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Penn-Trafford 3 North Penn 1

WEST GOSHEN— For the first time in a long time, North Penn was presented with a puzzle it could not solve. The Knights’ bid for a second consecutive Class AA state title fell short Saturday afternoon at the hands of Penn-Trafford by a margin of 3-1 at Ice Line.

A capacity crowd witnessed a final contested at an elite level.

“Hats off to them,” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. They’re a good hockey team. Their goalie played outstanding. I’m proud of our guys.”

The Knights took the ice minus leading scorer Samuel Norton who was serving a suspension.

“It obviously hurt some things not having Sam out there,” Vaitis said. “He’s such a huge part of our team.

“We can all play the ‘What if’ scenarios with things like that, but I’m proud of the guys and how hard we worked.”

Hockey coaches talk a lot about games between evenly matched teams being decided a freak bounce here or there. The Warriors (20-7) scored the first goal of the game with the help of a bounce that was to say the least, out of the realm of the ordinary.

With just under seven minutes left in the opening period, the Warriors’ Zach Grkman launched a shot on goal from the center of the ice, just as he crossed the red line. The puck slid along the ice until it reached a point roughly midway between the faceoff circle hash marks when it abruptly sailed high in the air and over the shoulder of North Penn goaltender Andy Norton.

With 6:32 left in the opening session, Penn-Trafford had a 1-0 lead.

The Warriors extended their lead 7:51 into the third period. Liam Lehneke launched a shot from the right point that caromed off the end wall to Norton’s left, Norton however lost track of the puck which was lying behind his left pad when Brock Bienemann tucked it inside the post.

North Penn (25-2) kept battling and with 61 seconds left in regulation, North on the bench and an extra attacker on the ice, Nolan Shingle was able to get the best of Penn-Trafford netminder Tyler Funk.

But Ben Zierski brought the curtain down on the affair with an empty net goal with six seconds remaining, a goal that coincidentally brought down the curtain on one of the most remarkable seasons and certainly the most remarkable two-year stretch in the 50-year history of the North Penn hockey program.

“When you look at North Penn and the history we’ve had, nobody can attest to what these guys have accomplished,” Vaitis said. “I’m proud of them.

“The loss} hurts, it stings but time will allow us to heal together and we won’t forget the ride we had the last two years. We had a remarkable ride and for the guys coming back, we’re going to have a really good hockey team next year.

“We’ll take some time to heal and get over this, and start to get ready for next year.”

• In Saturday’s other two state championship games, Quaker Valley defeated Hershey 6-2 for the Class A title, while Seneca Valley bested Holy Ghost Prep 7-2 in Class AAA.

Penn-Trafford 1 0 2—3

North Penn 0 0 1—1

First-period goal; Zach Grkman (PT) from Nico Castelli, 10:28

Third-period goals: Brock Bienemann (PT) from Liam Lehneke, 7:51; Nolan Shingle (NP) from Gabe Dunn and Chris Silvotti, 15:59; Ben Zierski (PT) unassited,16:54 (en)

Shots: Penn-Trafford 39, Holy Ghost Prep 33; Saves: Tyler Funk (PT) 32, Andy Norton (NP) 36

Penn-Trafford 1 0 2—3

North Penn 0 0 1—1

First-period goal; Zach Grkman (PT) from Nico Castelli, 10:28

Third-period goals: Brock Bienemann (PT) from Liam Lehneke, 7:51; Nolan Shingle (NP) from Gabe Dunn and Chris Silvotti, 15:59; Ben Zierski (PT) unassited,16:54 (en)

Shots: Penn-Trafford 39, North Penn 33; Saves: Tyler Funk (PT) 32, Andy Norton (NP) 36

State Class AA Championship Sat. 3-21

North Penn vs. Penn-Trafford 2:00 at Ice Line

North Penn (25-1)

Coach: Kevin Vaitis

Key players: Nolan Shingle 28 goals, 21 assists, 49 points; Chris Silvotti 24-20-44; James Boyle 13-17-30 Andy Norton .950 save %

Penn-Trafford (18-5)

Coach: BJ. Zagorec

Key players: Sean Goodman 27 goals, 18 assists, 45 points: Ben Zierski 10 goals, 27 assists, 37 points; Brock Bienemann 16-14-30; Zack Grkman 10-12-22; Tyler Funk .916 save %

Ice chips: North Penn is trying to become the fourth SHSHL team in five years to win a Class AA state title. They will however be shorthanded; leading scorer Samuel Norton is under suspension and will not dress.

The Knights are an experienced group. Eighteen of the 23 players on this year’s Flyers Cup roster on part of last year’s state-title team.

The Warriors are seeking theit first state titie

Dunn Has Been Through it All at North Penn

Somewhere a bell is tolling, signaling the end of Gabe Dunn’s high-school hockey career is close at hand. But that moment hasn’t arrived just yet.

Dunn and his North Penn teammates will take on Boyertown Tuesday night in the Class AA Flyers Cup final (8:45 at Hatfield Ice). The winner will face Penguins Cup champion Penn Trafford on Saturday in the state-title game.

The top-seeded Knights, the defending Cup and state champions, have enjoyed a remarkable run the past two seasons, compiling a 46-4 record, including 25-1 this season.

It’s quite a turnaround from Dunn’s freshman season when the Knights won just one SHSHL game. As a four-year varsity player, he’s seen a lot.

“Hockey and life have interchangeable skills,” Dunn said. “As a four-year varsity player, I have been exposed to many different situations and levels of success. I have had to mature through that experience and make the most of the situations as they happen.

“My freshman year we went 1-8-1 in league play That’s not because we weren’t working. That’s not because we weren’t doing the right things. We just had to battle through that. To learn from it and use it to get better.

“As my role as a hockey player changed over that time I had to learn to communicate better, to manage feedback effectively, and to thrive in a high-stress, competitive environment.

I have had to explore my role on the ice over the years and I have also explored my role as a teammate and. Through all these things, we just kept going. As we push through, the outcomes change. we as individuals got better. We as a team got better.”

Dunn says a key reason for North Penn’s run of success has been the players’ willingness to accept their assigned roles.

“I believe the reason our team is great at accepting our roles and the reason we have had success is because we all know our end goal.” he said.

“With that goal always in mind, both as teammates and friends we know who is best suited for every situation. If we need a big hit to change the pace, we have a guy. If we need net front pressure, we have a guy. If we need someone to pick corners, well, we have a guy for that too. It’s our diversity and varying skill sets that set us apart and allows us to be successful.”

Dunn’s own role has evolved over the course of the season, out of necessity.

“At the start of the season I was a “defensive defensemen”,” he said. “That was my role. With a couple early season injuries on the team, the coaches needed to move a few people around to re-balance the lines and I was asked to play forward. Come to find out I’m pretty versatile and I can be multi-dimensional. Changing from being that last line of defense to a hard forechecker felt like a natural switch. It has been a lot of fun and I’m glad I have been able to make meaningful contributions.

“I think it has really helped me to see myself differently not just in hockey, but in all things. Today isn’t yesterday. You don’t have to be the guy you were yesterday.”

Class AAA Flyers Cup Finals Preview

Tuesday, March 17

Holy Ghost Prep vs. 3 La Salle 6:00 at Hatfield Ice

Holy Ghost Prep

Coach: John Ritchie

Record: 19-4

Key players: Matt Salita .914 save %; Chase Logue 29 goals, 6 assists, 35 points; Lucas Gonzalez 11-15-26; Anthony Valeriote 7-16-23

In this tournament: Had a bye in the quarterfinals; def. Malvern Prep 3-2 in overtime in semifinals.

3. La Salle

Record 8-13

Key players: Anthony Foster .923 save %; Thomas Leonards 13 goals, 2 assists, 15 points; Patrick Lunsford 7-1-16; Andrew Frantz 4-9-13

In this tournament: Def. Father Judge 6-2 in quarterfinals; def. St. Joseph’s Prep 4-1 in semifinals

Ice chips: This marks the 10th time Holy Ghost Prep and La Salle have met in a Flyers Cup final, the third time in the last four years. La Salle has a 6-3 edge in those meetings. The Explorers have won 13 Cups in all, including one in Class AA. The Firebirds have won five, including one in Class AA.

APAC Concluding 8th Season This Week

When the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference was launched in the fall of 2018 it was unique in the realm of Philadelphia-area interscholastic hockey; a hockey-only conference comprised of schools where hockey was a full-fledged varsity sport, overseen and supervised by administrators at each member institution; Holy Ghost Prep, Hun School, La Salle, Malvern Prep and St. Joseph’s Prep.

Hun School joined the APAC following its second season, the other four institutions have been part of the conference since it was founded.

As the APAC concludes its eighth season this week, with the Class AAA Flyers Cup final on Tuesday between Holy Ghost Prep and La Salle, with the state title hame to follow on Saturday, what was something of an experiment has proven to be an unqualified success, a successful melding of academic, athletic, and spiritual components.

Steve Mackell is in his second season as the Commissioner of the APAC, having succeeded Jim Britt, who had served in the commissioner’s post from the time the alliance was founded.

Mackell, who has had a long career in amateur hockey as a coach and administrator, cited the keys to the APAC’s success.

“I’m honored to be in the shoes of Jim Britt,” he said. “I think that the level of people we’re dealing with, the coaches, understand the game, they understand what they want to do with the kids, to make them men.

“I think it’s a combination of the academic environment and the athletic environment, which puts the APAC at really the echelon of hockey in this area.”

Mackell stresses the importance of the hockey programs at each conference school being a full-fledged varsity under direct institutional supervision.

“I think it’s the key to our conference,” he said, “that this is a varsity sport. The schools all fully back the sport. The student bodies there, the athletic directors there. The principals have been to many of the games and we’re very fortunate to have the support of the schools in our league.

”I think that’s what makes it real easy to deal with them because they can deal with a lot of stuff from an expectation standpoint before they even come into the rink.

{The players and coaches} know what they’re dealing with because they have to answer to people at school as well.”

Mackell is proud of the APAC’s success in helping its student athletes strike a balance among the various components of their lives and achieve success on and off the ice.

“All hockey players have a lot going on.” he said. I think the level of academics, what they need to do to stay in good standing at their schools from an academic standpoint, the spiritual world, and also the athletic side, to play at that level of hockey.

“There’s a lot of juggling that goes on between their club teams, their high-school teams, between their academic lives and their spiritual lives. I think that you see motivated young men that are all looking to move on to the next level, whether it’s in college, whether it’s in {junior hockey}, whether it’s in a different sport, whether it’s no sport, or academics, they understand their high schools are very important to where they are and I think they’re all striving for that.”

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 13^th-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 12^th-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

Flyers Cup Results

Tuesday, March 3

Class AAA Quarterfinals

La Salle 6 Father Judge 2 see story for details

Class AA First Round

Owen J, Roberts 7 Avon Grove 5

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.

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

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

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

C.B. South 2 C.R. South 0

They set the pace early and didn’t let up.

Central Bucks South defeated three-time SHSHL champion Council Rock South, 2-0, in a National Division semifinal on Wednesday night at Grundy Arena.

Jamison Crouch put the Titans on the board just 36 seconds into the game, with assists from Joseph Slobodrian and Ryan Montagna.

It would prove to be the only goal the Titans needed, but Ryan Frey added an insurance goal 10 minutes later, also assisted by Slobodrian.

“That first goal really set the tone for us,” said Frey, a senior. “We knew we were going to get the first goal, it was just a matter of how. To get it on the first shift was huge. That gave us the momentum and it stuck with us the whole game.

“I thought our D zone was lot better than it usually is. We got pucks out when we needed to. We got traffic in front of their goalie early, that’s how we scored those two goals and overall I thought we played a very good game.”

The teams split in the regular season.

“We knew this was going to be a good game,” Frey said. “We knew we had to get on their goalie early and we did and that’s how we were able to win this one.

“I honestly didn’t think that lead was going to hold up. I thought it was going to be one of those games were we scored, then they scored and back and forth. I’m so glad we won.”

The Golden Hawks pulled goaltender Trey Prozzillo with 2:28 to go in the third period in a last-ditch effort to score, but were thwarted by CB South’s defense.

CB South advances to Thursday night’s final against top seed North Penn, an 11-1 winner over Pennsbury in the other semifinal.

“Winning this game gives us so much confidence,” Frey said. “We have three big wins coming into it. We have momentum and we’re going to go into that game with a lot of energy and hopefully pull out a nice win.”

CB South’s last league title was in 2018.

“It’s always exciting to be playing for a league title,” said CB South goaltender Nathan Napolitano, a junior. “Playing for a championship is always fun.”

The Titans have lost twice to the Knights this season.

“We want to play North Penn again,” Napolitano said. “We gave them two of our not-best efforts so we play them well, and we’ll see what happens.”

The early lead gave him confidence in the team.

“A lead is always easier than trying to keep your team in it,” he said. “When they got the first one, my job got easier.”

CB South 2 0 0—2

CR South 0 0 0—0

First-period goals: Jamison Crouch (CBS) from Joseph Slobodrian and Ryan Montagna, 0:36; Ryan Frey (CBS) from Slobodrian, 10:32

Shots: CB South 27, CR South 27; Saves: Nathan Napolitano (CBS) 27, Trey Petrillo (CRS) 25

APAC Championship Preview

Wednesday, February 25

APAC Founders Cup Championship Game

Holy Ghost Prep vs 3. St. Joseph’s Prep

4:00 at Grundy Arena

Holy Ghost Prep

Coach: John Ritchie

Record: 17-4

Key Players: Chase Logue 25 goals, 6 assists, 31 points in all competitions; Lucas Gonzalez 11-11-22; Antony Valeriote 7-15-22; Chris Marshall 7-12-19; Matt Salita .956 save % 1.00 GAA

St. Joseph’s Prep

Coach: Charlie Van Kula

Record: 16-6

Key players: Cole Gargon 14 goals, 26 assists, 42 points in all competitions; Bradan Fisher 10-13-23; Michael Waslick 9-9-18; Adam Charrafi 7-10-17; Declan Geary .930 save %, 1.61 GAA

This season:

12-17 Holy Ghost Prep 2 St. Joseph’s Prep 1

2-4 Holy Ghost Prep 5 St. Joseph’s Prep 1

Ice chips: This game marks the conclusion of the APAC’s eighth season … The Firebirds, who are the defending conference champions, also reached the finals in 2019, ’20, and ’23, losing to La Salle each time …The Hawks’ only previous trip to the Founders Cup final came in 2020 when they lost to La Salle.

The Firebirds are seeded first for the upcoming Class AAA Flyers Cup and the Hawks are seeded second. Those seedings will not be impacted by the results of this game.

SHSHL 2026 All-League Teams

National Division

First Team

F Jake Weiner Sr. Council Rock South

F Shane Gleisner Sr. Pennsbury

F Samuel Norton Jr. North Penn

D James Boyle Sr. North Penn

D Jamison Crouch Sr. Central Bucks South

G Andy Norton So. North Penn

Second Team

F Max Ryon Sr. Souderton

F Jordan Sarne Sr. Council Rock South

F Chris Silvotti Jr. North Penn

D Ben Dempsey So. Central Bucks East

D John Lord So. Central Bucks South

G Isaac Mays Sr. Central Bucks West

American Division

First Team

F Vince Graziani So. Hatboro-Horsham

F Nate Nemchinov Sr. Hatboro-Horsham

F Dan Guller Sr. Plymouth Whitemarsh

D Logan Dicus Sr. Wissahickon

D Ryan Jaegher Sr. Plymouth Whitemarsh

G Matt Evangelist Jr. Abington

Second Team

F Grayson Quinn Sr. Springfield

F Cooper Kanzee So. Plymouth Whitemarsh

F William Moffa Jr. Hatboro-Horsham

D Luca Staffieri Jr. Hatboro-Horsham

D Reid Richestie Jr. Hatboro-Horsham

G Max Yoder So. Plymouth Whitemarsh

Players were selected by league coaches

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