Gordon, McEnroe lead the way for Sewickley Academy hockey

By: Greg Macafee
Sunday, March 7, 2021 | 10:01 AM

The Sewickley Academy hockey team is leading the PIHL Class A Northwest Division with a record of 4-1 and an overall mark of 5-9, and the play of junior Jack Gordon and sophomore Matt McEnroe has been a major reason for the success.

With 30 goals and 12 assists, Gordon leads Class A in points with 42, and McEnroe ranks third with 33 after tallying 17 goals and 16 assists.

“They are both talented players, and they both have solid amateur careers so that works to their advantage,” Sewickley Academy coach Chris Chiusano said. “But the fact that we have a small roster means that they are also out on the ice a lot as well, so it gives them more opportunity compared to other players.”

Their production isn’t anything new. As a sophomore and freshman last season, Gordon and McEnroe led the team in goals and assists, respectively. Gordon scored 21 goals and tallied eight assists, while McEnroe scored seven goals and nine assists. So, coming into this season, Chiusano knew that both Gordon and McEnroe would be able to produce.

“Even when they were freshmen, I knew that they were both going to be good players,” Chiusano said. “I recognized that they were both very good players and could tell that they were going to be important to the team over the course of their high school careers.”

In Sewickley’s 14 games, Gordon has recorded at least one point in every contest. He had a season-high seven points against Norwin on Jan. 18 when he tallied two goals and five assists in an 11-7 loss. In the game leading up to that, he tallied five goals and an assist in an 8-1 win over Beaver.

On two occasions this season, Gordon has scored five goals in a single game and he’s recorded five different games with three goals or more.

McEnroe has been just as good. He’s only been blanked twice and, like Gordon, he recorded his season-high in points against Norwin when he tallied three goals and four assists.

He also had two goals and four assists against Beaver on Jan. 21. The pair of Panthers have had a big impact on Sewickley’s success this season in a variety of ways.

Chiusano has placed them on the same line at times this year, but he’s also split them up in certain situations and against certain teams. Either way, their familiarity with each other has helped the team thrive.

“There is good chemistry there, and they are both high caliber players,” Chiusano said. “Even though they don’t play on the same amateur team, when they get out there they know where each other will be on the ice. They know where to pass and when to pass, and they have places on the ice that they get to get themselves opportunities to score.”

Another thing that benefits the pair is their ability to interchange positions on the ice. They play so well together that Chiusano gives them the ability to decide who plays where in certain situations.

“Sometimes Jack will play center and sometimes Matt will play center; it just depends where we’re at on the ice and where the opponent is,” Chiusano said. “They kind of rotate in and out of the position. But Jack is really great in tight, he’s got really great hands and he can move in small places. Matt has great vision and a good shot from the outside and inside as well. They are just similar in a lot of ways.”

The Panthers as a whole also have made big strides this season and are continuing to improve as the playoffs near.

“Jack and Matt are a good tandem and they do great things for our team, but I don’t want anybody to lose sight that it’s a team effort,” Chiusano said. “Everyone that takes the ice for us is giving 100% effort.”

Greg Macafee is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Greg by email at gmacafee@triblive.com or via Twitter .

Tags: Sewickley Academy