Fort D Hockey Players Earn 3rd State Championship

It's a team you might not have heard of but it's gaining respect win by win on the ice.

Fort Dorchester High Patriots Hockey Club won a third state championship to its name. 

The team has garnered a spot at the state championship four times in the last four years and has won three of those championships. It's record is 42-10 over that same period. 

Winning the state championship earned the team the right to play in the national tournament. Held March 20-23, the national tournament has teams from all over the nation. Fort D lost, but contended well, according to Head Coach Jeffrey Cliff. 

"The fact that we go and hold our own is pretty tremendous," Cliff said. "Every where we play including this last run in Florida (national tournament), we have some of the nicest most respectable players in the tournament. From a coaching standpoint that's phenomenal. You swell up with pride that you earn your way to a national event and you team maintains its composure." 

There are nine teams in South Carolina — five in the Lowcountry. 

Being a club sport team, the hockey team is entirely supported by parents and players, Cliff said. The team was founded in 2001.