ADRIAN, Mich. – Two former Metro Jets players won a college national championship last week with Adrian College.
Adrian freshmen Brodie Thornton, a forward who played three season with the Jets (2017-20), winning a national title with the 2017-18 team and serving as captain in 2019-20, joined defenseman DeVon Fields, who skated for the Jets the second half of the 2019-20 season, were part of the Bulldogs’ team that won it all April 20 in suburban St. Louis.
The Bulldogs defeated Minot State University 6-1 in the ACHA Division I championship game.
“The feeling of winning a national trophy leaves me speechless once again,” Thornton said. “The feeling is like no other. It’s a bunch of emotions that have built up to you and you’re sitting their speechless. The team wasn’t a team. It was a house full of brothers. We bonded together really easy in the beginning semesters. You’re seeing the boys 24/7 not just at hockey but at school and in the dorms. Along with the team, we had the greatest work ethic.
“We had games canceled back to back. We played each other in scrimmages because we had multiple cancellations due to COVID-19 and to come out on top at the end, I just have to say to the whole organization of Adrian College thank you for the sacrifices and thank you for the best freshman year a player/student can have. Thank you to all the coaches and staff at the rink and to the trainers we have with us every morning. I’m thankful for all the seniors and want to let them know to watch us again next year because W2D.”
Fields is in agreement with his teammate.
“It feels great to be a part of a national championship team,” said Fields. “The hard work I saw each and every one of my teammates put in daily was unmatched compared to our opponents. Coming to this team, there were a lot of emotions and I wasn’t sure what to expect, I think what made this team so special was how all of us were so close, we could go to any teammate if we had a problem, needed a tutor, needed a ride, there was no hesitation and just a great group of guys.”
Getting the chance to play together after last season in the USPHL, both Thornton and Fields relished their first year of college hockey.
“This guy has been my brother for years and to see him smile when the final seconds went down was just unreal,” Thornton said of Fields. “I knew this guy was my brother when I first met him on the Jets. To go from canceling a national tournament to winning the next was just surreal.”
“Playing and winning with Brodie is just a cool dream come true,” added Fields. “Ever since I joined Metro, Brodie has been nothing but a great friend and teammate. The smile on our faces when the buzzer hit is something I’ll always remember.”
Adrian also won the national tournament in 2018 with three former Jets on the roster in forwards Cooper McLean and Michael Tratar and defenseman Josh Hosking.
Already looking ahead to 2021-22, Thornton and Fields know repeating as champs will not be an easy task.
“Next year, we have to come in knowing the target is on our back and compete in practices and in games, and show the competitive nature that this team has,” said Fields.
“I think we need to do the same thing we did this season,” Thornton added. “We will work harder and faster next year. The team is losing players, but I know Coach Gary (Astalos) will bring us many other players with the same talents. We already have two strong players from the Jets coming into the program (forwards Alec Lindecker and Conner Graham) filling in for the ones that are leaving.”
