High School Hockey | 2012-13 All-Area co-Players of the Year
Posted by: Feldman
The 2012-13 All-Area Boys Hockey Team is posted in the blog post directly below this one. If you can't scroll down to it, here's a link.
Now, the story on the 2012-13 All-Area co-Players of the Year:
• • • • •
Alex Funk and Jason Samuelson came to the Rochester Lourdes hockey team four years ago with big expectations.
They lived up to those right away.
The talented forwards combined for 57 points as freshmen and they only got better and better as their high school careers went on.
They wrapped up their Lourdes careers eight days ago, playing in their fourth Class A state tournament, where the Eagles placed sixth.
Funk and Samuelson nearly matched one another point-for-point throughout their careers and their senior seasons were no different. Funk finished with 82 points this season, while Samuelson had 81. They leave Lourdes as the top two scorers in program history — Samuelson with 226 points, Funk with 222.
They also leave as the 2013 Faceoff Blog All-Area co-Players of the Year.
"I wish they could have ended in a tie," Lourdes coach Josh Spaniol said of the duo's career point totals. "They're pretty special kids. They've been a part of our program for so long. They put themselves on the map in the state and helped our program get back to higher levels.
"Without those two, our program wouldn't be where it is."
Samuelson and Funk blew away the previous career points records at Lourdes. Sean Corfits held the record previously, with 172 career points, since his gradation in 1992. Samuelson passed him in early January and Funk followed soon after. They then continued to pull away and put up numbers that will be difficult to match.
To put their success into perspective: Corfits finished his entire varsity career with 172 points. Funk had 152 points and Samuelson had 151 total in their junior and senior seasons.
Funk finished his career with 114 goals and 108 assists. He will likely play in the North American Hockey League next season, but will also have a chance to attend some United States Hockey League camps this summer.
"He just works hard, he never backs down," Lourdes coach Josh Spaniol said of Funk. "He got hammered a couple of times against East Grand Forks (in a state tournament quarterfinal), but he didn't shy away. He's not afraid to take a hit or give a hit. That makes him such a competitive player.
Samuelson finished his high school career with exactly 100 goals and 126 assists. He'll play baseball at the University of Iowa, beginning next season.
"He's just a great kid on and off the ice," Spaniol said. "He'll be a great leader wherever he goes."
Both players will leave big holes to fill when practice starts in about eight months.
"We're just thankful to have had them in the program," Spaniol said. "We're lucky they chose to come to school at Lourdes, a great academic school. They'll be well-prepared for college. I'm thankful we were able to coach them for four years — they're very coachable kids. They got out of it exactly what they put into it."
FACEOFF BLOG ALL-AREA PLAYER OF THE YEAR
2013 — Alex Funk and Jason Samuelson (Sr., F, Rochester Lourdes)
2012 — Alex Funk, Jr., F, Rochester Lourdes
2011 — Rory Vesel, Sr., D, Rochester Lourdes
2010 — No POY (the inaugural All-Area Team didn't include a POY)

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