GLC tourney set

The Houston Hawks begin their quest for their first state championship in hockey this weekend, but so does every other small-school team in the state.

Thats because this year, for the first time, there is a state tournament for small-school hockey teams. Action began yesterday at the Brett Memorial Ice Arena, and the first state champion will be crowned tomorrow.

Houston is the largest school in the tournament, but there are also 2A and 1A schools. Kenny Lake even has a squad, despite having only 29 high-school students.

Delta Junction was the runner-up to Glennallen in last years title game, but there was no full-fledged tournament. This year, Delta enters the first-ever state tourney undefeated in conference play, and Houston is the second seed, with a 9-2-1 record.

The interesting thing about the tournament is that virtually every team can beat any other team. Delta was 12-0, but the Huskies posted one-goal victories over Glennallen twice and Houston once. Houston and Glennallen have tied, and the Hawks took a one-goal victory in the other game.

The Hawks are led by a potent trio of scorers. Blake Fisher has tallied 27 goals and 15 assists this year, and his 42 points are the fifth-best among the Greatland Conference players. Alec Venechuk, of Healy, led the league with 50 points. Freshman Jake Williams has 18 goals and 11 assists for the Hawks, while Randy Hunter has 14 goals and 11 assists. That does not even include Bruce Van Buskirk, who has been playing well and setting up his teammates with nifty passes the last few games.

In net, David Branholm is the conferences third-best goaltender in terms of save percentage. His .881 mark trails only Ben Wilkinson of Glennallen (.902) and Adam Lain of Kenny Lake (.930). In the goals-against average, however, Branholm is second in the league with a 2.20 mark. Lain leads the way with a 1.47 goals-against.

Houston played winless Monroe last night, while Kenny Lake and Nikiski squared off, and Glennallen and Tri-Valley completed first-round games after the Frontiersman went to press. If the Hawks beat Monroe, as they have twice already this year, they play at 7 p.m. tonight at the Brett.

Todays schedule is as follows Glennallen/Tri-Valley loser against Houston/Monroe loser at 2 p.m.; Delta Junction against Kenny Lake/Nikiski winner at 4:30 p.m. and Glennallen/Tri-Valley winner against Houston/Monroe winner at 7 p.m.

Saturday, consolation games are at 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., while the championship game is slated for 6:30 p.m.

All games are scheduled to take place at Brett Memorial Ice Arena in Wasilla.Photo: Randy Hunter is one of the top Hawks.Photo by GENE JANSEN.