphy, who found Driscoll for yet another breakaway chance. Just as he did in the first period, he capitalized, sneaking his shot home past Galaski to restore the Jesuits' lead to two.
With just under five minutes remaining in the contest, it looked like Fairfield Prep was coasting toward yet another conference finals appearance. However, Driscoll, who just scored the Jesuits' third goal, was penalized for tripping, again giving Xavier a man advantage.
Xavier kept the heat on, maintaining possession for a large majority of their second power play of the game. As was the case all game, though, Charlie Rodrigue stood on his head yet again, making several key saves to maintain the Jesuits' two-goal cushion.
The Falcons pulled their goaltender with just under two minutes remaining in a last-ditch effort to salvage something from the game. Their fortunes looked even more promising after Prep defenseman Hudson Wingate received a two-minute minor for slashing, granting Xavier a two-man advantage and just the opportunity they needed to climb back into the game.
However, each of these efforts was thwarted, and Jesuit forward Declan Murphy effectively sealed the deal with an open net goal with just 36 seconds left, again assisted by James Murphy.
A careless unsportsmanlike conduct penalty by Gerardi ended any hopes of the Falcons mounting a miraculous comeback, and Fairfield Prep held on for what ended up as a fairly convincing 4-1 victory.
Having now lost their third consecutive game, Xavier will have to wait until the state tournament in a couple of weeks to salvage what has otherwise been a disappointing season.
With the victory, the Jesuits improve to 8-12 and advance to the SCC Championship game, where – yet again – they will meet their vaunted nemesis, the Green Nights of Notre Dame High School, on Friday night at 5:30 pm in West Haven.
The matchup will mark the second consecutive time the two programs will compete for the conference crown, as the Jesuits bested the Green Knights 4-3 in last year's contest. Fairfield Prep also got the better of Notre Dame in the CIAC State Final, with James Murphy netting the only goal in a 1-0 victory. This season, however, their rivals from West Haven won both contests by a combined score of 9-2, so the Jesuits will have their work cut out for them if they hope to defend their SCC title.
