PERSISTENCE PAYS

WASILLA — The Houston Hawks were once the class of Alaska small-schools hockey. The Hawks were perennial contenders for the championship, winners of five state titles and often flew high above anyone else in the 3A ranks.

But in recent years, it’s been hard to be a Hawk.

After winning its fifth 3A title in 2007, Houston was thrown to the 4A level the following year. That graduation led to battling more difficult competition with a much smaller roster than the average large-schools squad, and ultimately a pattern of struggle.

But this year, despite never having more than a dozen players on the team, the Hawks are finally seeing more success. Friday, Houston will compete in the Mid-Alaska Conference Championships for the first time as a 4A program.

“Since my freshman year, since we’ve been in 4A, we’ve never been to the conference tournament, so it’s pretty nice to go,” Houston senior Rye Humphreys said before a team practice Monday afternoon at the Curtis C. Menard II Ice Arena in Wasilla.

Humphreys is one of five Houston seniors on the squad, part of a class that just missed the tail end of the Hawks’ tremendous run as a small-schools program. But once again, the Hawks are able to enjoy some of the fruits of their labor.

“We’re pretty pumped, it’s something totally different,” Houston senior Zack Weisz said.

Thanks to wins over North Pole and Juneau-Douglas during the regular season, the Hawks were able to qualify for the MAC tournament, which starts Friday in Fairbanks. Early in the year, Houston routed North Pole 8-3, marking its first MAC victory over the Patriots. Houston punched its playoff ticket with a 4-3 win over Juneau-Douglas in mid-January.

“It was nice that we were guaranteed that spot in regions,” Weisz said. “There was no more pressure.”

Heading into the 2010-11 season, the Hawks set the goal of qualifying for the MAC tourney for the first time.

“We actually did think it was realistic,” Humphreys said. “We had some tough competition.”

The path to the 2011 tourney was not exactly a smooth skate for the senior class. About half the team is made up of players who endured the losing streaks, lopsided defeats and days where the Hawks could only send out a single digit worth of skaters on to the ice.

“It shows a lot of heart,” Houston head coach Mike Styers said. “There have been a lot of close games where we have not been able to pull through, and we’ve had a lot of games where we’ve taken a beating.”

But, regardless, the core group of Hawks have stuck with it. Humphreys, Weisz, forward Jon Olson and goaltender Ben Barenburg are the elders of the program. Senior Kevin Niemi is skating in his first season with the Hawks. Junior defenseman Zach Lovelace has also been a staple on the team for three seasons.

“Everybody works hard, everybody wants to come out and play,” Weisz said.

Styers said he’s proud his veterans decided to stay with the team, rather than going somewhere else.

“All of the top seniors could have easily said, ‘I’m going to go play for Wasilla, or go play for Palmer or Colony,’” Styers said. “But it says a lot for them to stick with it and stay where they grew up.”

Humphreys said he’s also proud that his teammates stayed.

“We all decided to band together and tough it out, see how it goes,” Humphreys said.

The Hawks have never been able to boast depth. Rivals routinely skate two and three lines, with at least two sets of defenseman. Houston has one pair on defense — Weisz and Lovelace — and will typically try to piece together a pair of lines.

Houston has 11 skaters and a goalie on the 2010-11 roster, but have had to play games with as few as eight position players and a goaltender this year. Last year, the Hawks were forced to go with only seven skaters on at least one occasion.

“The most we’ve had is 15 guys, maybe,” Humphreys said of his time with the Hawks. “Then somebody gets hurt or doesn’t make grades.”

Facing these daily obstacles, Styers said it’s important to stress the positive with his players.

“You always have to have something to look forward to,” Styers said. “Obviously, you talk about the things you’re doing wrong. But we always talk about the things we’re doing right.”

Another positive, Styers said, is the amount of playing time each of his athletes sees.

“On your comp team you’re playing about 45 seconds to a minute shift. Here you’re playing 40- to 45-minute games,” Weisz said. “There’s no shortage of playing time at all.”

Styers said his top defensemen average 40 minutes in a 45-minute game, and it’s not unusual for players such as Weisz of Lovelace to be in the game for the entire contest. His top forwards get close to 40 minutes, Styers said.

Humphreys, who also played junior hockey in the NOR-PAC league last year, said it’s been good for him to see the extra time on the ice.

“If I was playing somewhere like Wasilla or Colony, I wouldn’t be getting near the ice time. I’ve always been getting tons and tons of ice time since I was a freshman,” Humphreys said. “It’s helped me out more than I can imagine. I played juniors last year and that’s partly because of last year.”

The small roster has also allowed the younger players to vault into significant roles. Sophomores Lane Styers, Cody Lipse and Johan Shuey, and freshmen Jonathon Lovelace, Patrick Thistle and Jaden Sears are regulars in the lineups and asked to contribute in a variety of ways.

In net, Barenburg has spent much of his Houston hockey career as the lone goalie. The added playing time has also allowed Barenburg to improve. Barenburg entered the program still very new to the position, but the Hawks have watched his saves percentage steadily raise each year.

“He’s gotten tons and tons better,” Humphreys said.

Barenburg is another player who has stuck with the program regardless of success. And much of the time, he stood as Houston’s only option in net.

“We’ve got to give him a lot of credit for just sticking with it,” Styers said. “He’s been through a lot with us.”

The Hawks will have to wait until their match Friday with top-seeded Lathrop to see if their season is extended at least another day. But in the meantime, Humphreys said the Hawks are enjoying their taste of success this season.

“it’s the end of our high school career,” Humphreys said of the Houston seniors. “We might as well make the most of it.”

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com and follow him at Twitter.com/matsu_sports.