Mikel Sanchez (CAS’23) (from left), Aida Berberian (ENG’23), Maria Paula Fernandez (ENG’23), and Eric Yi (CAS’23) cheer from the Dog Pound during the Beanpot championship game on February 14 at TD Garden. The Terriers beat Northeastern, 1-0. Photo by Cydney Scott
Terrier Pride
“It was the perfect way to cap off a tumultuous four years of being a hockey fan,” says Dog Pound president
Boston University’s Class of 2022 was running out of time.
Joe Delorto is the president of BU’s student fan section, known as the Dog Pound, and in his final semester before graduation had yet to see the BU men’s hockey team lift the treasured Beanpot. The women’s squad lifted the trophy in 2019, but for the men, there were losses to Northeastern in the 2019 first round, then the 2020 championship game—and in 2021, no Beanpot at all, one more COVID casualty that robbed students of any sense of normalcy.
So 2022 was the last chance for this senior class. And when the Terriers scored a dramatic goal in the final minutes Monday night to top Northeastern 1-0 and hoist the Beanpot trophy for the first time since 2015, it was, for Delorto (CAS’22) and the rest of his classmates, the best possible ending for a strange, surreal four years at BU.
“For myself and my fellow seniors who had been waiting four years to finally see BU bring the Beanpot home, this game meant so much to everyone,” Delorto says. “It was the perfect way to cap off a tumultuous four years of being a hockey fan.”
While the win was especially meaningful for senior fans, they were not alone in celebrating. For Hayley Baron (Questrom’22), her first Beanpot experience as a student is a special memory after enduring two years of college filled with remote classes, masks, and coronavirus swabs and tests.
“I haven’t really been a part of something like that since I’ve got here, just because it’s been so difficult with COVID,” Baron says. “Being in that big of a crowd with everyone so happy—it was really a uniting experience.”
A near-capacity crowd was on hand to see the Terriers beat Northeastern 1-0 in the 69th Beanpot final on February 14 at TD Garden. Photos by Cydney Scott
The two years since the tournament was last played in 2020 made the anticipation among the student population stronger than ever. The indoor mask requirement (followed, to be clear, by some, by not all in attendance) wasn’t about to dampen enthusiasm.
“We were honestly blown away by the demand for student tickets,” Delorto says. “There was so much nervous energy and nervous excitement. I couldn’t really focus on my classes earlier in the day because I was so nervous for the hockey game.”
As the Dog Pound filled the seats at TD Garden, Owen Gund (COM’23) settled in on the arena’s ninth floor, preparing to cover the game for BU student radio on WTBU Sports. Gund, a 2020 transfer to BU, says covering the Terriers on the same ice where his hometown Boston Bruins play was a dream come true.
“The whole experience was just unbelievable, being a media member at TD Garden,” he says.
“Being interested in journalism and with hockey being my favorite sport, the opportunity to cover the event was definitely a factor of wanting to transfer to BU.”
A few steps away from where Gund was working, Belle Fraser (COM’24), another lifelong hockey fan and student journalist, prepared for her first Beanpot as a writer for the Daily Free Press Boston Hockey Blog. From her seat in the media area, Fraser had a bird’s-eye view of the Terrier student section below.
“This was the biggest display of school spirit I’ve ever seen,” she says. “It’s such a big stage, not only for the players, but for the fans too.”
At left, student journalists Belle Fraser (COM’22) (from right), James Garrison (COM’25), and Gillian McMahon (Questrom’24) reported from high above the ice at the Beanpot. At right, Joe Delorto (CAS’22) (left) and Rafael Perron (CAS’23), Dog Pound leaders and BU roommates, finally got to celebrate a men’s Beanpot win on Monday. Photos courtesy of Fraser and Perron
Baron was among the throng in the Dog Pound, and claimed a spot directly in front of the BU Band. “I feel like [the band] really makes it exciting,” she says. “Their energy fed into mine.”
Hannah Ince (CAS’22) was part of the sea of scarlet in the saxophone section. Despite never attending a hockey game before joining the band, Ince was as nervous as anyone. “I knew nothing about hockey before coming to BU, but that changed pretty quickly,” she says.
It was Ince’s third Beanpot as a band member, but the first for Alex Chavira (CFA’25), who was intrigued by the competition between the BU and Northeastern bands and student sections. “It was definitely cool to hear the other band play,” he says, “and it was also a lot of fun hearing the student sections on either side of us, yelling back and forth.”
But as the game progressed and the first period and then the second saw no goals, it moved from being a fun game to being a tension-filled battle, where every shot, every check, every save, every whistle became increasingly important.
“It was scoreless, but it was a very exciting game,” Delorto says. “From a fan’s perspective, you were on the edge of your seat the whole time. There were so many scoring chances for both teams that just somehow didn’t find their way in.”
“I thought it was one of the best college hockey games I’ve seen,” Fraser says. “Both sides wanted it so badly.”
With three minutes remaining, it was still tied 0-0. “The stage couldn’t have been more perfect,” Dog Pound vice president Rafael Perron (CAS’23) says.
And then it happened.
Mary Gogoladze (CAS’25) and a cheering Dog Pound during the Beanpot championship game at TD Garden. Photo by Cydney Scott
“The pop,” Delorto calls it.
With 2:46 left on the clock, and sudden death overtime looking more and more inevitable, BU forward Dylan Peterson (COM’24) knocked in a perfectly timed pass from Jamie Armstrong (CAS’23), sending Terrier Nation into pandemonium.
“When we scored, the roof went off,” Chavira says.
From Delorto: “The explosion of energy was unreal. It was like nothing I’ve ever experienced at a hockey game before.”
“I don’t think I’ve screamed louder in my life,” Perron says.
In the press box above, where rooting is generally frowned upon, the screams weren’t quite as raucous, but just as passionate.
“You know the journalism role is to be unbiased, but we all jumped out of our seats,” Fraser says.
“We were almost silently screaming and jumping up and down,” Gund says. “It was pure euphoria.”
But there was still time for Northeastern to tie the game. “All I remember is sheer exhilaration, but it isn’t over til it’s over,” Perron says.
“The last two minutes of the game probably took some years off my life,” Ince says. “Whenever Northeastern came towards our goal, I was biting my nails.”
The Terriers hung on, emerging victorious to claim their 31st Beanpot title.
“Obviously, all the credit goes to the players and coaches,” says Delorto. “But for as much as we can do as part of the student section, it’s great to feel like we were there to support the guys and do our part in helping them win.”
“It’s not just bragging rights,” according to Fraser. “You kind of feel like you’re part of something bigger than yourself during these games.
“You really feel like you’re part of a community, and that’s really special, especially in the past year when it’s been so isolating. To have this to kind of bring us all together and remind us about school sports and school pride, it’s one of the more special things about the tournament.”
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