Students back banned goalie after video goes viral

What do you mean chugging a beer on the ice is a violation?

It started with a sorority sister posting a funny video on her Instagram. And it ended in the Washington Post.

Laura Morse’s video of goalkeeper Jake Anderson’s on-ice chugging appeared on The Tab’s Facebook page Friday night – and soon got some rare national attention for the UVA hockey guys.

The incident means Anderson is suspended from the Hoos’ first two regular season games, but students are swinging behind the goalie in support, with one branding his stunt “fucking epic”.

Anderson chugs

The game was a blowout for UVA,  finishing at 10-1. But it became a national talking point when Anderson caught a beer tossed over the glass by a fan, cracked it, and downed it with passion to the delight of the crowd.

He was assessed a five minute major penalty, along with a game misconduct and a two game suspension.

Anderson expressed remorse over the situation in a statement released after the game. He called his decision “both selfish and disrespectful to all those involved” and said he “would like to apologize to the fans…the VCU hockey team, and most importantly [his] teammates and fellow UVA students.”

The match report on the UVA Hockey website said “consuming an alcoholic beverage on the ice” was a “selfish act” which “drew eerie parallels to the maturity of a middle schooler desperate for attention from his crush.”

But the fans seem to feel differently.

A fan reacts on Yik Yak

Second year hockey fan Andrew Harrison described the incident as “Classic club sports, the way it should be.” Ahead of tonight’s game, he told The Tab: “The atmosphere was great and the fans love seeing something like that. That’s the beauty of club sports – you get to enjoy yourself while you’re in the game.”

Laura Morse, who shot the now-viral video of the thirsty skater, said: “It didn’t seem like a big deal because the period had ended. Both teams had gone back to their boxes and a group of people started yelling for Jake to stay on.”

She said the chug was the culmination of Anderson’s performance. “The crowd who gave him the beer was very excited. It was like a group of 15 frat bros he had been entertaining the whole game.”

Second year Pepper Nagle described Anderson’s antics as “fucking epic”, adding that she “loved every minute of that game” and “even more when that happened.”

There were many hockey fans and UVA students who weren’t able to witness the chug firsthand. Katie Swindell saw the video on the weekend and told The Tab she found it “hilarious”, while Brett Dewing said: “the video embodies everything [he loves] about UVA.”

Jack Voigt, a fourth year, said the atmosphere of the game was rowdy. “I’ve been to some of these chirp fests before but I didn’t expect the players to be as savage as the rest of us. [Forward Jack O’Rourke] couldn’t wait till after the game to start turning up as he was taking chugs from fans on the bench.”

He added: “We will definitely be back to watch this debauchery of a performance.”

Tonight’s home game against JMU starts 9pm.

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