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North Penn 6 Owen J. Roberts 3

Over the course of his four-year career at North Penn, James Boyle has made it a point to step up when his team needed him most. He came up big Thursday night.

Boyle set the tone by scoring his team’s first two goals in the second period as the Knights bested Owen J. Roberts 6-3 at Hatfield Ice Arena to advance to the Class AA Flyers Cup semifinals. The top-seeded and defending-champion Knights (24-1) will face fourth seed Downingtown West next Thursday in the semifinal at the same venue (6:30 start).

Boyle, who is regarded as one of the area’s premier defensemen, missed Tuesday’s first-round win over Shawnee due to illness.

“It was good to get back,” he said, and get a couple right away.”

North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis cited Boyle’s contributions to the Knights’ success over the past two seasons.

“I said at one point that {North Penn’s Samuel Norton} is probably the best player in the league,” Vaitis said, “but James is right up there. He’s honestly, the energy of this team.

“We won on Tuesday but it wasn’t our best game. We were missing something; were missing James.”

The evening’s opening goal was set up when Norton made a dash down the left wing and made a cross-ice pass to Boyle who collected the puck between the circles and beat Wildcat goaltender Page Faith on the netminder’s glove/left side 6:55 into the frame. It was his 16th goal of the season.

His 17th came five-and-a-half minutes later when Vaitis used his timeout with the Knights in the midst of an extended power play; the Wildcats’ Maximillian Connell was serving a double minor for boarding and unsportsmanlike conduct. One minute, 37 seconds later, Quinn Rafter was sent off for slashing Vaitis took advantage of the situation to give his power-play unit a breather.

“I think that was huge,” Boyle said, “to settle down and just gather ourselves to capitalize on the five-on-three. I think we needed it, just to settle ourselves down.”

North Penn’s two-man advantage was extended when the Wildcats’ Jaxton Rafter drew a minor penalty for unsportsmanlike conduct followed by a 10-minute misconduct and a game misconduct

By the time things had quieted down, Nolan Shingle and Chris Silvotti had added power play goals and North Penn had a 4-0 lead.

“We had a full five-on-three for two minutes,” Vaitis said. “It was a 1-0 game at the time. Our power play unit was out there at the beginning of {the four-minute power play}. We called a timeout to draw a couple things up, but also to give them a breather.

“It was a big moment for us, and the boys did a great job on that power play.”

Declan Leahy extended North Penn’s lead 5:38 into the third period before Brody Majcher got Owen J. Roberts (13-8) on the scoreboard with 9:42 left in regulation. Shingle added a sixth goal for the Knights before Richie Pupek and Tyler Moyer added goals for the Wildcats.

Emotions were on edge throughout the final period. By evening’s end, each team had been called for 10 penalties.

Now the Knights will prepare for Downingtown West.

“It’s going to be a tough game,” Vaitis said. “They’re a good team down there in the Intercounty League. We have some time off here to go rest up, practice Monday, watch some film on Monday, and get ready for therm.”

Owen J. Roberts 0 0 3—3

North Penn 0 4 2—6

Second-period goals: James Boyle (NP) from Samuel Norton and Nolan Shingle, 6:55; Boyle (NP) from Norton, 12:18: Shingle (MP) from Ismael Cabrales and Norton, 13:21; Chris Silvotti (NP) from Shingle, 14:21

Third-period goals: Declan Leahy from Silvotti and Gavin Lombardi, 4:38; Brody Majcher (OJR) from Colin Daugherty, 7:18; Norton (MP) from Shingle, 9:44; Richie Pupek (OJR) from Daugherty, 14:14; Tyler Moyer (OJR) from Majcher and Tanner Nau, 15:21

Shots:  OJR 41, North Penn 50; Saves: Page Faith (OJR) 44, Andy Norton (NP) 38

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Council Rock South 3 Central Bucks South 1

By Karen Sangillo

It’s one of the great truths in sports.

It’s difficult to beat the same team three times in a season. 

Council Rock South showed just how true it is, beating Central Bucks South, 3-1, in the quarterfinals of the Flyers Cup Class 2A tournament on Thursday night at Hatfield Ice Arena. 

It was the fourth meeting of the season between the two SHSHL rivals. They split in the regular season, but CB South shut out the Golden Hawks, 2-0, in the league semifinals. 

“We were definitely thinking about that,” CR South captain Jake Weiner said. “This is bigger and I think we did a good job. They’re a great team. They’ve got some of the best players over there. 

“We just worked hard and played our game the right way and we won. It’s always great to beat a rival. It’s hard to beat the same team three times in a row, but also we knew how they were going to play. They like to bring the guy low and shoot up high with the pass, so we played that perfect.”

The second period made up for an uneventful first period. 

Connor Holland netted his first goal of the tournament to put the third-seeded Golden Hawks on the board first, seven minutes into the second frame. 

With 2:24 remaining Weiner received a two-minute roughing penalty, and that was the opening the Titans needed. Eleven seconds into the power play, Ryan Montagna scored his fourth goal of the tourney for sixth seed CB South to tie the game.

“I was so proud of them,” said CB South coach Josh Sklar. “They battled their way back. They faced that adversity. They didn’t give up. They kept pushing and made good things happen.

“When you see a team as many times as we’ve seen each other, they know what we have and we know what they have. There’s no more surprises. It’s hard to beat a team three times in a row.”

Thirty seconds into the third period, Jordan Sarne scored what would prove to be the game winner. Weiner capped the evening with an insurance goal.  

“It was a good game,” said CR South coach Joe Houk. “We had a game plan. We had to shut them down in the neutral zone because that’s where they beat us the last two games. If you control the neutral zone, that’s where you win or lose games.

“Our game plan was a good one and we stuck to it. Our kids battled hard and persevered. We got that early goal in the third period and that helped.”  

Weiner capped the evening with an insurance goal.  

“When they tied it up, that’s when the killer instinct kicked in for us,” Weiner said. “We started working really hard, doing what we needed to do. It was beautiful.”

The Golden Hawks will face second seed Boyertown, a 5-3 winner over No. 10 Pennsbury, in the semifinals on Thursday at Hatfield. 

“It’s a must-win game,” Weiner said. “We have a lot of seniors here, we’ve all lost the last three years in a row and we’ll do everything we can to try to beat them.”

CB South had a young roster this season and can expect continued growth next year. 

“We lost I think eight seniors so we had a lot of people coming in,” Sklar said. “Lot of people stepping into roles but they grew into them as the year went on. We gave them the tools and they took it and ran. They did everything we could ask for. This was a very good learning experience and next year we’ll hit the ground running again.”

CB South 0 1 0—1

CR South  0 1 2—3

Second period goals: Connor Holland (CRS) from Aidan Judge and Jordan Sarne, 6:57; Ryan Montagna (CBS) from Dominic Gibson, 14:47;

Third period goals: Sarne (CRS) from Jake Weiner, 0:30; Weiner (CRS) from Chase Stratton and Allen Pronin, 6:18

Shots: CB South 25, CR South 27; Saves: Nathan Napolitano (CBS) 20

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Flyers Cup Results Thursday, March 5

Class AA Quarterfinals

Boyertown 5 Pennsbury 3—The 10th-seeded Falcons held leads of 2-0 and 3-2 but fell to the second-seeded Bears at Ice Line. Shane Gleisener, Connor Gray, and Francis DeLucia scored for Pennsbury

Council Rock South 3 vs. Central Bucks South 1

Downingtown West 6 Central Bucks East 2—Alex Wilson and Ethan Cenci scored for the 13th Patriots in the loss to the fifth-seeded Whippets at Ice Line. Graziani scored twice for the Hatters. Joey Magnin also scored.

North Penn 6 Owen J. Roberts 3

Class A Quarterfinals

Penncrest 9 Garnet Valley 0

Kennett 8 Hatboro-Horsham 3— Thord-seeded Kennett built a 6-0 lead over the sixth-seeded Hatters at Ice Line.

Hershey 4 West Chester Henderson 3

West Chester East 6 Marple Newtown 2

Wednesday March 4

Girls Quarterfinals

West Chester East 10 Conestoga 3

Lower Merion 10 Radnor 0

Downingtown West 10 Radnor 0

Tuesday, March 3

Class AAA Quarterfinals

La Salle 6 Father Judge 2 see story for details

Malvern Prep 6 Devon Prep 4—Ryan Jacobs scored two goals as the fourth-seeded Frairs bested the fifth-seeded Tide at Ice Line to earn a spot in the semifinals against top-seeded Holy Ghost Prep. James Young, Cole Scarbinsky, Pax Hoishik, and William McCullough all scored for Malvern Prep. Ryan Caterino made 25 saves in goal.

St. Joseph’s Prep 8 Salesianum 0—Cole Gargon scored twice and six other players added one goal each as the second-seeded Hawks shut out the seventh-seeded Sallies at the Skatium. Aiden Quinn, Connor Martin, Frankie Ely, Cole Sullivan, Bradan Fisher, and Vincent Burnett all scored for the Prep, which will face La Salle in next Thursday’s semifinals. Declan Geary earned the shutout in goal.

“I thought we played with incredible speed and that really opened up our offense,” said St. Joseph’s Prep coach Charlie van Kula. We knew Salesianum was going to be a good test. In the past we may have let our foot off the gas a bit, but I am proud of how our guys stayed dialed in, stayed positive, and played for one another.”

Class AA First Round

Owen J, Roberts 7 Avon Grove 5

Central Bucks South 4 Downingtown East 3—Ryan Montagna’s goal with 11:03 left in regulation proved to be the game winner as the sixth-seeded Titans outlasted 11th seed Downingtown East at Hatfield Ice. It was Montagna’s third goal of the game. He also added three assists.

Pennsbury 8 Haverford 5—Jacob Sarver scored three goals an added an assist an Shane Gleisner provided two goals and three assists as the 10th-seeded Falcons bested seventh seed Haverford at the Skatium to advance to the quarterfinals.

Council Rock South 6 Spring-Ford 3—Jake Weiner scored five goals for the third-seeded Hawks, two in the third period

Boyertown 12 Souderton 2—Maxwell Ryon and Matthew Ceoss scored for the 15th-seeded Indians in the loss to the second-seeded Bears at Ice Line.

North Penn 9 Shawnee 2—the top-seeded and defending champion Knights scored four goals in the first period and went on to the win over the 16th-seeded Renegades. Samuel Norton, Gabriel Dunn, Nolan Shingle, and Chris Silvotti each scored twice. Derek Lugara also scored for North Penn which will face Owen J. Roberts in the quarterfinals.

Monday, March 2

Class AA  First Round

Central Bucks East 6 Conestoga 3—Trailing 3-2 after two periods, the 13th-seeded Patriots scored four goals in the third and stunned the fourth-seeded Pioneers Monday night at Ice Line. Evan Asimmakopoulos scored what proved to be the winning goal with 13:44 left in regulation. Ethan Cenci extended the lead with a power-play goal with 12:18 left and added an empty-net goal with 21 seconds remaining.

Cole Kleindienst, Morris Ostrobrod and Samuel Gottesman also scored for East whih will face North Penn or Shawnee in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

Downingtown West 6 vs. Pennridge 2—Fifth-seed Downingtown West broke  the game open Monday night with three second-period goals and built a 5-0 third-period lead before Ryan Burke and Lanndon Bishop scored for the 12th-seeded Rams, who closed the season at 6-12-1.
 

Class A First Round

Garnet Valley 2 Palmyra 1

West Chester Henderson 6 Plymouth Whitemarsh 3 see story for details

Marple Newtown 5 West Chester Rustin 1

Hatboro-Horsham 10, Radnor 0 see story for details

Featured

C.B. South 4 Downingtown East 3

By Karen Sangillo

It was fast paced and action packed. 

And when it was over, sixth seed Central Bucks South was a 4-3 winner over No. 11 Downingtown East in Tuesday’s opening round of the Flyers Cup Class AA tournament at Hatfield Ice Arena. 

The Titans will take on third seed Council Rock South, a 6-3 winner over No. 14 Spring-Ford, in Thursday’s quarterfinals at Hatfield.

CB South got a pair of late goals in the first period. The Titans were on what had been a rather lackluster power play when Nolan Senigo netted the first goal of the evening. Ryan Montagna followed with a second goal less than 30 seconds later to send CB South into the first intermission with a 2-0 lead. 

That lead was cut in half early in the second period when Downingtown East’s Chase McKeown scored. Montagna answered with his second goal of the evening to give CB South some breathing room, but the Cougars found the net in the final minutes of the period to again cut the CB South lead to one goal.   

Montagna completed a natural hat trick six minutes into the third period. That goal went from an insurance goal to the game winner when Franciscus scored for Downingtown East with less than five minutes to go.  

“It was definitely not a given,” said Montagna, a senior left wing. “Every single shift we had to work hard. They definitely could have come back on us.”

The Titans are very familiar with their next foe, CR South.   

“I think we’ve had a great couple of games,” Montagna said. “We beat CR South twice, and we had a good game against North Penn for the championship of our league. We didn’t play our best tonight. We need to change our defense a bit and get pucks deep. We were playing around with the puck too much we need to be simple with it.”

Nathan Napolitano was in goal for the Titans and he withstood a late charge by the Cougars as the final seconds ticked down. In the first period, Napolitano came up big with a save on a Downingtown East breakaway.  

“Nathan bailed us out,” said Slobodrian, a senior right winger. “It’s been the same story. He’s been bailing us out. we need to fix some things on D.

“We did a good job of drawing penalties, but we need to capitalize on them more. We only scored on one of them. We had a good amount of shots and at times we had quality shots but I think some of those could have been better. 

“We need to step up our game and fix things on defense, tweak a few things on offense and also on the power play.  

“When we scored those first two goals we let off the gas. I guess we thought the goals were going to be handed to us, then they scored and we realized ‘OK, were actually in a hockey game’ and we knew we had to pick it up. We had some lapses, but we did it.”

Downingtown East 0 2 1—3

CB South  2 1 1—4

First-period goals: Nolan Senigo (CBS) from Joseph Slobodrian and Ryan Frey, 14:24; Ryan Montagna (CBS) from Owen Frey, 14:50; Second period goals: Chase McKeown (DE) unassisted, 2:31; Montagna (CBS) from Slobodrian and John Lord, 6:50; Thomas Wolf (DE) from Colin Franciscus and Leonardo Nino, 15:17; Third period goals: Montagna (CBS) from Slobodrian and Ryan Frey, 5:57; Franciscus (DE) from Wolf, 12:23

Shots: Downingtown East 27, CB South 47; Saves: Lucas Fleuty (DE) 32, Nathan Napolitano (CBS) 20

Flyers Cup Results

Tuesday, March 3

Class AAA Quarterfinals

La Salle 6 Father Judge 2 see story for details

Malvern Prep 6 Devon Prep 4—Ryan Jacobs scored two goals as the fourth-seeded Frairs bested the fifth-seeded Tide at Ice Line to earn a spot in the semifinals against top-seeded Holy Ghost Prep. James Young, Cole Scarbinsky, Pax Hoishik, and William McCullough all scored for Malvern Prep. Ryan Caterino made 25 saves in goal.

St. Joseph’s Prep 8 Salesianum 0—Cole Gargon scored twice and six other players added one goal each as the second-seeded Hawks shut out the seventh-seeded Sallies at the Skatium. Aiden Quinn, Connor Martin, Frankie Ely, Cole Sullivan, Bradan Fisher, and Vincent Burnett all scored for the Prep, which will face La Salle in next Thursday’s semifinals. Declan Geary earned the shutout in goal.

“I thought we played with incredible speed and that really opened up our offense,” said St. Joseph’s Prep coach Charlie van Kula. We knew Salesianum was going to be a good test. In the past we may have let our foot off the gas a bit, but I am proud of how our guys stayed dialed in, stayed positive, and played for one another.”

Class AA First Round

Owen J, Roberts 7 Avon Grove 5

Central Bucks South 4 Downingtown East 3—Ryan Montagna’s goal with 11:03 left in regulation proved to be the game winner as the sixth-seeded Titans outlasted 11th seed Downingtown East at Hatfield Ice. It was Montagna’s third goal of the game. He also added three assists.

Pennsbury 8 Haverford 5—Jacob Sarver scored three goals an added an assist an Shane Gleisner provided two goals and three assists as the 10th-seeded Falcons bested seventh seed Haverford at the Skatium to advance to the quarterfinals.

Council Rock South 6 Spring-Ford 3—Jake Weiner scored five goals, two of them in the third period, a the third-seeded Golden Hawks held off the 14th-seeded Rams at Hatfield Ice.

Boyertown 12 Souderton 2—Maxwell Ryon and Matthew Ceoss scored for the 15th-seeded Indians in the loss to the second-seeded Bears at Ice Line.

North Penn 9 Shawnee 2—the top-seeded and defending champion Knights scored four goals in the first period and went on to the win over the 16th-seeded Renegades. Samuel Norton, Gabriel Dunn, Nolan Shingle, and Chris Silvotti each scored twice. Derek Lugara also scored for North Penn which will face Owen J. Roberts in the quarterfinals.

C.B. South 4, Downingtown East 3—See story for details

Wednesday March 4

Girls Quarterfinals

4. Conestoga vs 5. West Chester East 5:00 at PNY

2. Downingtown West vs. 7 Pennridge 8:45 at PNY

3. Lower Merion Maroon v. 6 Radnor 6:45 at PNY

Monday, March 2

Class AA  First Round

Central Bucks East 6 Conestoga 3—Trailing 3-2 after two periods, the 13th-seeded Patriots scored four goals in the third and stunned the fourth-seeded Pioneers Monday night at Ice Line. Evan Asimmakopoulos scored what proved to be the winning goal with 13:44 left in regulation. Ethan Cenci extended the lead with a power-play goal with 12:18 left and added an empty-net goal with 21 seconds remaining.

Cole Kleindienst, Morris Ostrobrod and Samuel Gottesman also scored for East whih will face North Penn or Shawnee in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

Downingtown West 6 vs. Pennridge 2—Fifth-seed Downingtown West broke  the game open Monday night with three second-period goals and built a 5-0 third-period lead before Ryan Burke and Lanndon Bishop scored for the 12th-seeded Rams, who closed the season at 6-12-1.
 

Class A First Round

Garnet Valley 2 Palmyra 1

West Chester Henderson 6 Plymouth Whitemarsh 3 see story for details

Marple Newtown 5 West Chester Rustin 1

Hatboro-Horsham 10, Radnor 0 see story for details

La Salle 6 Father Judge 2

The idea that {insert a postseason tournament here} is a new season is, in most instances, an overused cliché. But it’s a concept that the La Salle Explorers can embrace, particularly after Tuesday night. After a season that featured an abundance of frustration and disappointment, the Explorers put all the pieces together on the biggest stage in local scholastic hockey.

The result was a 6-3 win over Father Judge in the opening round of the Class AAA Flyers Cup tournament in front of a full house at Hatfield Ice. The win sends the third-seeded Explorers (7-13) into the semifinals next Thursday, March 12 against St. Joseph’s Prep. Sixth-seeded Father Judge ends its season at 13-10-1.

Junior forward Patrick Lunsford scored two of La Salle’s goals. He noted that the underclassmen in the lineup needed some time to adjust to the Flyers Cup environment.

“I think some of the guys at the beginning had a little bit of the jitters,” he said. “But as the game went on I think we really adapted and it worked out well for us.”

It was the Crusaders who scored first. Nolan Rauch launched a shot from the left point that found its way through a sea of legs all the way to the back of the net, giving Judge the lead with 1:34 remaining in the first period.

It took Lunsford just 13 seconds to answer and the opening period ended deadlocked, in no small measure because of the work La Salle goaltender Anthony Foster who made some quality saves in the opening session.

Thomas Leonards and John Greenwalt added goals in the second period to extends La Salle’s lead. The Explorers seemed to grow more comfortable with each shift.

“I think they definitely settled in a little bit,” said La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner. “They started to make some better decisions with the puck and we started to get a little rhythm going.

Mathew Jones and Luke Bauman extended. the Explorers’ lead with goals early in the third period. Jake Proud added a power-play goal for Judge with 4:42 left to remind the Explorers they had to keep concentrating, but Nolan Hirska answered with a power-play goal of his own to complete the scoring.

The only negative on the La Salle side of the scoresheet was the eight minor penalties the Explorers took.

“We were in the box way too much,” Muehlbronner said.

But there will be another game to play, and the Flyers Cup title is still within reach.

Lunsford, despite whatever doubts he may have had, has always had faith in his teammates and coaches.

“I had belief in the team,” that we would get here,” he said, “and we’ve gotten to this point. We’ve just got to keep going.”

• St. Joseph’s Prep, the second seed in the tournament, bested seenth-seeded Salesianum 8-0 in another quarterfinal game on Tuesday

Father Judge 1 0 1—2

La Salle 1 2 3—6

First-period goals: Nolan Rauch (FJ) from Jake Proud. 15:26; Patrick Lunsford (L) from Bill Podulka, 15:39

Second-period goals: Thomas Leonards (L) from Andrew Frantz and John Greennwalt, 3:00; Greenwalt (L) unassisted, 14:27 (pp)

Third-period goals: Matthew Jones (L)from Luke Bauman and Matt Martin, 2:08; Lunsford (L) from Padilla, 9:11; Proud (FJ) from Rauch and Gavin Culver, 12:18 (pp); Nolan.  Hirshka (L) from Thomas Leonards, 14:36 (pp)

Shots: Father Judge 34, La Salle 36; Saves: Jonathan Dilliplane (FJ) 30, Anthony Foster (L) 32

Hatboro-Horsham 10 Radnor 0

Some would call it a dominant performance. Others would use the term overwhelming. Whatever the phraseology, Hatboro-Horsham’s offensive firepower was on full display Monday night in the opening round of the Class A Flyers Cup.

The sixth-seeded Hatters were too much for 11th-seeded Radnor and rolled to a 10-0 win at Hatfield Ice.

Nate Nemchinov scored four goals and added four assists for Hatboro-Horsham, which will face third-seeded Kennett in Thursday’s quarterfinals. Vince Graziani produced three goals and two assists before the game was terminated via the 10-goal rule with 10:45 remaining in the third period.

Prior to the stoppage, the Hatter (17-3) were in complete command and applying unrelenting pressure.

“We try to wear out our opponents with our stamina,” said Hatboro-Horsham coach Shane Smith. “We were able to do that here, we were able to keep the pressure on them, and keep it deep in their zone.”

Nemchinov and Graziani spend much of their time on the ice simultaneously. The chemistry between Nemchinov, a senior, and Graziani, a sophomore, is unique.

“We’ve played with each other for two years,” Nemchinov said. “We know where each other are on the ice at all times. We talk; it’s all about communication and chemistry.”

It took the Hatters some time to get started. The game was nearly nine-and-a-half minutes old before Luke Staffieri scored his team’s first goal. But once they started, the goals kept coming. Graziani and Cole Meyer added goals before the first period ended.

Nemchinov scored three times in the second frame and Graziani and Bill Moffa scored additional goals to propel Hatboro-Horsham to an 8-0 lead. Nemchinov an Graziani each scored in the final period.

The Hatters’ up-tempo approach theoretically leaves them vulnerable at the other end of the ice. But Graziani points out he and his teammates are confident in the defense behind them.

“There are very good players in this tournament, and it’s hard to get back,” he said. But we’ve got good goaltending and good ‘D’ back there, so it helps us out.”

Emotions were running high by the late stages of the second frame. The Raptors lost defenseman Charles Peterson with 1:51 left in the period when he drew a major penalty for head contact plus a match penalty for a hit on Staffieri. Staffieri himself was banished 3:30 into the third period after fisticuffs with Radnor’s Hayden Goldenberg. The Raptors’ Stephen Sucher also received a game misconduct for being the third man in the altercation. The fighting penalty means Staffieri will not be in uniform when the Hatters face Kennett on Thursday.

• Patrick Murphy and Eric Miller split the shutout in goal for the Hatters. Murphy played the first two periods, Miller the third.

Radnor 0 0 0—0

Hatboro-Horsham 3 5 2—10

First-period goals: Luca Staffieri (HH) from Nate Nemchinov, 9:26; Vince Graziani I(HH) from Staffieri and Giovani Bucci, 14:31; Cole Meyer (HH) from Joey Magnin, 16:28

Second-period goals: Nemchinov (HH) unassisted, 4:31; Graziani (HH) from Nemchinov and Bill Moffa, 10:22; Nemchinov (HH) from Graziani and Moffa 14:03; Moffa (HH) from Nemchinov, 14:35; Nemchinov (HH) from Graziani, 15:43;

Third-period goals: Nemchinov (HH) from Staffieri and Moffa, 2:54; Graziani (HH) from Nemchinov. 6:15

Shots: Radnor 11, Hatboro-Horsham 38; Saves: James Danner (Ra) 28, Patrick Murphy (HH) 8 and Eric Miller (HH) 3

Contested terminated with 10:45 remaining in third period

WC Henderson 6 PW 3

They sent up camp in the offensive zone early on and never really left. West Chester Henderson applied pressure from the opening faceoff and kept it up for a full 51 minutes. The result was a 6-2 win over Plymouth Whitemarsh Monday night in the opening round of the Class A Flyers Cup at Hatfield Ice.

The ninth-seeded Warriors (6-12-1) will face top-seeded Hershey in Thursday’s quarterfinals. The eighth-seeded Colonials closed the season at 14-4.

Henderson set the tone from the start. Harrison Eller got the Warriors in on the scoreboard 2:34 into the opening period when he beat Lucas Bennett from close range. That goal established a pattern for the balance of the period. Cooper Kanze tied the game for the Colonials with 2:55 left in the period on a shot that Warrior goaltender Ian Stefanovski probably wished he could have another look at, but Aller put his team back in front just eight seconds later.

By the time the period ended, the Warriors had launched 16 shots. It was Bennett’s work in goal that kept the Colonials close.

“Breakout is something we talk about a lot,” said Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Vince Forti. “Obviously, we struggled a little bit. Getting the puck out of the zones quick is a priority for the defense. You don’t want to give good teams extra zone time. It leads to extra chances and that’s how goals go in.”

Forti acknowledged that Henderson scoring first put his team in a hole they never could escape.

“There was some stat that said s scoring the first goal gives you a 70 percent chance of winning,” he said. “We usually want to get the first one. Unfortunately, they did. And we were just kind of chasing the game ever since then.”

Anthony Barthol extended Henderson’s lead 2:46 into the second period. Kanze scored his second goal of the night exactly 10 minutes later to send the teams into the post-second period ice cut just one goal apart on the scoreboard.

But Henderson separated itself once more when Declan Herr scored from the left wing that found space inside the near post, a shot Bennett appeared not to see. Miles Donnelly essentially shut the door with a power-play goal with 2:47 remaining.

Barthol added an empty net goal with 1:17 left.

The Warriors finished with a 49-20 advantage in shots.

It was a disappointing end to an impressive season.

“I think the guys played well all season,” Forti said. “It’s tough way to end a good season, so it doesn’t feel like it in the moment but overall, I think they did a lot of good things.”

West Chester Henderson 2 1 3

Plymouth Whitemarsh 1 1 0—6

First-period goals: Harrison Aller (WCH) from Miles Donnelly, 2:36; Cooper Kanze (PW) from Dan Moloney, 14:05; Aller (WCH) from Anthony Barthol  and Decal Dowd, 14:13

Second-period goals: Barthol (WCH) from Dowd and Aller, 2:46; Kanze (PW) from Dan Guller and Brandon Wooldridge, 12:46 (sh)

Third-period goals: Declan Herr (WCH) from Donnelly and Dowd, :49; Donnelly (WCH) from Dowd, 13:13 (pp); Barthol (WCH) unassisted, 15:43 (en):

Shots: West Chester Henderson 49, Plymouth Whitemarsh 20 Saves: Ian Stefanovski (WCH) 18, Lucas Bennett (PW) 43

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  •  Lab work and diagnostic imaging reviewed
  • Recommendations for additional testing, including functional
  • Guidance with supplements testing with discounted rates through professional dispensary (access continues for 3 months post coaching, to continue to support you)
  • Offering help finding in-network providers, advocacy in navigating the system, and collaboration with your healthcare team

Fitness coaching

  • Customized program designed around your body and goals
  • Ongoing progression tracking & adjustment
  •  Each session includes training (in person at agreed location), ongoing support, ongoing access to coach via phone/email for support and clarification
  • Guidance with supplements testing with discounted rates through professional dispensary (access continues for 3 months post coaching, to continue to support you)

 Hybrid Coaching (Hormones + Training Combined) option available 

To begin, please complete the form here: Intake Form

If unsure what program is best, I offer a free Discovery Call (15 minutes) where we can discuss goals and options.
Disclaimer: I am a registered nurse, not your provider. I do not diagnose or prescribe. All guidance is educational and should be discussed with your healthcare provider.

Flyers Cup Results

Tuesday, March 3

Class AAA Quarterfinals

La Salle 6 Father Judge 2 see story for details

Malvern Prep 6 Devon Prep 4—Ryan Jacobs scored two goals as the fourth-seeded Frairs bested the fifth-seeded Tide at Ice Line to earn a spot in the semifinals against top-seeded Holy Ghost Prep. James Young, Cole Scarbinsky, Pax Hoishik, and William McCullough all scored for Malvern Prep. Ryan Caterino made 25 saves in goal.

St. Joseph’s Prep 8 Salesianum 0—Cole Gargon scored twice and six other players added one goal each as the second-seeded Hawks shut out the seventh-seeded Sallies at the Skatium. Aiden Quinn, Connor Martin, Frankie Ely, Cole Sullivan, Bradan Fisher, and Vincent Burnett all scored for the Prep, which will face La Salle in next Thursday’s semifinals. Declan Geary earned the shutout in goal.

“I thought we played with incredible speed and that really opened up our offense,” said St. Joseph’s Prep coach Charlie van Kula. We knew Salesianum was going to be a good test. In the past we may have let our foot off the gas a bit, but I am proud of how our guys stayed dialed in, stayed positive, and played for one another.”

Class AA First Round

Owen J, Roberts 7 Avon Grove 5

Central Bucks South 4 Downingtown East 3—Ryan Montagna’s goal with 11:03 left in regulation proved to be the game winner as the sixth-seeded Titans outlasted 11th seed Downingtown East at Hatfield Ice. It was Montagna’s third goal of the game. He also added three assists.

Pennsbury 8 Haverford 5—Jacob Sarver scored three goals an added an assist an Shane Gleisner provided two goals and three assists as the 10th-seeded Falcons bested seventh seed Haverford at the Skatium to advance to the quarterfinals.

Council Rock South 6 Spring-Ford 3—see story for details

Boyertown 12 Souderton 2—Maxwell Ryon and Matthew Ceoss scored for the 15th-seeded Indians in the loss to the second-seeded Bears at Ice Line.

North Penn 9 Shawnee 2—the top-seeded and defending champion Knights scored four goals in the first period and went on to the win over the 16th-seeded Renegades. Samuel Norton, Gabriel Dunn, Nolan Shingle, and Chris Silvotti each scored twice. Derek Lugara also scored for North Penn which will face Owen J. Roberts in the quarterfinals.

Wednesday March 4

Girls Quarterfinals

4. Conestoga vs 5. West Chester East 5:00 at PNY

2. Downingtown West vs. 7 Pennridge 8:45 at PNY

3. Lower Merion Maroon v. 6 Radnor 6:45 at PNY

Monday, March 2

Class AA  First Round

Central Bucks East 6 Conestoga 3—Trailing 3-2 after two periods, the 13th-seeded Patriots scored four goals in the third and stunned the fourth-seeded Pioneers Monday night at Ice Line. Evan Asimmakopoulos scored what proved to be the winning goal with 13:44 left in regulation. Ethan Cenci extended the lead with a power-play goal with 12:18 left and added an empty-net goal with 21 seconds remaining.

Cole Kleindienst, Morris Ostrobrod and Samuel Gottesman also scored for East whih will face North Penn or Shawnee in Thursday’s quarterfinals.

Downingtown West 6 vs. Pennridge 2—Fifth-seed Downingtown West broke  the game open Monday night with three second-period goals and built a 5-0 third-period lead before Ryan Burke and Lanndon Bishop scored for the 12th-seeded Rams, who closed the season at 6-12-1.
 

Class A First Round

Garnet Valley 2 Palmyra 1

West Chester Henderson 6 Plymouth Whitemarsh 3 see story for details

Marple Newtown 5 West Chester Rustin 1

Hatboro-Horsham 10, Radnor 0 see story for details