Senior captain scores 100 points

With the help of his teammates, Ben Ward achieved a rare feat in high school hockey. The senior captain etched his name in the history books of the Houlton-Hodgdon Black Hawks cooperative hockey team, as the first ever to score 100 career points.
“I want to thank my teammates for the passes and all of their support, and especially Cody Briggs who has been on my line the whole time,” said Ward.
    Last Friday night in front of a capacity crowd at the John Millar Civic Center, Ward was able to hit the 100-point mark on a goal set up by none other than linemate Briggs.
The Black Hawks broke the puck out of the zone and Briggs carried it on his stick down the sideboards. As he maneuvered his way toward the Orono net, two Red Riot defenders skated toward him, leaving Ward wide open in the center.
“He passed it across and I put it top shelf,” Ward said. “It felt awesome. It was great. The crowd went crazy.”
Ward started playing hockey when he was 9 years old.
“I started later than everyone else,” he said. “I like hockey because it’s fast paced with body contact and it’s lots of head’s up and thinking.”
At the beginning, Ward said he played hockey just for fun, but then as he climbed through the levels, the fun mixed with competition.
“I wanted to be the best that I could be,” he said. “I just wanted to try to do whatever I could to help the team.”
As a freshman, Ward set the lofty goal of reaching 100 goals and assists by the time he graduated. But, it never really became a reality until the end of last season and the beginning of this year.
“I started scoring more and getting a lot of assists,” said Ward. “I was hoping I would get it this year. I wasn’t sure if I would be able to do it. Then, Joel told me I needed one more point and it happened to be Senior Night.”
Scoring a goal in hockey or making an assist includes many factors, such as determination, impeccable timing and the unselfishness of your teammates. Of course, there is also a little luck involved.
“You have to be in the right spot at the right time,” Ward said. “You have to make good passes. You have to work hard all the time.”