Munster wins state hockey title 

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Updated: August 4, 2011 4:20PM

For the six seniors on the Munster hockey team, Saturday was a day of redemption.

Mainly because they remembered what led them to a state title two seasons before.

“We put it together and stepped it up tonight,” said goalie T.J. Mancuso. “We played as a team, there are no individual stars here.”

To prove Mancuso’s point, three different Mustangs scored goals as Munster won its second state title in three years, knocking off Lake Shore St. Joseph’s (Mich.) 3-1 in Indianapolis in the rubber match between the two teams this season.

Two seniors scored goals for Munster as Luke Dotto and Kyle Wargo lit the lamp (it was Wargo who also scored a goal in a 5-2 championship win over North Side (Mich.) two years ago. But with St. Joseph’s leading 1-0 in the first period, it was a freshman who got the scoring started for Munster.

On a Mustangs power play, Vince Kesic got the puck in the middle of the right faceoff circle and blasted a shot into the net to tie the game at 4:56 of the period.

Dotto’s even-strength goal at 6:56 of the second period gave Munster a lead that Mancuso held up with 20 saves.

Wargo’s insurance tally on a third-period backhand shot was his team-high 33rd goal and 58th point of the season.

“I just shot it and hoped it went in,” Kesic said. “It feels great (to win state). The freshmen on this team did well, but we were carried by the seniors the rest of the way. And we used teamwork defensively the entire game.”

There’s another reference to teamwork again, and for good reason.

Last year the Mustangs (24-11-2) never made it out of the preliminary stage of the playoffs and were blasted by Hamilton Southeastern 7-2 to end their season. Both Wargo and fellow lineman Mitch Lyness said earlier this week that the team’s downfall was that while they had good talent, they weren’t watching each other’s backs.

“We’re more of a team this year,” Lyness said.

And because of that they now have another state title to show for it.

“We played phenomenally on defense,” Mancuso said. “I really think our forwards backchecking helped win the game for us. We were more interested in playing defense before we thought about scoring goals.”

Defenseman Tony Rubino also had two assists for the Mustangs.