The Olentangy Liberty Patriots added another trophy to their ever-expanding case with a win Sunday in the CHC varsity division of Blue Jackets Cup presented by OhioHealth.
The win was the third trophy lifted by the Patriots’ ice hockey team in the last two years as they won the Blue Jackets Cup presented by OhioHealth and state tournament in 2023.
However, for Jake Struck, it is the fifth postseason tournament-style win in his high school career. The senior forward is a member of the school’s lacrosse and football teams that have won a state title in the last year.
“We got a lot of guys on the team that won in lacrosse, won in football and won in hockey a couple years ago, so I think it helps a lot that we have a lot of experience,” Struck said.
The team started its season without Struck and senior forward Andrew Leonard, who were busy serving as the starting running back and quarterback, respectively, as the football team made its run to the school’s first state title. That led Liberty to drop its first three games in Capital Hockey Conference play and first four overall.
When the two returned to the lineup, it was a whole different team. The Patriots would go on to win their final 13 Capital Hockey Conference regular-season games to tie New Albany for the league title. Liberty then won all three of its games in the Blue Jackets Cup presented by OhioHealth, downing New Albany by a 6-0 score in the championship game Sunday.
“We're getting hot at the right time,” Struck said. “So we just gotta keep it going."
What is the key to all the success? Head coach Johnathan Falvo said previous accomplishments and accolades can be the reason.
“You can't coach it,” Falvo said of the team’s championship pedigree. “You have to go through it once, you go through a second time and it's even rarer for the opportunity to go for a third time. You can't quantify it. It's a very, very unique thing, and we're very fortunate to have that in our locker room.”
Struck is a big factor in that as well. To win as much as one of the team’s captains has in high school means he has earned the right to be the focus of this team. It also helps that he’s one of the state’s all-time leading scorers with more than 300 points to his credit, and Struck scored two goals in Blue Jackets Cup final.
“You can't say enough good things about Jake Struck,” Falvo said. “When the game's on the line, he wants the puck, he wants to score, he wants the attention, he wants to win. He's a great competitor. We go where he takes us. Everything goes through Jake Struck.”
Now with their win in the Blue Jackets Cup presented by OhioHealth, the Patriots have shifted their focus on to the state tournament and are looking to become state champs for the second time in three years.
“Like I said, it’s the right time to get hot,” Struck said. “We're one of the best teams in the state, so people are going to be scared to play us, but we also have to bring our A-game, so we'll be ready.”
OHSAA tournament play in the Columbus region begins Friday, with the regional final game March 2. The state final four will be held at Nationwide Arena on March 8-9.
The Blue Jackets Cup presented by OhioHealth continues this weekend, as the CHC junior varsity teams and Ohio Scholastic Hockey League varsity squads playing in championship games Sunday at the OhioHealth Ice Haus.
