Each Tuesday, BRSN sits down for a Q & A session with the BRSN Athlete of the Week. This week, we caught up with Athlete of the Week Sophomore Big Red Men’s Ice Hockey forward Eric Freschi following his game winning goal to help lift the Big Red over Harvard last weekend.
BRSN: Eric thanks so much for the time. The clock is winding down on what had amounted to be a crazy game against Harvard and with the game tied you get the opportunity with seconds left to give the Big Red the victory. Take us through that final shot, how did the play develop and at what point did you realize you had made the shot?
EF: Harvard had it coming up the ice and they turned it over on the red line. It was a quick transition for us, Christian Hilbrich had a great net drive and Cole Bardreau made a great drop pass to me over Harvard’s blue line. I was lucky enough to put it in the back of the net. I couldn’t really see it go in but I saw the people watching the game behind the net put their hands up.
BRSN: As a sophomore you’ve played your share of games at Lynah. How did the atmosphere of the Harvard game compare to the already great environment that Lynah provides night in and night out and what does it feel like for you and the team to play in that kind of environment?
EF: Harvard games are always the best games of the year to play in and last Friday was no exception. It was pretty crazy to play in that atmosphere. We really feed off our crowds energy.
BRSN: I’m sure that over the course of your career as a hockey player you’ve experienced some great personal and team moments. Where did your game-winning goal and team victory over #4 Harvard rank among your favorite moments as a hockey player?
EF: It’s definitely up there. You don’t get that opportunity very much, especially given the circumstances of that game. I’ll remember that one for a long time.
BRSN: Despite all the excitement from Friday’s win, the team suffered a tough loss on Saturday against Dartmouth. How do you as a team try to keep level heads coming out of a weekend that saw both positive and negative results?
EF: I don’t think keeping a level head is going to be a problem, the team is not happy that we dropped that game to Dartmouth. That being said, all our focus is on Colgate for this weekend.
BRSN: It seems like you are thriving this season getting more experience out on the ice and making clutch plays in big spots to help your team win games. Can you talk about your development process over the last couple of years at Cornell? Where have you seen the biggest improvements in your own game?
EF: Yeah, it helps being a sophomore now that you have more experience, you feel more comfortable in more situations. The coaching staff does a great job of giving you every chance to improve your game and helps you with skills after or before practice. I’d say the biggest improvement in my game is my confidence carrying the puck.
BRSN: For those who might only know you as a hockey player, what are some of your interests outside of hockey?
EF: I’m a big sports fan so any sport really, playing or watching (especially the Vikings). I’m a big movie watcher as well. I also love to workout.
BRSN: What is one thing most people, maybe even your teammates, don’t know about you that you’d live to share with fans of Big Red Hockey?
EF: I ran track in high school.
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