Category: Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference

Malvern Prep 2 La Salle 0

 Pax Hoishik score one of his team’s goals and assisted on the other as Malvern Prep bested La Salle 2-0 Wednesday night in an APAC matchup at Ice Line.

The win lifted the Friars to 2-2-1 overall and 1-1 in the APAC. The Explorers fell to 1-4 overall and 0-3 in conference.

Hoishik opened the scoring 6:06 into the first period with assists from Jake Weingartner and William McCullough. The senior also provided the primary assist on Broderick Campbell’s power-play goal 10:34 into the middle period. The goal came while La Salle’s Roman Tkach was serving a roughing penalty.

Ryan Caterino got the shutout in goal, making 30 saves.

“Playing on Thanksgiving Eve is always a high emotion game with a lot of energy both from the crowd and the team,” said Malvern Prep coach Bill Keenan. “We stressed to the team that we needed a fast start, that we had to come out strong and settle into the game but more importantly controlling our emotions. We were able to get a goal in the first period which helped us set the tempo for the rest of the game.

“To LaSalle’s credit they came out strong after the ice cut and played a strong third period. It was nice to get our first APAC win of the season under our belt and get a win against LaSalle who for most of the guys on the team has not happened during their time at Malvern.”

La Salle 0 0 0—0

Malvern Prep 1 1 0—2

First-period goal: Paxton Hoishik (MP) from Jake Weingartner and William McCullough, 6:06

Second-period goal: Broderick Campell (MP) from Hoishik and Logan Love, 10:34 (pp)

Shots: La Salle 30, Malvern Prep 37; Saves: Anthony Foster (L) 35, Ryan Caterino (MP) 30

Thanksgiving Eve Hockey Schedule

The night before Thanksgiving is customarily a busy night for high-school hockey and this year is no exception.

There are nine games on the card.

North Penn 8 Central Bucks South 1 —See story

St. Joseph’s Prep 5, Devon Prep 1—Five different players score goals as the Hawks won their fifth straight without defeat Wednesday at Ice Line. Michael Castelli, Braydon Russo, Adam Charrafi, Thomas Ely, and Joseph McGonigal all scored for the Prep which is now 5-0 on the season.

Central Bucks East vs. Central Bucks West 6:00 at RIG

Souderton 4 Pennrige 3 OT—Even Siegler’s goal with 1:53 left in overtime gave the Big Red the win Wednesday night at Hatfield Ice. Kaden Gunning had tied the game for Pennridge with 1:15 left in regulation.

Malvern Prep 2 La Salle 0—See story on this blog

Pennsbury 9 Neshaminy 2—Shane Gleisner scored three goals for the Falconds and added three assists

Holy Ghost Prep 6 Father Judge 2—Lucas Gonzalez delivered a hat trick and Chris Marshall scored twice as the Firebirds bested the Crusaders at Grundy Arena.

Council Rock South 10 Council Rock North 0

Hatboro-Horsham 5 Springfield 4—Five different Hatters scored in the win at Hatfield Ice. Bill Moffa had two assists to go with his goal.

Marshall Embracing Captain’s Role at Holy Ghost Prep

The captain’s role in hockey is unique in team sports. He’s expected to provide leadership on and off the ice, mentor his younger teammates, and perhaps serve as a liaison between the players and the coaching staff.

For Holy Ghost Prep senior Chris Marshall, the role is all encompassing.

”Basically, it’s doing anything to get the job done and win,” he said. “I feel like I have the opportunity to contribute to the team, that’s most important and we’re looking to having a really successful year again.”

Marshall spoke to the importance of the veterans in the Firebird showing the way for their younger teammates.

“That’s everything,” he said. “The seniors and juniors, the upperclassmen have to be there for the {underclassmen} and if they have a bad shift or a bad play, tell them to shake it off, go get the next one. It’s everything for us to be there for them and have one team all be united.”

This mutually supportive atmosphere does not always come to fruition around a hockey team or teams in other sports for that matter. But Marshall sees it as the norm on the Holy Ghost Prep teams he has played on.

“I think it’s the culture,” he said. “Everyone loves each other here. There’s no bickering, there’s no fighting and I think everyone knows what the job is that has to get done and I think everyone wants to work towards that.”

A Lower Bucks County native, Marshall started playing hockey at 6 and eventually followed his brother, a past Firebird captain to Holy Ghost Prep.

“I only really had eyes on Ghost,” he said. “There was no other school I wanted to go to.

“My family played hockey my whole life so I kind of grew up around the game It’s just been a part of my life.”

Holy Ghost Prep coach John Ritchie listed the attributes that Marshall brings to the captaincy.

“He understands what it means to be a Holy Ghost student-athlete,” Ritchie said. “He’s well like by everyone, he, has a positive demeanor and knows the right time when to speak up to try to motivate the team. He’s been on varsity for three years and witnessed the team struggle and succeed, as well as, his own personal accomplishments and obstacles.”

Ritchie says Marshall is well-equipped to handle the responsibilities that come with wearing the captain’s C.

“It’s important to me that the person wearing the C knows how to handle adversity individually because when they’re tasked with being in charge of the team, they can’t fold or disappear,” he said. “Chris is someone that meets these things head on and sets a good tone for our locker room. He is a role model for the younger players.”  

St. Joseph’s Prep 3 La Salle 2

St. Joseph’s Prep took things one step at a time Wednesday afternoon, and went home a winner. The Hawks built a 3-0 lead and held on for a 3-2 win over La Salle in their APAC opener at Hatfield Ice.

The Hawks have started the season with four consecutive wins. The Explorers dropped to 1-3 overall and 0-2 in the APAC.

For first-year Prep head coach Charlie Van Kula, it was an ideal way to begin the conference schedule.

“Obviously, every time we play La Salle is a big one, he said. ”So, to get a win was big.

“I still think we have to put a full 51 minutes together and there are certainly things we could do better, but a win is a win so we’ll take it and keep working on what we need to work on.”

Offensive opportunities were rare by APAC standards, particularly early on and the referees maintained a tight hold on the proceedings; they whistled five penalties in a scoreless first period.

Michael Washlick gave the Prep the lead 6:06 into the second frame on a solo end-to end rush down the left wing which concluded when he beat La Salle goaltender Patrick Murphy.

It stayed 1-0 until 3:35 into the third period when the Explorers turned the puck over in their own zone and Cole Gargon turned the miscue into a goal. Just over three minutes later, Gargon

delivered the primary assist on Frank Ely’s shot from the high slot that put the Hawks up 3-0 with 12:09 left in regulation.

Gargon noted that the Hawks’ fast start this season gas given them a confidence boost.

“It really boosts everybody’s morale,” he said. “Just work together, follow the system, and play hard.”

Despite the score however the Explorers seemed to have more energy in the final period and their effort paid off when Roman Tkach beat Declan Geary in the Hawk net just 22 seconds after Ely’s goal and the hosts battled hard to the finish.

“I think we were sitting back,” said La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner. “And I think we did the same thing {in {a 4-1 loss to Holy Ghost Prep}. We definitely want to get them playing more aggressively.”

In the end, River Carangi’s goal with 30 seconds left had the Hawks hanging on. In fact, an icing call with six seconds left gave La Salle a final faceoff in the Hawks’ defensive zone but Geary and his mates held firm.

For Muehlbronner, it was another step in the maturation of a young team.

“We’ve just got to keep going,” he said, “and keep trying to get better. Our youth definitely has shown at times during these games.

“We’re not creating a whole lot of quality offensive opportunities so we just need to keep it simple and get some pucks to the net.”

Ice chips—Van Kula commneted on the system he is using thsi season and how his players are adusting.

“There are definitely some adjustments,” he said.”I’d say there is a little more structure than normal nd there gave ben some growing pains but from the top down with the seniors leading the way, they’ve bought in. We have some really, really smart hockey players in the room.”

 St. Joseph’s Prep 0 1 2—3

La Salle 0 0 2—2

Second-period goal:  Michael Washlick (SJP) unassisted, 6:06

Third-period goal: Cole Gargon (HGP) unassisted 1:35; Frank Ely (SJP) from Gargon and James Fratantuono, 4:51; Roman Tkach (L) from Braedon Yothers and Connor Boland, 5:13; River Carangi (L) from Patrick Lunsford and Darrian Brown, 16:30

Shots: St. Joseph’s Prep 33, La Salle 34; Saves: Declan Geary (SJP) 32, Patrick Murphy (L) 30

Holy Ghost Prep 4 Malvern Prep 1

Three different players scored goals Wednesday afternoon s Holy Ghost Prep bested Malvern Prep 4-1 in an APAC matchup at Grundy Arena. William Harmar scored twice for the Firebirds (2-1 overall) who have now won their first two conference starts. The Friars, who were kicking off their conference schedule, now stand at 1-2-1 overall.

Chase Logue opened the scoring for Holy Ghost Prep 3:40 into the opening period. Jake Samron extended the Firebirds’ lead 27 seconds into the second frame.

Pax Hoishik cut the Holy Ghost Prep lead in half when he found the back of the net with 2:47 remaining in the middle period.

Harmar extended his team’s lead with a goal 2:12 into the final period and then provided the defending Class AAA Flyers Cup champions with an insurance goal 26 seconds later.

Matt Salita got the win in goal, making 17 saves in the process.

Malvern Prep 0 1 0—1

Holy Ghost Prep 1 1 2—4

First-period goal: Chase Logue (HGP) from Nate Romer and Chris Marshall, 3:40

Second-period goal: Jake Smaron (HGP) from Anthony Cere and Lucas Helms, :27; Paxton Hoishik (MP) from Jake Weingartner, 14:13

Third-period goals: William Harmar (HGP) from Helms and Trace Levan, 2:12; Harmar (HGP) unassisted, 2:38

Shots: Malvern Prep 18, Holy Ghost Prep 35; Saves: Ryan Caterino (MP) 31, Matt Salita (HGP) 17

Holy Ghost Prep 4 La Salle 1

BRISTOL—There wasn’t a lot of finesse on display at Grundy Arena Wednesday afternoon. Just a lot of blue-collar, grind-it-out hockey.

Holy Ghost Prep thrived in that environment. Lucas Gonzalez delivered two goals and an assist as the Firebirds bested La Salle 4-1 as the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference launched its eighth season.

For a team whose players are still working to find their roles, it was a step forward.

“There was obviously a big conversation between last week’s game (a season-opening loss to Devon Prep) and tonight,” said Holy Ghost Prep John Ritchie. “Last week, I thought we did a much better job possessing and creating but sometimes we just have to manufacture goals by working hard to get to the net.”

And that formula paid off for Holy Ghost Prep Wednesday afternoon. Gonzalez opened the scoring, beating Anthony Foster in the La Salle net 4:19 into the opening period off a feed from freshman Mason Thomas.  Chase Logue made it a 2-0 game via a Chris Marshall setup into the second frame but the Explorers (1-2 overall) answered with a goal from River Carangi with 51 seconds left in the period when her put the puck past Firebird netminder Matt Salita to make it a 2-1 game.

Following the post-second period ice cut however, it was Thomas the freshman who stepped up. His goal 2:28 into the third frame restored his side’s two-goal advantage.

Gonzalez added his second goal of the game with 4:03 remaining.

Ritchie celebrated Thomas’s effort; he was one of four underclassmen in the Firebirds’ lineup.

“He’s a really smart player away from the puck,” Ritchie said. “He can put the puck in the net. He kind of brings a lot of little intangibles to the game so we have full confidence in him.

“I don’t put a lot of freshmen in our lineup. But he has a good complete game and tonight we were obviously thrilled that he got his first goal.”

Marshall, a senior and the Firebirds’ captain, spoke to the importance of the veterans on the roster making younger teammates feel comfortable.

“It’s everything” he said. “The seniors and the juniors, the upperclassmen, need to be there for the underclassmen. If you have a bad shift or a bad play, shake it off, go get the next one.”

For a young Explorer squad that had just two seniors in the lineup, the APAC opener was trial by fire.

“I think it was definitely an eye-opener for a lot of the guys,” he said. “We had our moments where I thought we were making progress at getting better, but then we made some young mistakes, turning pucks over in our own zone and not having men in our coverages. And that directly led to opportunities and goals for them.”

Muehlbronner said his players got a crash course in what APAC hockey is about.”

“A lot of these guys were playing in their first APAC game,” he said. “We’re going to get better.”

•Muehlbronner is the last remaining head coach remaining from 2018-19, the APAC’s first season.

La Salle 0 1 0—1

Holy Ghost Prep 1 1 2—4

First-period goal: Lucas Gonzalez (HGP) from Mason Thomas, 4:19

Second-period goal: Chase Logue (HGP) from Chris Marshall, 2:21; River Carangi (L) from Darrian Brown and Patrick Lunsford, 16:09

Third-period goals: Thomas (HGP) from Gonzalez, 2:28; Gonzalez (HGP) from Anthony Valeriote and Lucas Helms, 12:57

Shots: La Salle 18, Holy Ghost Prep 24; Saves: Anthony Foster (L) 20, Matt Salita (HGP) 17

Malvern Prep 5 North Penn 2

Logan Logan Love scored two goals and three other players added one goal each as the Friars bested the Class AA Flyers Cup and state champion Knights Wednesday evening at Ice Line.

It was the first win of the season for Malvern Prep (1-1-1).

Love’s first goal came with one minute remaining in the opening period and tied the game after Sam Norton had given North Penn the early lead.

Rocco Corrado gave the hosts the lead for good 4:38 into the second period and Love’s second goal extended that lead five-and-a-half minutes later.

Logan Singles brought North Penn closer 1:26 into the third period before Staton Luke Johnson and Lawrence Ayers scored goals 63 seconds apart to secure the win.

Malvern Prep will open APAC play November 19 at Holy Ghost Prep.

 North Penn 1 0 1—2

Malvern Prep 1 2 2—5

First-period goals: Sam Norton (NP) unassisted, 12:19; Logan Love (MP) unassisted, 16:00

Second-period goals: Rocco Corrado (MP) from Charles Ingersol and Cole Wray, 4:38; Love (MP) unassisted, 10:07

Third-period goals: Logan Shingles (NP) from Sam Norton and Chris Silvotti, 1:26; Staton Luke Johnson (MP)  from James Young, 11:12; Lawrence Ayers (MP) from Corrado and  Nick Troiano, 12:15

Shots: North Penn 28, Malvern Prep 28; Saves: Aidan Quigley (NP) 23, Isaac Maloney (MP) 26

Devon Prep 1 Holy Ghost Prep 0 OT

It wasn’t a typical non-league season opener. Devon Prep and Holy Ghost Prep battled hard for nearly 56 minutes Monday afternoon.

Matters weren’t decided until Danny Dowling delivered a goal with 5.6 seconds left in overtime to give the visiting Tide a 1-0 win over the Firebirds at Grundy Arena.

Both teams found out a lot about themselves over the course of the affair. The Tide tested themselves against the reigning Class AAA Flyers Cup champions while the Firebirds got an idea of how the pieces of this year’s puzzle will fit.

The winning goal was set up when Dowling, working down low on the offensive left side collected a feed from teammate Jan Bach and put it behind Firebird goaltender John Botthof. 

Devon Prep coach Matt Fabrizio commented on the significance of the win.

“Even being able to skate with Holy Ghost is exciting,” he said. “But that the fact we stuck to it, held them scoreless, and were able to step up in overtime, is a massive achievement for our team.”

“I can’t think of a victory that’s been more significant for us, to beat a team like Holy Ghost, the defending champs.”

The hosts had a 47-31 advantage in shots but Tide goaltender Aidan Wright turned away every challenge.

He had to be particularly sharp in the first frame when he turned aside 17 shots.

Each netminder made a big save in the third period to keep the game scoreless. Bottthof denied Dowling five minutes and change into the period with a quality glove save Wright turned away the Firebirds’ Anthony Valeriote with seven-and-a-half minutes left.

Neither team shied away from physical play and for the most part the officials left the players to their own devices. There were just three minor penalties accessed, all in the third period.

Holy Ghost Prep coach John Ritchie understands the challenges his players will face this season as the reigning Flyers Cup champions.

“You’re going to have a target on your back every game,” he said. “You’re going to get every team’s best game, their full effort, and their goalie was great today.”

Ritchie learned a lot about his team in the course of the afternoon, as newcomers worked to fit in, and some veterans assumed new roles.

“I think there were a lot of positives we can build on from this,” he said. “I’d rather this type of loss happen at the beginning of the season versus going into the playoffs.

“I think we have a  good corps,” he said. “I think we have to figure out how to manufacture and score some goals. I think that obviously is what hurt us today. You get a hot goaltender that’s going to keep the other team in the game, and guys get nervous.

“I think as we go along in the season we’ve just got to find who are going to be our go-to guys to finish plays.”

Ice Chips—The Firebirds will open APAC play next Wednesday when they host La Salle…. Devon Prep lost to La Salle in the first round of last year’s Flyers Cup.

Devon Prep 0 0 0 1—1

Holy Ghost Prep 0 0 0 0—0

Overtime goal: Danny Dowling (DP) from Jan Bach, 4:55

Shots; Devon Prep 31, Holy Ghost Prep 47; Saves: Aidan Wright (DP) 47, John Botthof (HGP) 30

St. Joseph’s Prep 2 Calvert Hall 1

Adam Charaffi’s third-period goal fave the Hawks the non-league win over Calvert Hall Wednesday afternoon at the Class of 1923 rink.

Buno Mainardi stopped 15 shots ss the Hawks won their second straight.

Calvert Hall 0 0 1—1

St. Joseph’s Prep 1 0 1—2

First-period goal: Joe Darrow (SJP) from Will Savarese and Aiden Quinn, 9:34

Third-period goals: Poltrack (CH) unassisted, 1:11; Adam Charrafi (SJP) from Cole Gargon, 5:45

Shots: Calvert Hall 16, St. Joseph’s Prep 30; Saves: Jones (CH) 28, Bruno Mainardi (SP) 15