Sibling rivalry
Icer keeps relationship with brother/opponent on ice

By MICHAEL PALM
Collegian Sports Writer

After the second period of Saturday's game between the Icers and Kent State, it didn't look like the Farrall parents would get their wish. They hoped for a tie between the two teams, but that didn't happen.

After a close first period ended in a 1-1 tie, the American Collegiate Hockey Association's No. 1 Icers pulled away with a 11-2 win.

The couple didn't root for either team -- just two of the players involved.

John, a senior defenseman, plays for Penn State, while David, a sophomore defenseman, suits up for Kent State. David said this game was different than other games.

"I had a lot of fun playing against John," he said. "Sometimes you might give a little extra."

After a trip up from Westlake, Ohio, Ann and Bill Farrall had come to see their sons play in what would be the only intercollegiate matchup ever for the two brothers.

"This is a success as far as we're concerned if they don't fight," Bill said.

The two did not fight, but they did collide several times. John played left wing during this game and battled it out with his 6-foot-1 brother in the crease and the corner.

"Dave Farrall had a chance to absolutely drill John -- David just kind of grabbed him," Icer Coach Joe Battista said. "I thanked him for not laying his brother out."

John could be declared the winner of this family feud, scoring a goal and two assists, while his brother was held scoreless in the contest.

This season has been a year of success for John. As executive director of the Penn State Hockey Management Association, he is in charge of the student support for the Icers.

He is also in charge of the team. At the beginning of the season, he, along with senior forward Andrew Strasser, was named team co-captain.

"Strass and I both try to hold the team together," John said. "It just hasn't been me and Strass -- it's been a whole group of us."

That group has led the Icers to a 23-5-1 record this year and a very good chance of bringing the national championship to State College. That is something the team of 1992-93, which finished 33-1, could not do. That team's only loss came in the final game of the national championships.

"That would be nice to get one before I get out of here," he said.

With a much younger roster, this season's team has a different chemistry than the 1992-93 team which had more upperclassmen. Although the loss was heartbreaking, John said he has learned a lot, and it has passed onto his teammates.

"You can't take anybody lightly," he said. "I think we have a great approach to the game."

Although a defenseman, John ranks fourth on the team in scoring with 13 goals and 30 assists for 43 points. He is also second on the team in plus/minus rating with a plus 37 behind senior forward Cliff Graziano's plus 39.

He has achieved all this with a broken wrist suffered during the Rhode Island game on Jan. 20. A Cleveland native, the NBA's Cavs logo adorns his cast.

And like a fast-break offense, John sometimes leads the team on rushes into the opponent's zone. With deft stickhandling, he has scored several finesse goals this year. Along with the goal scoring has come some phenomenal passes.

In the second period of Saturday's game, John looked up when he garnered the puck in the corner while the Icers were killing a penalty. He fired a slap shot to the other end of the ice, where the puck bounced off the boards to find streaking freshman forward Tim McNamara, who snared the puck. With a deke, he had the goaltender on his knees before firing the puck into the net.

For John, those plays have been the norm this season. And his parents must have been cheering --on the inside.