Pitlick is 'finishing' just fine

Centennial junior forward Tyler Pitlick thrilled Cougars hockey fans Thursday by scoring three goals in a 4-1 victory at Blaine. The hat trick surely produced a smile from Chris McAlpine as well.

McAlpine, the former Gophers defenseman who went on to play in the NHL, was Pitlick's coach this fall for Team Northwest in the Elite League.

"[McAlpine] was always telling me to shoot more," Pitlick said.

Pitlick (6-1, 170) is on the radar of college recruiters, but the one question about him has been his ability as a finisher. Those concerns might be fading. He leads Centennial (3-0) with five goals and five assists. Pitlick was second on the team in goals last season with 17.

"The college and pro people might have questions about his ability to finish, but he's done just fine in that area for us," Centennial coach Erik Aus said. "Tyler makes a lot of things happen offensively. He is a very gifted offensive player."

Pitlick said he still has to remind himself at times to not always look to set up a teammate. "Good things can happen when you shoot the puck," he said.

While he has not had a lot of contact with college recruiters yet, that figures to change soon. Pitlick said he has a goal of playing for a WCHA team.

If the current pattern continues, St. Thomas Academy is going to start to be known as a pipeline for University of Texas swimming. The top-ranked Longhorns recently signed Cadets senior Matt Hoyland to a national letter of intent. Jeremy Harris, a St. Thomas Academy grad and the state record holder in the 100-yard freestyle, is a senior member of the Texas team.

Hoyland is the defending Class A champion in the 200 individual medley and the 100 breaststroke. He said he considered the Gophers and Purdue, among others, before deciding Austin, Texas, was the place for him.

"It's going to be cool to be a part of such a great program," Hoyland said. "Every swimmer who has gone there has seen pretty good improvement."

Hoyland said Harris has been coming back over the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays to train with the Cadets. While the two have met, he said Harris didn't play a role in his recruiting. Hoyland gives credit to his coach, John Barnes, for suggesting to Texas coach Eddie Reese that he take a look at Hoyland.

Hoyland said he has set his sights on breaking the state record in the 100 breaststroke before moving on to one of the highest-profile college programs in the country. Not bad for someone who disliked swimming so much he didn't compete in seventh and eighth grade.

"St. Thomas has such a good program here, I wanted to be a part of it," Hoyland said. Now he's helping to keep it in the headlines.

Four Minnesotans -- two boys and two girls -- have been named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America high school All-America teams. Wayzata midfielder Colin Monasterio and St. Bernard's attacker Keido Pour made the boys' team. Park of Cottage Grove defender Briana Westlund and Lakeville South forward Krista Lundgren made the girls' team.

The teams will be honored at a Jan. 19 luncheon in Baltimore as part of the NSCAA convention.

Belle Plaine junior forward Chelsea Fogarty scored her 1,000th career point Friday at Mayer Lutheran. Fogarty, 5-10, is averaging 21 points, 14 rebounds and six steals this season.

Blake, defending Class A champion in girls' hockey, has continued its winning ways through the first month of the season. The Bears are 8-0-2, outscoring their opponents 47-11. Junior forward Sally Komarek leads Blake in scoring with 14 goals and 10 assists.

Dean Spiros • dspiros@startribune.com