They say that patience is a virtue for people who hope to succeed, and senior defenseman Nick Antonio knows this better than anyone.
Antonio is finally the captain of the boys hockey team after two years of being an assistant captain.
“It feels great to finally be the captain,” Antonio said. “It means a lot having the younger guys look up to me.”
Antonio is looking to lead the Highlanders to a third consecutive playoff berth after a disappointing loss against Montour in the second round of playoffs last year.
“I think we should go around .500, hopefully higher,” Antonio said. “We’re moving up a division so it will be tougher this year, but we should be good.”
The move up from single the “A” division last year to “AA” this year might lead some of those teams in the higher division to overlook the Highlanders.
Still, this has not kept the team from competing.
“We’re doing better than I expected we would. We should have won some of the games we lost, so there’s plenty of positives to build on,” Antonio said.
The team started the season 5-5, posting wins against teams like Upper St. Clair and Pine-Richland.
“The Pine-Richland win was big for us because we gave up a lead but we fought back to bring it to overtime and win,” junior forward Ross Zofcin said. “It showed our perseverance.”
Antonio has done his part in leading the team, and the Highlanders are in support right behind him.
“Nick is leading us to success because he never gives up on anything. He has really good skill, a never-give-up attitude, and he rarely makes mistakes,” Zofcin said.
The team has agreed on one thing: the theme is “championship or bust.”
“We’re taking it one game at a time, but we want to make it to the championship,” Antonio said.
Even if there may be some work to do, the Highlanders remain confident. With hard work and dedication, they are sure that they will succeed.
“I think we have a good opportunity to make playoffs, but we need to work and win games in order to make it,” Zofcin said. “Our final goal is to win Pens Cup.”
Overall, Antonio has been a big influence for the future of the Baldwin program. His teammates are outspoken fans.
“I look up to Nick as a captain because he always wants to win and he shows it on the ice,” Zofcin said.
After the conclusion of the season, Antonio will have his eyes elsewhere in continuing his hockey career.
“I’ve been talking with the Pitt coach a lot. He likes me, so I’ll see where that takes me,” Antonio said.