In less than a week, Bishop Hendricken goaltender Wyatt Alberigo had to bounce back twice to give his team a chance to win.

The first time came against La Salle in the semifinal series when the Rams scored four times on Alberigo, forcing Hendricken head coach Jim Creamer to pull him. The Hawks would go on to lose that game, 7-6, in double overtime, and they needed Alberigo to step up in the decisive Game 3.

There would be no offensive outburst for La Salle, which was held to just one goal as the Hawks soared into the Cimini championship series against Mount Saint Charles with a 3-1 victory.

“Referring to that Saturday night game with La Salle, they got quick goals and I just let it get to my head,” Alberigo said. “Coach said, when he sat me down, that it’s all mental up there, physically I’m good. I just block it out, I knew that [Reilly] Miller and Pat [Creamer] would take us there, and we got goals from everybody. I just trusted my team and tried to play my best for them.”

Then, another turning point came for Alberigo. Hendricken took a 1-0 lead after Miller potted a goal in the first 17 seconds, and carried that momentum into the second period.

Then, the Mounties’ top line turned it on and peppered Alberigo. Mount got three shots past the goal line in just one minute and 30 seconds to take a 3-1 lead and force a Hendricken timeout.

During that timeout, nothing was said to Alberigo.

“I haven’t told him anything in a week and a half,” Jim Creamer said with a laugh. “Since last week, I haven’t spoken to him. I try to avoid him, but I just can’t say enough about him. Mentally, how tough he was over the last week. It would have been really, really easy for him to bail.”

There may have been no words to the netminder, but he sent a message to himself. He said all he had to worry about was staying “focused.”

It paid off for him, too, as he didn’t allow a goal for the rest of the series.

“He absolutely killed it,” Miller said of Alberigo. “Wyatt and I had this thing, whenever I tell him ‘Good job’ or anything they always score, so I haven’t said ‘Good job’ to him the entire season. I didn’t even say anything to him on Wednesday when they popped a quick three [goals] in. Then he picked himself up and luckily we ended up winning that game.”

The Hawks scored three unanswered in Wednesday’s Game 1 to eke out a 4-3 win, while strong play between the pipes boosted Hendricken to a 4-0 shutout in Game 2.

“Just, as a goalie, you have to give your team a chance to win, that’s what I went into each game thinking,” Alberigo said. “The second game in the La Salle series, we were on a high, thinking we could just close it out and got a little too cocky. So I just kind of toned it down, focused and I wanted to give my team a chance to win because they earned it, they played hard for me, just did it for them.”

Alberigo saved all 28 shots-on-goal that came his way in Game 2, earning himself the distinction of being the only Rhode Island goaltender to shut out the Mounties this season.

The medal was worth the wait for Alberigo, who skated in front of the twine as a full-time starter for the first time this season.

“I was waiting for this chance,” Alberigo said. “I’ve been to Brown so I’ve seen everybody [in] past years, nothing you can do about it. This year I just wanted to make sure I took control of my destiny and gave my team a chance to win and just really bring it home.”

Becoming the first Rhode Island netminder to silence the Mounties’ sticks this season and posting a shutout in the final game of the season were “pretty good” honors for Alberigo, but helping his squad to a state title resonated most with him.

“Whether I let in six goals and we won, I’m just happy that we won,” he said.