APAC Previews 2025-26

The Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference is in the midst of beginning its eighth season.

Here’s a look at how the teams are shaping up.

Holy Ghost Prep

Head coach: John Ritchie (third season)

Last year: 21-5-1, 6-2 in APAC; APAC and Class AAA Flyers Cup Champion

Key players: Sr. Jack Botthof (G); Jr. Matt Salita (G); Sr. Brandon Watkins (D); Jr. Nate Romer (D); Jr. Brady Flynn (D); Sr. Anthony Valeriote (F); Sr. Lucas Gonzalez (F); Sr. Chris Marshall (F); Sr. Jack Gavaghan (F); Sr. Patryk Oszer (F); Jr. Chase Logue (F)

Outlook: Coming off a Flyers Cup title, the Firebirds are looking for more of the same this season. While 10 members of last year’s team are lost to graduation, a solid nucleus remains to face a demanding schedule. Botthoff and Salita form the APAC’s most experienced goaltending tandem.

“We play a very difficult non-league schedule this year,” Ritchie said, “that should help shape our roster for the end of the season. We graduated a core group from the Flyers Cup team, but believe with returners and program depth we should be in the mix again.”

Hun School

Head coach: Eric Szeker (third season)

Last year: 5-17-2, 0-8 in APAC)

Key players: Sr. Andrew Darst (D); So. Devin Espana (D); ); Sr. Luca Jean (F), Jr. Justin Bibeau (F); Sr. Nate Trawinski (F); Sr. Jacob Kelly-Lepage (F); Sr. Anders Van Raalte (F); So. Conor Mulligan (F),

Outlook: The Raiders endured a difficult season in 2025 due in part to youth and injuries but nine seniors will provide significant experience, depth, and off-ice leadership. Szeker is looking for balanced scoring, but is counting on Jean and Mulligan to set the pace.

La Salle

Head coach: Wally Muehlbronner (28^th season)

Last year: 17-8, 6-2 in APAC

Key players: Sr. Matt Kohlhepp (G); Jr. Patrick Murphy (G); Jr. Antony Foster (G); Sr. Tristan Mitchell (D); Jr. Matthew Jones(D); Jr. Danny Burke (D); Sr. Luke Baumann (F); So. Liam Greenwalt (F); So. Darrian Brown (F)

Outlook: The Explorers are starting fresh this season with one of their least-experienced teams of recent years, and the returnees will be assuming new roles. But if the past is any indication, they’ll mature with the passage of time and be playing their best hockey late in the season.

Malvern Prep

Head coach: Bill Keenan (seventh season)

Last year: 5-10-1, 3-5 in APAC

Key players: Sr. Ryan Caterino (G); Sr. Cole Scarbinsky (D); Sr. Logan Love (D); Sr. Reece Hanna (D); So. Finn McCullough (D); Sr. Andrew Starck (F); Sr. Henry Tesoriero (F); Sr. Pax Hoishik (F); Jr. House Young (F); So. Jake Weingartner (F); So. Luke Johnson (F); Fr. Ryan Jacobs (F)

Outlook: After having trouble scoring goals last season, the Friars are optimistic about the season ahead.

“We’re excited to compete with a strong core of returning players,” Keenan said, “complemented by key new additions on both the offensive and defensive sides of the puck. The team brings a balanced mix of experience, energy, and depth that we believe will position us well throughout the year.”

St. Joseph’s Prep

Head coach: Charlie Van Kula (first season)

Last year: 10-10, 5-3 in APAC

Key players: Jr. Declan Geary (G); Sr. Ben Kersun (D); Sr. Adam Charrafi (D); Jr. Cole Gargon (F); Jr. Frankie Ely (F)

Outlook: Van Kula takes over behind the Hawks’ bench for David Giacomin. He’ll put a veteran team on the ice one that includes in Ely and Gargon, two of the APAC’s top returning scorers.

Wyoming Seminary 5 Malvern Prep 4 OT

Pax Hoishik Jake Weingartner each scored twice as the Friars opened their season with an overtime loss at Wyoming Seminary on Wednesday.

Malvern Prep found itself down 3-0 in the game’s first eight minutes before rallying to force overtime.

“Our team showed resilience,” said Friars’ head coach Bill Keenan. “We have a handful of new players who played well in their first game with Malvern. ”

Wyoming Seminary 3 La Salle 1

HATFIELD—The theme for La Salle’s season opener against Wyoming Seminary Wednesday afternoon might have been ‘Starting Over Again.’ Which is what the Explorers were doing to a large extent.

Just five of the 21 players Wally Muehlbronner had in uniform were part of the Explorers’ Flyers Cup roster last season. Ten of the 21 were underclassmen who, in a number of cases were getting their first taste of varsity hockey.

The end was result was a 3-1 loss to a Blue Knight squad that had already won its first four starts, albeit against Class AA and AAA Midget competition.

Muehlbronner found out a lot about his team in the course of the afternoon.

“We learned a lot,” he said. “For a lot of the younger guys, it was a big eye opener for them and that’s exactly why we wanted to play them.”

The Blue Knights took just 37 seconds to jump in front. Dilan Lucas, a native of Chateauguay, Quebec, put the puck behind Matt Kohlhepp to give his team the lead. Louis-David Jolin made it a 2-0 game with 40 seconds remaining in the opening frame but the Explorers hung in with their bigger, older, and more worldly foes from that point forward (the Blue Knights had players from eight different nations in their lineup)

Kohlhepp, Patrick Murphy, and Anthony Foster each took a turn in the Explorer net.
Deep in the third period the Explorers were able to solve Wyoming Seminary goaltender Tristan Boyer. Quin Leonards, playing in his first varsity game, scored off a setup from Andrew Frantz with 5:33 left in regulation to make it a one-goal affair.

It took Hendrik McNulty’s empty netter with 1:02 left to settle the issue.

“I think we definitely had a good amount of jitters for the first five minutes of that game,” Muehlbronner said, “but we settled in an we got better as the game went along.

“I think if we had been able to get a little more pressure on them, we could have created some more opportunities.”

The afternoon exemplified the advantages of starting the season against a quality opponent.

“They’re a good team,” Muehlbronner said, “We learned a lot from the game so we got exactly what we wanted.”

Wyoming Seminary 2 0 1—3

La Salle 0 0 1—1

First-period goals: Dilan Lucas (WS) from Hendrik McNulty, :37; Louis-David Jolin (WS) from Ondrej Vina, 16:20

Third-period goals: Quin Leonards (L) from Andrew Frantz, 11:27 pp; McNulty (WS) unassisted, 15:58 en;

Shots: Wyoming Seminary 34, La Salle 15 Saves: Tristan Boyer (WS) 15, Matt Kohlhepp (L) 8, Patrick Murphy (L) 14, Anthony Foster (L) 9

Hockey Happenings is looking for writers to be part of our coverage of Philadelphia area high-school hockey this season. I am particularly in need of writers to cover games in Delaware and Chester Counties.

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The Community Comes Together for Philadelphia Blind Hockey

The area’s scholastic hockey community came together Friday night in the support of the Philadelphia Blind Hockey organization. The occasion was the third annual Blindness Awareness Showcase.

Some 50 athletes from 10 different high schools, split into two teams. assembled at Hatfield Ice in support of the effort.

Team Orange included players from Holy Ghost Prep, Pennridge, Central Bucks East, Father Judge, and Central Bucks South. Team Black featured players from Conestoga (girls), North Penn, Holy Ghost Prep, Pennridge, and Malvern Prep.

This year’s showcase featured a new format. Instead of a series of cross-ice fames, as had been the case in the past, the two teams played three 17-minute running-clock periods utilizing the full 200 x 85 surface of the arena’s Gray Rink. The players wore goggles that simulated various vision disorders while goaltenders were blindfolded.

For the record, Team Orange prevailed on the scoreboard but the real winner was Philadelphia Blind Hockey was the beneficiary of the evening’s ticket sales and drawings.

North Penn senior forward Luke Haftel took part in last year’s showcase and has been on the ice for Philadelphia Blind Hockey practices, working the visually impaired youngsters who share his love for hockey. He said utilizing the entire ice surface gave the event a different feel.

“It was a little different than last year, “from half ice to the full sheet. Everyone was having a good time, being able to play the full ice.

Haftel utilized several sets of goggles that allowed he and his peers to experience various eye issues.

“You switch throughout the game, you see different types,” he said. “So, kids experience them and have an understanding of how we’re raising awareness.”

Penncrest junior forward Donovan Scheidley has worked with Philadelphia Blind Hockey players in the but had never taken the ice wearing goggles until Friday night.

“I tried every one on for at least one shift,” he said. “I think it was really interesting.”

With his vision restricted, Scheidley found himself relying heavily on his sense of hearing.

“When you don’t have your sight, it’s surprising to see how much you rely on your hearing,” he said.

Holy Ghost Prep senior defenseman Chris Marshall was making his first showcase appearance. He says working with Philadelphia Blind Hockey participants helped forge a connection between those players and he and his Firebird teammates.

“That’s the most important part,” he said. “I think it’s a great experience for them to feel included and to be a part of our team.”

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Van Kula Named Coach at St. Joseph’s Prep

Charlie Van Kula is the new varsity hockey coach at St. Joseph’s Prep. He replaces David Giacomin who spent 14 seasons behind the Hawks’ bench.

For the past three seasons Van Kula has coached the Hawks’ JV Gray team. He has also served as a varsity assistant and been a coach for the Ed Snider Youth Hockey organization.

A St. Joseph’s Prep graduate, Van Kula was a four-year letter winner as a goaltender for the Hawks before going on to Boston College where he was a student manager apart from a brief stint as a walk on during the 2015-16 season.

Van Kula returned to the Prep in 2018-19 as an Alumni Service Corps member, during which time he served as a Varsity and JV assistant coach. He was a frequent presence at subsequent Prep Hockey summer camps and clinics.

Van Kula has also coached with a variety of the Ed Snider Youth Hockey and Education organization’s programs from 2018-2021. Since 2022 he has been a full-time member of St. Joseph Prep’s Institutional Advancement team.

In addition to his coaching and playing experience, Van Kula has been an on-ice official for the past 17 seasons, including three full-time seasons in the USHL and NAHL. He currently referees at the NCAA Division I and Division III levels.

Keystone State Games Rosters

Hockey players from throughout the Commonwealth will converge at Penn State University next weekend for the Keystone State Games. Round robin play will take place at Pegula Ice Arena next Friday and Saturday, July 25-26. The gold and bronze medal games will be played on Sunday, July 27.

Games will be played in five divisions: 12U, 14U, 16U, 18U, and 19U (female) with teams representing four regions in the state.

Listed below are the U16 and U18 rosters for the South region, which encompasses the five-county Philadelphia area.

18U

1 Aiden Mott G

2 David Brown D

3 Brett Linker D

4 Aiden Paster D

5 Michael Snyder D

6 Jake Stepp D

7 Wim van Rossum D

8 Sean Cutter F

9 Shane Dachowski F

10 Declan Dowd F

11 Thomas Ely F

12 Ryan Frey F

13 Grady Jones F

14 Socrates Kelly F

15 Mason McCabe F

16 Lucas Mott F

17 Kevin Pico F

18 Cole Pluck F

19 Reed Surak F

30 Jacob Rotwitt G

16U

1 Nate Napolitano G

2 Seth Bender D

3 Aiden Collins D

4 Gabriel Dunn D

5 Aiden North D

6 Sean Tobin D

7 John Wagner D

8 Ryan Christie F

9 Joseph Darrah F

10 Malakye Johnson F

11 AJ Marazzacco F

12 Sean Scott F

13 Gavin Tietz F

14 Dean Venner F

15 Delan Wilson F

16 Alex Wilson F

17 Connor Boland F

18 Kamren Wetherell F

19 Dominic Gibson F

30 Peter Neveil G

Hockey Happenings is looking for contributing writers for the upcoming hockey season. If you’d like more information, e-mail is at rwoelfel2013@gmail.com

APAC Names All-Stars

The Atlantic Prep Athletuc Conference has named its all-conference team for 2024-25. Players were selected by the five conference head coaches.

First Team

F Brady Logue Jr. Holy Ghost Prep

F Grant LaGreca Sr. LaSalle College High School

F Cole Gargon So. St Josephs Prep

D Will Gregorio Sr. LaSalle College High School

D Ryan Lippy Sr. Holy Ghost Prep

G Jake Rossi Sr. LaSalle College High School

Second Team

F Teague Murray Sr. Malvern Prep

F Julian Tarsi Sr. LaSalle College High School

F Joe Spaddacino Sr. Holy Ghost Prep

D Joe Kauffman Sr. Holy Ghost Prep

D Declan Kelly Sr. LaSalle College High School

G Jack Unger Sr. Holy Ghost Prep

Honorable Mention

Forwards

Micheal Zarzycki Sr. LaSalle College High School

Anthony Valeriote Jr. Holy Ghost Prep

Gabe Bedwell Sr. Malvern Prep

Pax Hoishuk Jr. Malvern Prep

Thomas Ely Jr. St Josephs Prep

Noah Stuhl Jr. St Josephs Prep

Defensemen

Cole Scarbinsky Jr. Malvern Prep

Adam Charaffi Jr. St Josephs Prep

Matt Barbacane Sr. Malvern Prep

Ben Kersun Sr. St Josephs Prep

Jake Beck Jr. The Hun School

Andrew Darst Jr. The Hun School

Goalies

Elliott Wong Sr. The Hun School

Patrick Donohue Sr.The Hun School

Matt Crawford Sr. Malvern Prep

Declan Geary So. Joesphs Prep

Seneca Valley 7 Holy Ghost Prep 2

The chasm proved too wide to navigate. Seneca Valley scored twice in the first period and went on to a 7-2 win over Holy Ghost Prep in the Pennsylvania Class AAA state championship game Saturday night at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center in suburban Pittsburgh.

The state title was Seneca Valley’s first.

The Firebirds, who closed the season at 21-5-1, were seeking their second state championship, and their first came in 2017.

Ethan Riffle got the Raiders started 7:30 into the opening period when he had an open look and beat Jack Unger from the edge of the left faceoff circle. Braden Morin made it a 2-0 game with 3:29 left in the first frame. Marshall Hewitt etended the Seneca Valley lead 3:32 into the second session, leaving the Flyers Cup champion with a steep hill to climb.

They gave it their best shot. John Gavaghan scored off a setup from Brady Logue 7:07 into the period and when Ryan Lippy put in a rebound during a power play with 2:56 left in the period the Firebirds appeared to have the momentum.

But Jimmy Murphy responded for the Raiders just 84 seconds later and when Murphy scored his second goal of the game 1:04 into third period the outcome was no longer in doubt. Holt Ghost Prep coach John Ritchie lifted Unger at that point.

“I’m disappointed, obviously,” Ritchie said, “but I don’t think the score did the game justice.

Seneca Valley is s really good team and they finished their chances off our mistakes.”

Ritchie wants his players to look back with pride on their season once they over the pain of Saturday’s loss.

“I am very proud of our players,” he said. It’s an incredible group of kids and a season to remember at some point when they get away from the emption of losing tonight.

“They should be very proud of what they accomplished.”

Holy Ghost Prep 0 2 0—2

Seneca Valley 2 2 3—7

First-period goals: Ethan Riffe (SV) from Tyler Maxwell, 7:30; Braden Morin (SV) from Carter Hoehn and John Sroka, 13:31 (pp)

Second-period goals: Marshall Hewitt (SV) from Sroka , 3:32; John Gavaghan (HGP) from Brady Logue, 7:07; Ryan Lippy (HGP) unassisted, 14:04; Jimmy Murphy (HGP) from Owen Martin. 15:38

Third-period goals: Murphy (SV) from Martin, 1:04; Morin from Hewitt, 4:30; Morin (SV) from Hewitt, 7:02 (en)

Shots: Holy Ghost Prep 26, Seneca Valley 30; Saves: Jack Unger (HGP) 15 and John Botthof 7, Chris Brown (SV) 24

Pennsylvania State Championship Schedule

Saturday 3-22

At Robert Morris University Neville Island site

Class A

12:45 Garnet Valley 7 Avonworth 2 Final

Class AA

3:30 North Penn vs Cathedral Prep

Class AAA

6:15 Holy Ghost vs Seneca Valley

A video stream will be available at:

Www.tenband.tv

Holy Ghost Prep Wins AAA Flyers Cup

The evening came down to capitalizing on opportunities while avoiding mistakes. Holy Ghost Prep found the right balance Wednesday night and left Hatfield Ice Arena as the Class AAA Flyers Cup champion.

Chase Logue scored two goals and Jack Unger was superb in goal as the Firebirds bested La Salle 3-1 in front of a full house to win its first Flyers Cup title since 2017 and the fifth in the school’s history.

“It’s amazing,” Logue, a sophomore, said. “To be with those guys in the locker room is a blessing. “

Offensive opportunities were scarce early on as two teams familiar with each other were reluctant to yield space to the opposition.

The second-seeded Explorers (17-8) outshot the top-seeded Firebirds (21-4-1) 7-1 in the early going but Unger stood tall between the pipes. His big save not quite seven minutes into the first period set the tone for the night.

Logue put his team on from 1:27 into the second period when he beat La Salle netminder Jake Rossi from close range.

“I was lucky,” he said. “I just came out and shot it. I put pucks on net and it went it.”

Some 200 feet away, Unger was doing his part to keep Holy Ghost Prep in front, denying Julian Tarsi on a breakaway with 2:25 left in the middle frame to send the Firebirds into the ice cut clinging to the 1-0 lead.

The Explorers however weren’t going away and a Holy Ghost Prep turnover two-and-a-half minutes into the third period gave them an opening. Michael Esmond converted the chance when the Firebirds lost the puck in front of their own net.

But Logue responded with his second goal of the game just 15 seconds later. With 14:15 left in regulation the Firebirds were back in front but the game was still up for grabs.

It was left to Unger to reach out and seized it by the throat, which he did when the Firebird found themselves killing two penalties in the last 7:14 of regulation. The shots seemingly never stopped coming but Unger turned them all away, en route to winning the Bob Clarke Award as the tournament’s Most Valuable Player. He finished the evening with 29 saves.

Unger, a senior felt that Wednesday’s game was the best of his career.

“I would say for sure,” he said. “Between the atmosphere, the intensity of the game, and what was at stake.

“I was able to lock in and then being able to get the tam to rally around me and especially during that third period.’

The closest he came faltering the stretch came when a shot from La Salle’s La Salle’s Alistair St. Hilaire from the right wing actually got behind him but slid across the crease before going wide of the far post.

“I’m not going to lie, that one really scared me,” Unger said. “But sometimes you need a little bit of luck on your side.”

Joseph Kauffman scored an empty-net goal for Holy Ghost Prep just before the final buzzer.

For La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner, whose team was trying to win its 14^th Flyers Cup the result was a disappointment but he appreciated the level of play on both sides.

“That was definitely a great high-school hockey game for sure,” he said.

Muehlbronner felt his team did a lot of good things right during its three power-play chances, except score.

“I thought we did well on the power play,” he said. “We moved the puck well. We didn’t bury many pucks, we didn’t get many bounces that we needed.

“But, I think we played a great game, I really do. We carried a large portion of it, but weren’t able to put any in.”

The Firebirds will face Penguins Cup champion Seneca Valley for the Class AAA state title Saturday in suburban Pittsburgh.
The All-Tournament Team included :

G Jack Unger Holy Ghost Prep

D Ryan Lippy Holy Ghost Prep

D Cam Ross LaSalle

F Alistair St. Hilaire

F Chase Lougue HGP

F Brady Logue HGP

La Salle 0 0 1—1

Holy Ghost Prep 0 1 2—3

Second-period goals: Chase Logue (HGP) from Joe Spadaccino, 1:27

Third-period goals: Michael Esmond (L) from Luke Baumann and Alex Gibson, 2:30; Chase Logue (HGP) from Brady Logue and John Gavaghan, 2:45; Joseph Kaufman (HGP) unassisted,16:59 (sh)

Shots: La Salle 30, Holy Ghost Prep 24; Saves: Jake Rossi (L) 21, Jack Unger (HGP) 29