LEWISTON — Biddeford High School students, parents, boosters and supporters filled the Androscoggin Bank Colisee seats on Tuesday evening to watch the No. 2 Biddeford boys hockey team take on No. 5 Portland/Deering in the Class A South final.
Though the ride was about an hour long, the bleachers were filled with Tiger pride and no one was surprised.
“We travel well. We travel well all year. It’s amazing to look at it,” said Biddeford head coach Jason Tremblay.
The consistent large fan base creates a special game atmosphere.
“It means a lot. It gets us pumped up seeing everybody out there. It brings a lot of intensity to the game. It helps us out and it brings a good atmosphere to the game,” said senior Colin Petit.
A viewer could understand how important the crowd was to the Biddeford players after watching the Tigers score.
Early in Tuesday’s regional final, Petit slid a pass over to Nick McSorley, who slammed the puck into the net. Instead of collecting high fives from his teammates, he rushed over to the glass in front of the Biddeford student section.
In the third period, McSorley scored again and rushed to the glass in front of the student section while playing an “air piano” before collecting hugs from his teammates.
“The whole fan section likes it. It gets us going … we always do that,” said Petit.
Biddeford entered the 2018-19 season with extremely low numbers — and Tremblay considered combining teams with another school.
“It was interesting because at the beginning of the year, probably about 10 months ago, we were operating out of Biddeford Ice Arena. We called the boosters and parents and said, ‘what are we going to do. Are we going to combine with somebody? Are we not?’” Tremblay recalled. “I have to give it to the parents. They looked at me and said, ‘we got 20 guys coach, what do you think?’ And I said, ‘Well, we’re going to have to stay out of injuries, we’re going to have to stay focused because 10 guys will be varsity and 10 guys will be JV.’”
Tremblay decided to stay the course and keep the BHS program on its own — and 10 months later, it looks like the decision paid off.
The Tigers picked up a 3-2 win over Portland/Deering on Tuesday to advance to their second straight state championship game.
“It’s the best decision we’ve made. We don’t look ahead, we look at the moment. When I look back on that conversation 10 months ago, it really has a huge impact,” said Tremblay.
Biddeford will take on Class A North champ St. Dom’s in the title game on Saturday back at the Colisee. The game is set for a 6 p.m. start.
— Sports Writer Sienna Barstow can be reached atsbarstow@journaltribune.comor at 780-9018. Follow the Journal Tribune Sports Department on Twitter @JournalTsports.

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