The Royals Semi-final matchup vs. Seaforth got underway Friday night in Tavistock this past weekend.
The game was full of all the things you'd expect from a semi-final playoff matchup between 2 rivals. With a 2021/2022's AA Semifinal exit at the hands of Seaforth still fresh on their minds from the previous season, The Royals were out to show it wasn't a fluke that they were the only team to defeat Seaforth in regulation over the 2022/2023 regular season.
With things knotted in a stalemate through the 1st period, it was Seaforth first to hit the scoresheet, scoring a goal at the 11:19 mark of the 2nd period. It took a few minutes for Tavistock to answer back with a goal of their own at 8:06 with #91 Erik Robichaud netting the tying goal (assisted by Hartwick/Wieringa). 1-1 tie after 2 periods.
The 3rd period saw its share of physical exchanges, while scoring opportunities were scarce. #30 Jensen van Boekel made a clutch glove save while stretched out in front of the Royals net near the midway mark of the period. That huge save seems to give the Royals the boost it needed and #9 Collin Hartwick came through with what would become the game winning goal, assisted by his linemates Erik Robichaud and Matt Zilke at 6:58 in the 3rd period. The Royals held on to take Game 1 by a final score of 2-1. #30 Jensen van Boekel played all 60 mins in the series opener.
519 Sports Highlights of Game 1 here
Game 2 went Saturday night 7:30 in Seaforth and had much more of the same energy as game 1. The 1st period once again was without a goal, but Seaforth turned things on in the 2nd period to take a 2-0 lead. Down 2-0 after 2 periods, the Royals turned things on and showed some promise when #8 Mike Noyes brought the Royals to within 1 (assisted by Kienapple/Jeremy Munro), but Seaforth was able to hold off everything the visiting team threw at them and held on for a 2-1 win, tying the series at 1 game a piece.
Game 3 goes Saturday night in Seaforth 7:30pm, with Game 4 back in Tavistock for a 3:30pm game time on Sunday March 5th.
