Terranova Leaves Middletown North With Scoring Record

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Prior to the start of the 2014-15 scholastic hockey season, Middletown North senior Thomas Terranova was looking forward to a memorable year for the Lions, and that was the way things turned out with North ending an unforgettable season last March by winning its first ever NJSIAA Public B state championship with a 5-4 win over Ramsey.
“We were optimistic going into the season because we had plenty of experience,” said Terranova, who assisted on the game-winning goal by Chris Acosta with 45 seconds left in the third quarter. Everything fell into place for us.
“That was a great feeling after the game was over,” he said. “We were confident before the game because, although they had some good players, they didn’t have the depth that we had. It was a great achievement and we had great support from the school. There were a lot of school busses filled with students going to the game.
“After the game, we came back to the school and had an escort by the Middletown fire and police departments,” he said. “We had a huge crowd waiting for us and it was cool. Everyone was cheering and we had a big assembly in the school auditorium the next morning to honor the team.”
Terranova set a school record for points with 147 as the Lions rolled to an 18-4-5 record. He broke the record early in the season with a goal in a 5-5 tie with Montgomery and finished the season with 20 goals and 33 assists.
The big games in the regular season for North were three against rival Middletown South. North won the first meeting, 5-4, but South avenged that loss with a 4-3 in the Mayor’s Cup game. Not unexpectedly, they were played before standing room only crowds.
As it turned out, the two teams met again in the Shore Conference Tournament, where North won the rubber game, 4-2.
“That was big for us because it’s such a big rivalry and it showed that we were the better team,” said Terranova, who is currently playing for the Jersey Hitmen 18 Year Old Triple A team.
“They play all year in the United States Premier Hockey League,” said Terranova. “They have a very good team.”
“Tom has good size and works hard on his skating skills,” said North coach Matt Clemente. “He has a good mind for the game and plays at a quick pace. He worked very hard and improved greatly since his freshman year.”
Although the win over Ramsey was the most important game, North still had another big game against top-seeded Chatham in the semifinals where the Lions posted a 4-0 shutout.
“That was our best defensive game of the season,” said Terranova, who scored a pair of goals in the game. “They were the top-seeded team, but we thought that Ramsey was better.”
Terranova began his hockey career at an early age. “I started when I was four years old,” said Terranova. “I played for the New Jersey Generals Traveling team until I reached high school. We played our home games at the Red Bank Armory Ice Complex (The Middletown Ice World had not been constructed at that time.).”
Entering high school, Terranova played freshman football and baseball in addition to hockey, but switched to lacrosse in his sophomore year when North organized a team. He played all three years and had a good senior season when he scored 6 goals as the Lions finished 10-10.
“I was just looking to keep busy,” said Terranova. “Chris (Acosta) also played lacrosse and we had a good year.”
Terranova played forward in his first three years of high school hockey but switched to defense as a senior. After two losing seasons, North went 12-10 in Terranova’s junior season as a warm-up to the great senior year.
“I was moved to defense because we were strong up front,” said Terranova, “but there was not that much difference between offense and defense as far as I was concerned.”
Terranova was a good student with Marketing and Business being his main subjects in high school.
Terranova will play for the Hitmen this year and has college plans for the future. “I’m not sure which school I’ll go to, but it will be one in which I’m offered a spot. I haven’t decided on a major. “High school was fun,” said Terranova, “but without sports, it wouldn’t be the same. Some people take it for granted but you have to appreciate every minute of it. “I am thankful to my coaches, teachers and all the friends I met there,” said Terranova.