PHOTOS COURTESY OF COLGATE ATHLETICS
Jake Kulevich is tied for the Colgate team lead in points this season with nine.
By JOSHUA KUMMINS
Marblehead’s Jake Kulevich is everything Colgate University hockey head coach Don Vaughan could ask for in a team captain and leader.
He is the ‘minutes eater’ and key penalty killer that coaches look for and want in a top defenseman, but he also brings a well-rounded game that has made him so successful for the duration of his career in Hamilton, N.Y.
If there were more than one Jake Kulevich, Vaughan wouldn’t mind.
“He’s our leader,” said Vaughan, the Raiders’ 24th-year head coach. “His compete level has been great, and he wants to do everything he can to help the team win. He’s been our best player in a lot of games this season. We could use a couple more just like him.”
Kulevich has certainly saved his best for last, sitting tied for the team lead with nine points after scoring his second goal of the season Saturday in a 3-2 loss at Providence. After a five-goal, 15-point sophomore season, he almost exactly matched that with 14 points last year.
Kulevich keeps it simple and plays his game, but the contributions he’s made are vital, especially as the young Raiders look to make some noise in Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Hockey play and improve upon a 3-7-4 overall record.
“I try not to do too much out there and just stick with my game, but I think I definitely have improved over my four years here,” said Kulevich, who has scored five points in Colgate’s last four games, including assists in three straight before this past weekend.
“It’s obviously nice to see that rewarded, getting some points and contributing offensively. Of course, take care of the defensive zone first, but whenever I can chip in offensively is nice and helps out the team.”
It’s been a remarkable career for Kulevich. Entering tonight’s game against rival Cornell, the two-time former Marblehead High captain has suited up in all but one of Colgate’s 128 games over his career to date.
The lone game Kulevich missed was on Oct. 6, 2013 against Ferris State, just the second game of his collegiate career.
Vaughan has seen Kulevich take a more active approach to his offensive game this season, leading him on a pace to set high totals in his final season at Colgate.
“He’s carrying the puck more and taking charge,” Vaughan said. “He’s finding ways to work through the defenders and get shots to the net, so he’s doing a lot for us right now. We’re inexperienced on defense, and Jake is logging a lot of minutes for us.”
Kulevich has skated with a current sophomore defense partner for much of the last two seasons, while two other members of the Raiders’ blue line are freshmen.
It’s the team-first mentality that made Kulevich an easy choice to be the Raiders’ sole leader.
“We have nine freshmen, so I just try to lead by example on that end ― hard work, just improve each day, and stick with the process,” Kulevich said. “I think we’re getting to where we want to be, but we have to put it together for a 60-minute game. The best way to do that is by getting better each week.”
Kulevich is one of four Massachusetts natives on the Colgate roster, joining Newburyport’s Derek Freeman, Byfield’s Jared Cockrell, and Duxbury’s Tim Harrison, an assistant captain.
Also a football and baseball player for the Magicians, Kulevich would achieve his current offensive success without living by a popular adage ― “practice makes perfect.”
“I’m just shooting a lot before and after practice,” Kulevich said. “You can never get enough shots in, but it’s really all the guys around me. My goal (on Saturday) was a great shot through from the point. I was kind of hanging out in front and able to bang it in, so it’s all about a five-man unit out there.”
Names and notes
- Lynn’s Marcos Echevarria is the leading scorer in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) men’s basketball as the Nichols College sophomore averaged 24.7 points over his first three games. The St. Mark’s grad dropped a career-high 37 against Lasell in the Bison’s 113-103 win on Nov. 19.
- Two of the top percentage shooters in the CCC also hail from the area. Lynn’s Stephen Basden is off to a strong start at Endicott, shooting 60 percent from the field, including 5-of-8 from three-point range in the early going. Peabody’s Josh Syska has averaged 11.6 points per game for Roger Williams on a 58.5 percent mark.
- Marblehead’s Doyle Somerby recorded his second assist of the season in the Boston University hockey team’s 5-3 win over Harvard last Tuesday. It came on Malden Catholic product Nick Roberto’s game-winning goal.
- Winthrop’s Quinton Dale was named New England Women’s & Men’s Athletic Conference Defensive Athlete of the Week in men’s basketball after recording his fourth and fifth double-doubles of the season in Wheaton College’s wins over Roger Williams and Regis, while totaling two blocks and a steal. Against RWU, Dale scored 18 points and ten rebounds.