Perhaps used to the spotlight by now, St. Ignatius has been to the state final four 13 times, winning seven state championships in their schools history. “Iggy” has been on a championship drought since 2019, and they hope to get back to their winning ways this weekend.

St. Ignatius has taken down some big clubs this year, including Orchard St. Lake Mary’s Prep (6th ranked team in Michigan) and St. Viator out of Illinois. Ignatius has also beaten every other team in the final four, but split the season series with University School. 

“We’re pretty fast, pretty skilled, and we can be physical at times, too,” said head coach Pat O’Rourke. 

Ignatius goes into the final four at the MyHockeyRankings 1st place spot in Ohio.

Players to watch for Ignatius include Braden Esenwine, Dario Piazza, Nolan Ignacio, and goalie Dominic Filizetti.

DeSales is a lot like Ignatius when it comes to past success. They have been to the Final Four a total of 14 times dating back to 1985, and have won it all three times, their most recent win coming in 2021. 

St. Francis plays a hard meat-and-potatoes style hockey game with some decent speed.

“Our team is a hardworking team, blue collar,” said head coach Chris Varga. “Smash em up, in your face… pretty much the name of our game.”

Their top line is the one to watch. Jamison Rose, Sawyer Zielinski (captain), and Andrew Tucker (captain) make up the big three.

Some of their biggest wins include Bowling Green, Olentangy Liberty, and Gilmour Academy. 

DeSales ended the year with the MyHockeyRankings fourth place spot in Ohio, and they will go into the tournament with the third place seed.

Last year, University School had the misfortune of meeting the most dominant team in central Ohio history in Olentangy Liberty by way of the state final. This year, University school is on a mission to avenge last year's championship loss.

“We had a special group last year that came one game short of the ultimate goal,” said head coach Andy Gerow. “They set a goal for themselves this year to get to Columbus and finish the job this year. It’s a group that’s never satisfied.”

US plays a strong system game that stays disciplined and takes care of the puck really well in all ends. A deep team, the top line of Sam Wade, Anthony Messina, and Luke Palmer are the ones to watch this weekend. Second line captain Luca Garofalo is also a player to watch, and a guy that coach Andy Gerow looks towards for leadership.

“He’s a heck of a player, and a vocal leader on and off the ice. He’s done a great job of leading the guys on and off the ice, having them ready to go,” said coach Gerow.

University School ended with the MyHockeyRankings 2nd place spot in Ohio, but they have the first place seed in the tournament.

The least experienced team in this bracket when it comes to State Final Fours, St. Charles, shocked the Central Ohio hockey scene by taking down the reigning champs, Olentangy Liberty, 4-2 in the district final. St. Charles plays a fast-paced game and they have proven they can play with the ‘Big Dogs’ with wins over Upper Arlington, Culver (A), and as previously mentioned, Liberty.

“We’re a fast team, but we can slow the play down when we need to,” said senior forward Julius Feibel. “We’re a hungry group, and we love being the underdogs too.”

Sean Moore has been the most explosive for St. Charles this year. Moore has 33 goals and 25 assists for 58 points in 36 games so far this year. Nick Scharfenberger has been arguably the best with 28 goals, 40 assists for 68 points in 38 games. Those are the two players to watch this weekend.

St. Charles ended the year with the MyHockeyRankings 10th place spot in Ohio, and they have the fourth place seed in the tournament.

--- Ian Phillips for Ohio Hockey Digest

Toledo St. Francis de Sales (24-11-3) vs. Cleveland St. Ignatius (26-8-0) at 1 p.m.

Hunting Valley University School (35-3-0) vs. Columbus St. Charles (24-11-3) at 4 p.m.

Championship

Winner of Semifinal #1 vs. Winner of Semifinal #2 at 1 p.m.

All games are at Nationwide Arena.