LEWISTON — Jamie Dumont was trying to think about what was Friday night and not dwell on what could have been.
The Oswego State alum and current assistant coach at Bowdoin was watching his Lakers play in the Division III National semifinals. He was excited to be watching his Lakers compete after losing 14 seniors from last year’s club that lost in the title game.
“I’m green and gold tonight,” Dumont said. “I played for (Oswego coach) Eddie (Gosek) and I worked with Eddie. I’m very good friends with the staff there now. I’m glad to see them get to this level after the adversity they had. “
Watching his Lakers didn’t come without some mixed emotions. It was against Oswego State that Dumont’s Bowdoin team lost. It allowed the Lakers to continue out while it ended the Polar Bears season. So instead of coaching at this weekend’s Frozen Four, where Bowdoin is the host school, he’s watching instead.
“The even more special part is that its in my own hometown,” Dumont said. “But if someone’s going to win it, I want my own alma mater to win it.”
Bowdoin was up on Oswego State 3-1 only to watch the Lakers rally for the 4-3 win. The Lakers rallied with three goals in the final 12 minutes. Oswego State advanced to the quarterfinals where it beat Babson. Bowdoin’s season ended at 17-9-2 after a second straight NESCAC Championship.
“It was a little bittersweet,” Dumont said. “There’s only one game a year that I root against Oswego and that’s when we’re playing Oswego. It was a bit of a surreal moment, but that’s a good hockey club, and I’m happy to see where they’re at.”
The Lewiston native graduated from Oswego State in 1997 with a Public Relations degree and a minor in coaching. Dumont was on a Lakers team that earned SUNYAC playoff berths all four years.
Upon graduation, he began his coaching career with the Lakers and helped Oswego State gain a regular season title and an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
As much as he wanted to see Oswego have success, he also was rooting for the Lakers for Bowdoin’s sake.
“The way we look at it is we want Oswego to be the National Champions and say we had a play in that,” Dumont said. “If we’re going to lose, we want to lose to the team that wins it all.”
That won’t happen for the Lakers. Oswego State lost Friday to UW-Stevens Point, 2-1. The Lakers put up 46 shots but Pointers’ goalie Brandon Jaeger blanked Oswego State after an early Shawn Hulshof goal.
Though he was playing the role of host and spectator instead of coaching, Dumont was pleased that attention was being given to Division III hockey.
“This is a great brand of hockey,” Dumont said. “I don’t think people realize how good these athletes are. It’s a little bit of an unfortunate stigma to have it called Division III because these aren’t third-class athletes. These are high-level athletes.”
And to have this showcase in his hometown makes this event even more special, whether he’s hosting, coaching or rooting on his Lakers.
“If there were a hockey game in here tonight, I’d still be here,” Dumont said. “It’s my hometown and it’s good to be part of it. It’s all fun and I’m glad to see the spotlight on Division III hockey.”
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