Berkley Beacon Loves the Boylston Cup

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Berklee downs Emerson in Boylston Cup slugfest

Physical play rabid spectators add to rivalry in annual match

Ian Tasso

Issue date: 11/13/08 Section: Sports

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Media Credit: Greg Townsend Senior Alan Gwizdowskiwinds up for a slap shot during Emerson's 7-5 loss to Berklee in the Boylston Cup Nov. 8.

Senior Captain Alan Gwizdowski laced on his skates in the locker room before the 2008 Boylston Cup with only one thing on his mind—beating the Berklee College of Music Ice Cats. “Gwiz,” as his teammates call him, had been through two Cups in his career with Emerson, coming up short each time. With his last opportunity knocking at the door, Gwiz and the Lions were out for revenge.

“When you walk out of that tunnel and people are screaming your name, it’s amazing,” the film major said. “Knowing there are all those people that care about the team and the game—it’s hands down the biggest thing we have going for us during the season.”

Despite the rush of the rivalry and a thundering crowd behind them, Emerson was unable to break away from Berklee early, coming out of the first period tied 1-1. From the very beginning, this game was a slugfest, each team matching each other blow for blow—both figuratively and literally.

Not only were the teams hitting each other into the boards, they were also hitting each other with their fists. Throughout the game, hullabaloos broke out between the heated rivals, attracting lots of penalties and crazed applause from a raucous crowd of about 400 fans who packed the Walter Brown Arena at Boston University.

“It always picks up the intensity level when someone throws a punch,” said junior Assistant Captain Pete Keeling. “It flips that adrenaline switch on, and you really get into it. You get in this mindset that this is your opponent and you have to bring them down.”

The close game quickly slipped away from the Lions, though, thanks to a few untimely penalties. Four quick goals later, Emerson was staring a 5-1 deficit straight in the face. But from adversity comes greatness, and egged on by a dedicated fan following, the Lions began clawing their way back into the game.

In the final 20 minutes, the Lions roared back, netting three unanswered goals, trailing just 6-4 after a Berklee power play goal extended the lead.

The Lions got as close as 6-5 on a snap shot from Keeling with less than two minutes left. As the seconds ticked away, though, a Berklee empty-net goal sealed the Lions’ fate, as they went on to lose by a final score of 7-5.

“For a lot of us, it’s the biggest game of the year,” said goalie Greg Cohen, a junior film major. “It’s a do-or-die here with our friends and family watching, and we gave it our all. Unfortunately we just came up on the wrong end today.”

It proved to be enough the very next night when the Lions traveled to Worcester to take on Clark University. Once again led by Gwizdowski, who recorded three goals and an assist, the Lions won 6-3. Although Gwizdowski is scheduled to graduate in May 2009, he is confident his teammates will carry the torch once he’s gone.

“I can’t say enough about how well they played today,” Gwizdowski said. “It’s good for the young guys to see that we can play well when we all work together like this. We put a great effort in today, and I’m proud to be a member of this team.”

For Gwizdowski, the 2008 Boylston Cup will go down as one of the most memorable games in his career. And for the rest of the 4-7 Lions, the near-comeback will only add fuel to the fire as the Cup rivalry lives on.