Hap Cup Champions

FOND DU LAC, Wis. – The third time is the charm! The Concordia Wisconsin ACHA hockey team has brought home the Hap Cup. After heartbreak in 2020 and 2023, the Falcons are victorious in the championship game. The Falcons claimed the 9-6 victory over DePaul to claim the Hap Cup for the first time in program history. The victory sends CUW to 22-10-2 on the year.

The Falcons struck first on the power play on a shot from senior Easton Williams (Racine, Wis.) on a blast in front of the net off a rebound from a shot from junior Garrett Wilderman (Waukesha, Wis.) after the play was set up by freshman Chuck Emme (Glenview, Ill.).

The power play struck again when senior captain Rex Staudacher (Yorkville, Ill.) sent a laser to the back of the net from the high slot off a faceoff victory from junior Tommy Cassel (Grafton, Wis.).

The Blue Demons cut the lead in half with 6:11 left in the first period when they crashed the net.

DePaul tied the game with a goal on a turnover that led to a breakaway.

The Blue Demons claimed the lead with 2:39 left in the period for a 3-0 run to close the first period.

The Falcons tied the game two minutes into the second period when senior Trenton Sherman (Farmington, Minn.) taped in a rebound on a shot from senior EJ Halleck (Cape Coral, Fla.) that rang off the pipe and a secondary assist to Wilderman.

Chuck Emme reclaimed the lead for the Blue and White with 16:27 left in the second period. with a shot in front of the net off a pass from Trenton Sherman.

Chuck Emme earned a penalty shot after being tripped at 15:34 and the freshman made the netminder look silly as he snuck the puck in the net.

Senior Lucas Kreuser (Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.) doubled up the Blue Demons with a top-shelf goal on an assist from Easton Williams.

DePaul bit into the deficit with some nice passes on a two-on-one advantage with a goal.

The Falcons avenged the goal with a two-on-one advantage of their own when Chuck Emme found Garrett Wilderman on the backdoor and Wilderman lit the lamp for the seventh goal for the Falcons with under three minutes left in the second period.

DePaul applied some pressure with a goal with 18:19 left in the third period. The Black and Red then scored on the power play five minutes later to cut the Concordia lead to 6-7.

The Falcons stopped the streak when Lucas Kreuser danced around the defenders and a back-handed shot snuck past the keeper off a pass from Tommy Cassel.

The final nail in the coffin was an empty net on an empty net goal for Lucas Kreuser off passes from Tommy Cassel and Chuck Emme.

Senior Ian Robertson (Calgary, Alberta) collected 38 saves in the victory.

Ian Robertson and Rex Staudacher were named to the NCHL All-Tournament Team with Chuck Emme also being named the Tournament MVP.

Sunday was the third Hap Cup Final for the Falcons. They lost to Marian in 2020 in overtime, 3-4, and to DePaul in 2023, 4-6.

The Falcons resume play in the ACHA Central Regional Tournament.