The Daily Gamecock

Cock Hockey represents community of brotherhood for team's seniors

South Carolina is not a large hockey market. In fact, the only currently operating professional hockey team in the state is the South Carolina Stingrays, an affiliate of the Washington Capitals playing in the East Coast Hockey League, located in Charleston. 

But many of the seniors on the South Carolina Club Hockey team, also known as Cock Hockey, said they have found an identity and a brotherhood through collegiate hockey, even at a university without a Division I team. For these seniors, the team has served as a strong basis for their college experience.

“It was kind of my identity. It was the first thing that I joined,” team captain and forward Cam Mecca said. 

Mecca has been on the team for each of his four years at USC and said that his favorite memory was a game the team played against Ole Miss that earned them a trip to nationals. This trip to nationals, despite being cut short due to the pandemic, solidified the program as one of the top club sports at South Carolina. 

Forward Noah Madney echoed Mecca's sentiments by adding that his favorite memory was the first game he played in against Asheville after he took some time off from playing.

“I needed to get back on the ice, and this was a good opportunity,” Madney said. “I met a lot of good people, a lot of good friends.”

Many seniors said that Cock Hockey helped pave their way into finding a tight-knit friend group. 

“I got my core group of guys from this. We’ve known each other since the beginning,” forward Luke Rudman said. “It’s a community now. It’s not just like a bunch of guys that want to play hockey. It’s like a family.”

Rudman was not the only senior that said he appreciated the friendships he made through his time on the team. 

"It's the first group of friends that you really have, and you stick with them all four years," defenseman Tyler Oakley said.

Defenseman Nick Peters said the road trips with the team to play other schools in the SECHL were some of his favorite moments.

“A lot of us were from the north, so coming down to the south, we got to travel a lot, see a lot of different places that I probably wouldn’t have been able to,” Peters said.

Many of the players said they believe the program is just getting started and will continue to grow. 

Oakley said that the growth of the program, which is felt each time the team competes at the plex, is a testament to the Class of 2022's efforts. He pointed to a home game during the 2019-2020 season against Georgia or Clemson when the team enjoyed significant support from the fans.

"We were close to having like a thousand people," Oakley said of the game during his sophomore year. 

Many players said the program is more than a club sport and is starting to get more and more recognition among students.

“The excitement of where this program is going to go after we’re gone is probably the best part,” defenseman Avery Pruden said. 


Comments