By Ethan MacKrell
Contributing Writer
There’s no better feeling than getting your first goal out of the way and taking the pressure off your shoulders. This past weekend, Joe Chinelly scored the first goal of his Bonaventure career off of a pass from line mate Andrew Farnham.
Chinelly, a freshman on this year’s St. Bonaventure Club Hockey team, is one of the seven freshmen who have had an immediate impact on the season.
The Webster, New York native has been at Bonaventure for close to two months, and has a lot to reflect upon on both his time at campus and how the season has played out so far. When talking to Joe Chinelly, he had nothing but positives to say about the team and his decision to attend Bonaventure.
“I came to Bonaventure because I was looking for a smaller school, and I really liked the campus. When I came for an overnight visit, I really got a feel here for the life here at Bonaventure, and it really fitted me well,” Chinelly said.
Playing college hockey is something Chinelly has always wanted to do, according to him.
“I’ve been playing hockey my entire life, and I knew I still wanted to play the sport during my years at college. Hockey came into play when I was choosing what school I went to, and I found Bonaventure to be a great fit,” Chinelly said.
Chinelly would also comment on his goals coming into his first college hockey season.
“My goals were to put in hard work at practice every week to prove to the coaches I was ready to be a significant contributor to the team.” Chinelly said.
Now that the team has been together for a quarter of a season, there was a lot that Chinelly could take away from his experiences.
“All of us get along very well, so we have great chemistry out on the ice,” Chinelly said. “Everyone supports each other when someone makes a bad play and doesn’t yell at them for making a mistake. We are a very fast and physical team, and we can out skate most of our opponents, which we greatly use towards our advantage come game time.”
Chinelly credits the team gelling together so well to the actions of the returning players, especially the players he already knew coming into the season, he said.
“I knew Nate Parker who was my former teammate on my high school team. I also knew Steve Felter, who I played with on my travel hockey team. Coming into my freshman year, they really helped me find a sense of comfort inside the locker room,” Chinelly said.
Chinelly was extremely thrilled to get his first career goal, and he loved all the support he received from his teammates, he said.
“It was an amazing feeling,” Chinelly said. “Scoring your first goal with a new team is always exciting. It’s great seeing your teammates going crazy for you and showing their support.”
Chinelly finished off by saying how enjoyable it is playing with the guys on the team and how close everyone is to one another.
“Playing with the boys is my favorite thing here at St. Bonaventure,” he said. “Everybody gets along with each other and everybody is included in everything we do both on and off the ice. The best part is everybody treats each other as if we are a family.”
mackree15@bonaventure.edu
