Category: Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference

Hun School 3 La Salle 2 OT

The ending came in the blink of an eye. Devin Espana’s shot off a left circle faceoff exactly halfway through overtime gave The Hun School a come-from-behind 3-2 win over La Salle Wednesday afternoon in an APAC matchup at Hatfield Ice.

The goal came just seven seconds after La Salle’s William Podulka was swept to the penalty box for roughing, giving the Raiders a four-skaters-to-three advantage for the finish.

The Raiders overcame a 2-0 second-period deficit to lift their record to 10-4 overall and 2-1 in the APAC. They’ve won seven of their last eight starts. But it took them the entirety of the first two periods to get their skates under them.

“We’ve got to find a way to decide We’ve want to play from the first drop of the puck,” said Hun School coach Nathaniel Welsh. “But when they decide they want to turn it on, it’s a good hockey team.”

The Explorers (3-11, 0-5) took a 1-0 lead 4:50 into green second frame when Andrew Frantz delivered a power-play goal on a shot from the left point. River Carangi made it 2-0 with 7:04 left in the period on a setup from Nick Mantellino on a play that built up from behind the Hun School net.

At that point, the Explorers seemed to have the upper hand. But the Zachary Vallee scored for the Raiders off a La Salle breakdown with 1.9 seconds left in the period and the complexion of the game changed at that point; following the break for the post-second period ice cut Hun School returned for the third period riding a fresh wave of energy.

“It really feel like can beat anybody,” said veteran defenseman Andrew Darst, “and the key right now is figuring out how to get a good start on the road. Coming off the bus after an hour-long bus ride. Just getting a good start and getting ahead in the beginning.”

In a very real sense, the start of the third frame was a new beginning for the Raiders. Zachary Vallee tied the game with 4:19 left in the regulation to set the stage for the finale.

“Our first two operations weren’t great,” Welsh said. “Getting off the bus ride we weren’t really ready to play, but in the third period, we hit our stride a little bit.”

The Explorers seemingly had the better of things at the start of the extra period but Podulka’s penalty set up the visitors with an offensive zone faceoff and the Raiders took advantage of what La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner indicated was one in a series of critical errors.

“It’s definitely a disappointing loss,” he said. “We lost that game the way I look at it. All three goals directly resulted from us not doing something or doing something we shouldn’t have done.

“The penalty {that set up the winning goal} was not a smart penalty. And we didn’t pick up on the backcheck on the other two goals.”

Hun School 0 1 1 1—3

La Salle 0 2 0 0—2

Second-period goals: Andrew Frantz (L) from Liam Greenwalt and Nick Mantellino,4:50 (pp); River Carangi (L) from Mantellino, 9:56; Jimmy Dolan (HS) from Devin Espana, 16:59

Third-period goal: Zachary Vallee (HS) from Jacoby Kelly-LePage and Luca Jean, 12;41

Overtime goal: Espana (HS) from Andrew Darst and Vallee, 2:30 (pp)

Shots: Hun School 25, La Salle 28; Saves: Elliot Trottier (HS) 23, Daniel Trainor (L) 22

APAC Update 1-6-26

                                                Won    Lost    OTW    OTL SHO  SHOL    Pts

Holy Ghost Prep (11-2)          5          0           0            0        0         0          15

Malvern Prep (4-5-2)              2          2          1             0        0         0           5

St. Joseph’s Prep (11-4)          1           2          0            1         0        0           4

Hun School (9-4)                      1          1          1            1        0         0           3

La Salle (3-10)                          0           4          0            0        0         0           0

Scoring  All Competitions  Available   GP   G  A Pts     

Michael Washlick SJP                            10    6  7   13

Pax Hoishik  MP                                       8     4  7   11

Jake Weingartner MP                             8     5  5   10

Cole Gargon SJP                                      10    4  5    9

Lucas Gonalez  HGP                                9     7  2    9

Bradan Fisher SJP                                    7     3  5    8

Chase Logue HGP                                    9     5  3    8

Anthony Valeriote HGP                         9      3  5    8

Lucas Helms HGP                                    9     1  6    7

Chris Marshall HGP                               10     3  4    7

Goaltending Min. 200 Minutes         GP   Min   Shots GA  GAA Save %

Matt Salita HGP                                   6       306   131     4     0.67   .969

Declan Geary HGP                               8       342   185     9     1.34   .951

John Botthof HGP                               4       202     140    8     2.02   .943

Ryan Caterino MP                               6      313     200     16   2.61   .920

Hawks Win Purple Puck Title

For the third time in four years, St. Joseph’s Prep has claimed a title at the Purple Puck Tournament.

Jack Ely and Bradan Fisher scored goals three-and-a-half minutes apart as the Hawks edged fellow APAC member The Hun School 3-2 for the Prep Division championship Monday afternoon at the St. James Sports Complex in Springfield, Virginia just outside Washington, D.C.

St. Joseph’s Prep (11-4 overall) overcame a 2-1 deficit to post its sixth consecutive win and avenge a 2-1 loss overtime loss to the Raiders in an APAC game on December 10.

John Wagner opened the scoring for St. Joseph’s Prep just 1:31 into the 25-minute first half. Jacob Kelly-LePage tied the game for the Raiders (8-4) at the 6:06 mark before Luca Jean gave Hun School a 2-1 lead 8:54 into the half.

The Raiders were undermined however by two major penalties late in the first half. Jean received a five-minute penalty for slashing with 3:47 left in the half and Anders Van Raalte was flagged for head butting with 18 seconds left, putting Hun School two men down to start the third period.

The Hawks took advantage. Ely tied the game exactly one minute into the half and Fisher delivered the game winner at the 4:33 mark with Hun School still one man short.

 “We got lucky to survive through first half only one down,” said St. Joseph’s Prep coach Charlie Van Kula. “I think the two games in one day without leaving the rink threw off our routine and rhythm and it showed with how we came out.

“But we showed a lot of grit to reset and play out game in the second half.

“I’m really proud of our guys, both jayvee and varsity, on how they represented our program, on and off the ice.”

Hun School head coach Nathaniel Welsh missed the tournament because of a family obligation so assistant coach Kevin Morello was in charge behind the Raider bench.

“I’d have to say the more disciplined team came out on top,” he said. I’m still proud of our group. We’ll continue to improve and will see them {St. Joseph’s Prep} again in the APAC.”

Ice chips—Fisher finished the tournament with five goals and four assists. Cole Gargon added five goals and three assists. They were the top two scorers in the six-team Prep Division.

St. Joseph’s Prep 1 2—3

The Hun School 2 0—2

First-half goals: John Warner (SJP) from Michael Castelli, 1:31; Jacob Kelly-LePage (HS) from Conor Mulligan and Devin Espana, 5:06; Luca Jean (HS) from Andrew Darst, 8:54

Second-half goals: Jake Ely (HGP) from Cole Gargon and Noah Stuhl, 1:00 (pp); Bradan Fisher (SJP) from Castelli, 4:33 (pp);

Shots: St. Joseph’s Prep 35, Hun School 23; Saves: Declan Geary (SJP) 21, Blake Echternacht (HS) 32

Flyers Cup Rankings 12-29-25

The Flyers Cup Committee has released its first set of rankings for the 2025-26 season. Rankings are based on game results and observations by committee members.

The Flyers tournament is an invitational event. There are no automatic bids.

Class AAA

  1. Holy Ghost Prep
  2. St. Joseph’s Prep
  3. Malvern Prep
  4. La Salle
  5. Father Judge

Class AA

  1. North Penn
  2. Council Rock South
  3. Conestoga
  4. Owen J. Roberts
  5. Central Bucks South

Class A

  1. Kennett
  2. Penncrest
  3. Hershey
  4. Hatoro-Horsham
  5. Palmyra

Girls

  1. Avon Grove
  2. Conestoga
  3. Downingtown West
  4. West Chester East
  5. Radnor

Hun School, St. Joseph’s Prep Reach Purple Puck Finals

The Prep Division of the Purple Puck Tournament will feature an All-APAC final. The Hun School rallied from a 3-2 deficit following  the first 25-minute period to score a 6-3 win over Paul VI in a Thursday morning semifinal.

The Raiders scored four goals in the second half in a span of 16:38 to pull away to the win.

Zachary Vallee scored twice for Hun School. Devin Espada, Conor Mulligan, Anders Van Raalte and Andrew Darst also scored goals.

The Raiders will face St. Joseph’s Prep in Monday afternoon’s final. Cole Gargon, Bradan Fisher, and Noah Stuhl all scored goals in the second half as the Hawks shut out Jesuit Dallas 3-0. Declan Geary recorded the shutout in goal.

The championship game will be a rematch of  an  APAC game 19 days ago that saw Hun School (8-3) defeat St. Joseph’s Prep (10-4) 2-1 in overtime.

Hun School 6 Paul VI 3

Paul VI 3 0—3

Hun School 2 4—6

First-half goals: Caden DeVellii (PVI) unassisted, 2:42; Zachary Vallee (HS) from Conor Mulligan and Ezra Broomer, 14:31; Braiden Galaida (PVI) from Nathan Cogbill, 15:45; Devin Espada (HS) from Lyca Jean and Jacob Kelly-LePage, 22:32 (pp); Tommy Ernst (PVI) from Morgan Shaw, 24:17

Second-half goals: Anders Van Raalte (HS) from Nathaniel Trawinski and Justin Bibeau, 6:15; Mullugan (HS) from LePage and Andrew Darst, 16:10; Darst (HS) from Bibeau, 18:50; Vallee (HS) from Broomer, 22:53 (pp)

Shots: Paul VI 28, Hun School 32; Saves: Matthew Cogbill (PVI) 26, Elliott Trottier (HS) 25

St. Joseph’s Prep 3 Jesuit Dallas 0

Jesuit Dallas 0 0—0

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 3—3

Second-half goals: Cole Gargon (SJP) frim Ben Kurson and Jake Ely, 3:10 Bradan Fisher (SJP) from Adan Charrafi, 7:01; Noah Stuhl (SJP) from James Fratantuono and Michael Castelli,  12:29;

Shots: JD 10, SJP 29   Saves: Bennett Ortegon (JD) 25, Declan Geary (SJP) 10

Landon School 2 La Salle 1

La Salle’s goal-scoring woes continued Wednesday afternoon. The Explorers found the back of the net just once in a 2-1 non-league loss to Landon School at Hatfield Ice.

Artin Tahmasebi ended matters 39 seconds into three-in-three overtime off a sprint down the left wing that finished when he beat La Salle goaltender Danny Trainer.

The loss dropped the Explorers to 2-8 on the season. But there were signs that the pieces are beginning to fit together as coach Wally Muehlbronner expected they would when the season began.

“We’re definitely starting to come together,” he said. “Guys are starting to play hard for one another.

“We had some really good zone times today. Unfortunately, it didn’t lead to any goals, but we had some good possession times in the {offensive} zone, and guys were hard on the puck. So, we’re getting there.”

Trainer, a sophomore, made his first varsity start in goal. He made some big saves at key moments; all told, he stopped 19 shots.

“He was solid, right from the beginning,” Muehlbronner said. He had really good focus. He’s a good-sized kid so he takes up a lot of the net. He was good. He was very square to the puck and made some key saves when we needed him to.”

The first two 15-minute periods were scoreless. The Bears (6-3), who hail from Bethesda, Md., took a 1-0 lead on a goal from Walker Kraemer 3:51 into the third period.

Patrick Lunsford responded for the Explorers three-and-a-half minutes later from midway between the two faceoff circles.

Tahmasebi’s game winner was an outstanding individual effort, Trainer could not be faulted on the play.

“Unfortunately, it didn’t go the way we would have liked in the overtime,” Muehlbronner said, “But it wasn’t the result of {Trainor’s} play.”

• Following Christmas, the Explorers will spend the weekend in New England. They are scheduled to face Bishop Hendricken on Friday on Warwick, Rhode Island before spending Saturday competing in a tournament against St. John’s College (their Friday opponent), Christian Brothers Academy, and La Salle Academy. Those games will be played on Friday in Foxboro, Mass. and on Saturday in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Muehlbronner has traditionally utilized the trip as a team building experience

“It’s a very important trip for us this year,” he said, “just because of how many new guys we have.

“It’s the first time a lot of them are really going to get to know each other away from the rink and away from school, which is great. I know they’re all looking forward to it. So, hopefully we come out of it a better, stronger team.”

Landon School  0 0 1 1—2

La Salle 0 0 1 0—1

Third-period goals: Walker Kraemer (Lan) from Grant Kraemer, 3:51; Patrick Lunsford (La) from Quin Leonards and River Carnagi, 7:38

Overtime goal:   Artin Tahmasebi (Lan) from Owen Moore, :39

Shots Landon 21, La Salle 19: Saves: Aden Perry (Lan) 9 and Greg Saffell (Lan) 9, Danny Trainer (L) 19,

St. Joseph’s Prep Set for Purple Puck Tournament

The National Capital Hockey Tournament, more familiarly known as the Purple Puck Tournament, is a longstanding holiday tradition.

Now in its 31st year the tournament is hosted by Gonzaga Prep and brings some of the scholastic and prep school teams to the Washington, D.C. area each year. This year’s event begins on Saturday, December 27 and runs through Monday, December 29.

For St. Joseph’s Prep, the Purple Puck event is a regular fixture on the schedule. The Hawks have had considerable success there; they’ve won championships in two of the last three seasons. Senior Ben Kurson is the Hawks’ captain.

“The Purple Puck Tournament is very competitive. Teams come from all over the country and test our team every year. It is always a challenge, but I am very confident in our group this year. “

Kurson has fond memories from the Purple Puck Tournament; he played on championship-winning teams as a freshman and sophomore

“I remember really looking up to the upperclassmen,” he said, “seeing how they played for each other, and how they treated the younger players. I hope as a senior, in my last Purple Puck Tournament, I can similarly do this for our team.”
Kurson says the experience of being on the road as a group for a long weekend builds team cohesiveness.

“This tournament greatly helps to develop team chemistry. Eating meals together, traveling to the games together, and briefly living together all contribute to working well on the ice. Also, our team has a tradition of doing Secret Santa at this tournament. This has always been my favorite off ice activity, and is always very funny to see what people get for each other. 

St. Joseph’s Prep coach Charlie Van Kula says the weekend offers his team a lot of benefits, including testing it in a tournament setting.

“The round robin is only three game, but you do have to perform well to make it to the championship rounds,” he said. “Regardless of what’s on the line, it’s a unique situation, learning how to play {in a tournament setting}.

“That’s one aspect, but I think equally as important is the time together as a group.”

In addition to the Hawks’ varsity, one of their junior varsity teams will also be part of the tournament and several sub-varsity players will be on the trip even though they may not dress for games.

“I think it’s important for all of us to be together as a group,” Van Kula said. “Especially with the nature of our sport, it’s so rare to have even one individual team all together at once but certainly to draw the whole program together is a valuable eperience.

Kurson says the Hawks find out a lot about themselves over the course of the weekend. ”I think as a team we learn a lot. When we play so many games in such a short period of time, it gives us the ability to tweak something and directly implement it in the same day. In comparison, we usually play one game a week, so we have to wait a whole week to change what we learned. “

• The Hawks will not be the only APAC team in this year’s field. The Hun School will also be part of the event. The other three conference teams will also be involved in tournaments this weekend. La Salle will travel to Providence for a four-team event involving Christian Brothers-affiliated institutions while host Malvern Prep and Holy Ghost Prep will take part in the Friars Faceoff

Malvern Prep to Host Friar Faceoff

Malvern Prep will be hosting a four-team holiday tournament at Ice Line the weekend after Christmas. The inaugural Friar Faceoff will involve host Calvert Hall from Towson, Md. Devon Prep, and Holy Ghost, which is stepping on place of DeMatha, which was scheduled to participate but had to step away.

The round-robin format will see each team play once on Saturday night. December 27 and twice the following day with the championship game set for Monday afternoon, December 29.

“We’ve been trying to get a tournament off the ground for a couple years now,” said Malvern Prep coach Bill Keenan. “We were able to get four team this year, hopefully we’ll build on to to it, but it’s an opportunity for us to keep the boys on the ice.

“Devon, Holy Ghost, and Calvert Hall are quality schools, so it’s going to be good competition and we’re looking forward to seeing what it’s like.”

Saturday, December 27

Rink 1 – Back-to-Back Games

  • 4:00 PM – 5:45 PM: Malvern Prep vs. Devon Prep
  • 6:00 PM – 7:45 PM: Calvert Hall vs. Holy Ghost Prep

Sunday, December 28

  • 10:00 AM – 11:45 AM (Rink 1): Malvern Prep vs. Holy Ghost Prep
  • 10:15 AM – 12:00 PM (Rink 3): Devon Prep vs. Calvert Hall

Rink 1 – Back-to-Back Games

  • 4:00 PM – 5:45 PM: Malvern Prep vs. Calvert Hall
  • 6:00 PM – 7:45 PM: Devon Prep vs. Holy Ghost Prep

Monday, December 29

Holy Ghost Prep 2 St. Joseph’s Prep 1

Anthony Valeriote and Mason Thomas scored goals as the Firebirds bested the Hawks Wednesday evening at the Class of 1923 Rink at the University of Pennsylvania.

The win lifted Holy Ghost Prep to 7-2 overall and a perfect 5-0 in the APAC.

Valeriote opened the scoring for the Firebirds with 1:33 remaining in the opening period. Thomas extended his team’s lead 2:49 into the second frame.

Jake Ely scored for the Hawks (5-4, 1-2 in the APAC) with 2:49 left in regulation.

“I don’t think today was either team’s best game,” said Holy Ghost Prep coach John Ritchie. “I would expect the next game to be much higher energy with probably gigher stakes.

“We’ll take the win but I though overall our game was pretty flat today.”

The Hawks have lost four straight after a 5-0 start.

“Another tough one for us today,” said St. Joseph’s Prep coach Charlie Van Kula. “I’m sounding like a broken record but putting together a full 51 minutes continues to plague us.

“However, I hope the third period showed our guys we can compete with anyone.”

Holy Ghost Prep 1 1—2

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 01—1

First-period goal: Anthony Valeriote (HGP) from Chase Logue, 15:27

Second-period goal: Mason Thomas (HGP) from Chris Marshall, 2:49

Third-period goal: Jake Ely (HGP) from Michael Washlick and Bradan Fisher, 14:53

Shots: Holy Ghost Prep 20, St. Joseph’s Prep 20

Saves: Matt Salita (HGP) 19, Bruno Mainardi and Declan Geary (SJP) 18