High Five: Reinhardt Wins Fifth Consecutive NAIA Invitational Championship

PENSACOLA, Fla. – [RESULTS | BRACKET] No. 2 Reinhardt (Ga.) never trailed in the game as it defeated No. 1 Indiana Tech 11-5 to capture its fifth straight NAIA Invitational championship Saturday afternoon at Ashton Brosnaham Park. The Eagles finish the season with a 13-1 record, while the Warriors close out the season with an 18-1 mark.

Dillan Bousquet netted a hattrick and scooped eight ground balls to help him earn NAIA Tournament MVP honors.  Titus Thind added a hattrick, while Brady Hanak tallied two goals and a pair of assists.  Goalie Liam Wright made 11 saves in the game as JR Sess went 17-19 on faceoffs with four ground balls.  Matt Potvin notched three caused turnovers and three ground balls in the game.

Leading the way for Indiana Tech was Nate Langille, Louis Czech and Joe Solin who tallied a goal and an assist each.  Kyle TwoBulls made nine saves in the first half to go along with three ground balls, while Chad Nedbal made seven stops in the second half.  Blaine Flanigan and Jack Marquardt tallied a pair of caused turnovers each.

Reinhardt won the opening faceoff and on that possession, Cameron Cochran connected with Titus Thind for a goal just under a minute into the first quarter.  The Eagles looked to add to their lead, however, Indiana Tech's Kyle TwoBull made three saves and scooped a pair of ground balls to keep the score 1-0 five minutes into the game.  Cochran added an unassisted goal to extend Reinhardt's lead to 2-0.  Indiana Tech got on the board two minutes later as Nate Langille found Joe Solin for a goal to make it 2-1 with 7:33 remaining.  Reinhardt added two more goals before the Warriors connected with the back of the cage in the closing seconds of the quarter to make it 4-2 in favor of Reinhardt.

Indiana Tech came out strong in the second quarter as Langille put a well-placed shot into the upper corner of the cage just over five minutes into the period.  JR Sess won the faceoff and led a transition that resulted in Thind's second goal for the Eagles extending their lead to 5-3 with 9:23 left.  Indiana Tech netted consecutive goals, including a man-up goal to even the score at 5-5 with 1:13 remaining in the second quarter.  The Eagles responded as Cochran found Dillan Bousquet for the go-ahead goal with 43 seconds left in the half to give Reinhardt a 6-5 edge.

Reinhardt's Tanner Whittemore forced a turnover five minutes into the third period and on the ensuing possession, Kollin Etheridge found Bousquet for a transition goal making it 7-5.  Thind completed the hattrick at the 5:30 mark in the third quarter making it 8-5 in favor of the Eagles heading into the fourth quarter.

The two teams continued to battle in the fourth quarter before Brady Hanak found Bousquet for a goal giving Reinhardt a 9-5 edge with 9:46 remaining.  The Eagles added two more goals in the period, while Liam Wright made five stops in the second half for the 11-5 final.

All-Tournament Team
Andrew Ryan, Indian Tech
Thomas Fogarty, Cumberlands (Ky.)
Samuel Bodley, Indiana Tech
Blake Baker, Aquinas (Mich.)
JR Sess, Reinhardt (Ga.)
Jacob Pinson, Reinhardt (Ga.)
Tom Piotrowski, Indiana Tech
Jake Morgan, Cumberlands (Ky.)
Matt Potvin, Reinhardt (Ga.)
Wes Christian, Tennessee Wesleyan
Liam Wright, Reinhardt (Ga.)

Tournament MVP - Dillan Bousquet, Reinhardt (Ga.)