After opening the season with a 1-2-0 record, the Anna Maria College AmCats have won four games in their last five, including a 4-1 win over previously unbeaten and nationally ranked Plymouth State from D-III and Saturday’s 4-2 win over D-I Stonehill. Two more wins over Lebanon Valley had AMC at 5-2-0 prior to Tuesday’s one-goal loss to D-II Assumption Despite their second loss to the Greyhounds, AMC stays optimistic for a strong finish in the first half of the 2023-24 season led by their trio of Matts.
“I like the way we are competing,” said head coach Dave McCauley. “We have been hard to play against and maybe need to dial back on some of the penalty minutes but I like the intensity and the focus the guys have shown with some big games still to play in November and December before the break. We are getting contributions from a lot of guys but “the Matts” have been really good early and that should help us moving forward with our schedule.”
The “Matts” refer to goaltender Matthew Hennessey, forward Matthew Byrne and forward Matthew Gilbert. All three players have figured prominently in the AmCats early season success and really could not be more different as players. Hennessey, a freshman, burst on to the scene with a 51-save effort in Anna Maria’s upset of then unbeaten Plymouth State. He has surrendered just 10 goals in five plus games while posting a .947 save-percentage and has taken the crease for Anna Maria as the No. 1 netminder.
Matt Byrne has already picked up three goals and two assists in the first six games of the season while fellow forward Matthew Gilbert has five goals in six games while averaging a point per game this season.
“Hennessey has been impressive with his steady play as a freshman,” noted McCauley. “The team has complete trust in him in goal and plays with confidence in front of him. Gilbert is having a breakout season for us so far early in the year. He is pushing the pace and contributing exclusively in 5-on-5 and penalty kill ice time. Byrne has stepped up his shooting numbers and is now a featured guy on the power play along with probably our best player, Guilliaume Coulombe (2-3-5) that provides more balance in scoring. These guys along with several others are off to great starts and will need that continued strong play with six games still to play before the semester break.”
On Saturday, coach McCauley predicted (maybe should have him guest pick for me some week) his team’s 4-2 win over the Skyhawks and saw the balance and depth of his roster with Derek Raposo chipping in with a pair of goals and Max Wennerberg adding a pair of assists while goaltenders Cole Johnston and Connor Bradford combined for 41 saves on 43 shots in the win.
“We feel we can play with anyone and want to be a hard team to beat,” stated McCauley. We have some big tests coming up in December and after the new year in the second half that will show our growth as a team against some very successful programs like Curry, Amherst, Oswego and Cortland. We respect every team we face and know we have to be at our best to beat anybody on our schedule from the different D-III conferences.”
Next year, the AmCats move to the MASCAC and in 2025, become a full member in all sports. The six-year run as an Independent comes to an end after this season but Anna Maria is focused on showcasing what their future conference foes can expect with them in the league and competing for a conference championship.
“It is hard to believe it has been six-years doing this independent scheduling, noted McCauley. “My life just got instantly easier with 18 conference games and just adding a few more to the schedule beyond our Worcester Cup opening to the season. It will be nice to focus on playing in a conference and competing for championships and a chance to play in the NCAA tournament. This team has been building for that next step so they are very committed to building long-term success and momentum with results this year.”
The AmCats closed out their November schedule with a re-match of the Woo Cup final against D-II Assumption looking to avenge the 5-4 loss in just their second game of the season. The result was another one-goal loss with a third period rally from a 4-0 deficit that fell one goal short. December brings five D-III contests to close out the first half of the season including, Morrisville, Massachusetts-Dartmouth, Curry, Southern Maine, and New England College.
