Meet the Mass. 10-year-old who may be Boston College's good luck charm
The Boston College men's ice hockey team is now one win away from a national title.
No. 1 overall seed Boston College beat Michigan 4-0 on Thursday night in the Eagles’ first Frozen Four appearance since 2016.
Josh Bello, a 10-year-old Needham, Massachusetts boy, has been with the team throughout this season.
Bello was with the team in St. Paul on Thursday night, congratulating the players as they came off the ice Thursday night.
"Usually when I'm here, they win, and sometimes when I'm away, they lose," Bello said.
Bello matched up with the ice hockey program through the national nonprofit Team IMPACT in 2019, about a year after he was diagnosed with a condition called nephrotic syndrome.
It's been a long road for the fourth grader diagnosed with a kidney disease that causes swelling and hearing loss.
Thanks to the organization Team IMPACT, he got paired up with the Eagles and has been in the stands cheering them on for five seasons.
"Really exciting. They don't lose much, so it's a lot of fun," Bello said.
"It gives him confidence," Melissa Bello, Josh's mother, said. "He can take his mind off, 'I have a doctor's appointment or I have to go for this blood work.'"
His mom says the experience has been an essential distraction, and Bello will be there alongside them as his team fights Denver for the national title.
"We did lose to them earlier in the year, but we can get revenge on them, and it's a good time to get revenge," Bello said.
Boston College (34-5-1) will look to avenge an October loss to Denver when the two teams square off on Saturday for the national championship.