St. Joseph’s Prep 3 La Salle 2

St. Joseph’s Prep used two third-period goals to post a 3-2 win over La Salle Wednesday evening in an APAC game at the University of Pennsylvania’s Class of 1923 Rink.

The win lifted the hosts to 14-5 on the season and 4-3 in conference.

Two of the Hawks’ three goals came while they were shorthanded.

Cole Gargon scored what proved to be the winning goal with 6:16 remaining in the third period. It came in the aftermath of a skirmish that sent five players to the penalty box and left St. Joseph’s Prep shorthanded.

Matthew Jones opened the scoring when he gave the Explorers (5-12, 2-6) a 1-0 lead 8:22 into the second period. Adam Charaffi tied the game for the Hawks with 6:38 remaining in the period while his teammate Michael Castelli was in the box serving a hooking penalty.

James Fratantuono put the Hawks in front for the first time 9:25 into the third period. Gargon extended his team’s lead when he beat La Salle goaltender Dylan Brown 1 minute 19 seconds later.

William Paulka scored for La Salle with 4:19 left in regulation to complete the scoring.

Declan Geary made 23 saves in goal in his winning effort.

“We relied heavily on Declan to make some big saves for us,” said St. Joseph’s Prep coach Charlie Van Kula. “”Hats off to La Salle, who battled hard all game.

“We have not been doing ourselves many favors lately with how we have shown up for games and its apparent. That’s on me. The road only gets harder from here with ther playoffs around the corner.”

St. Joseph’s Prep will conclude its conference schedule next Wednesday at Holy Ghost Prep in a game that was originally scheduled for this past Monday. La Salle, which has two non-conference games remaining on its schedule, will play in the APAC play-in game as either the fourth or fifth seed on a date to be determined.

La Salle 0 1 1

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 1 2

Second-period goal: Matthew Jones (L) from Roman Tkach and Matthew Martin, 8:22; Adam Charrafi (SJP) from Frank Ely and Jake Ely, 10:22 (sh)

Third-period goals: James Fratantuono (SJP) from Noah Stuhl, 9:25; Cole Gargon (SJP) from Bradan Fisher, 10:44 (sh); William Podulka (L) from Owen Reinhart and Jones, 12:41;

Shots: La Salle 25, St. Joeph’s Prep 37; Saves: Dylan Brown (L) 34, Declan Geary (SJP) 23

Lunsford Maturing at La Salle

Patrick Lunsford is at home at La Salle, in the classroom and on the ice. The junior forward is in the midst of his first season of varsity hockey.

A Blue Bell resident, Lunsford was pointed toward La Salle at a young age.

“A lot of my family went to La Salle,” he said. “It was a very popular school at my grade school (St. Helena), and it was great for me so, that’s what made me go to La Salle.”
Like three of the other four schools in the APAC, La Salle’s student body is all male. Lunsford cites the upside to that environment.

“It really helps us focus,’ he said. “And, there’s the brotherhood. You just become so close with your classmates. It’s a really great opportunity. You just do a lot of things with your classmates; the classes. You make so many friends. It’s a great way to expand your friendships and just meet so many new people.”

Lunsford says he adjusted relatively quickly to La Salle’s academic demands.

“It was very different from grade school,” he said. “But, within the first couple weeks of my freshman year, I did very well. I did a great job adapting to the time management. You’ve just got to tackle your work early and if you get it in early, you’ll excel.

I think the kids at the schools around here, they get it and they understand so, everyone does a great job with schooling.

Like his peers, Lunsford has become adept at managing his time successfully.

“It’s hard,” he said. “But at the same time, La Salle does such a great job of giving you time throughout the day and time after school to get your work done. We don’t have the same classes every day. We have them every other day. So, we have two days to get our homework in, which is very huge with sports, and all the kids have outside activities.

“I think it’s a great opportunity for everyone. Time management, it is a struggle sometimes, but if you can get your work in, you’ll be just fine. That’s worked out great for me.”

Lunsford says the curriculum at La Salle teaches students to make independent decisions.

“My grade school did a really great job of preparing me for things like that in high school,” he said, “and it funneled into La Salle very well for me.”

From a hockey perspective is part of a team that began the season young in terms of age and more importantly varsity experience. They found themselves navigating a steep learning curve early on but recorded their two first two APAC wins of the season heading into Wednesday’s scheduled game at St. Joseph’s Prep.

“{Varsity hockey} is very different from the jayvee level,” Lunsford said. “The first couple games took some really getting used to, but over time I think myself and all my teammates, we’ve done a great job.

“The passing, the hitting, everything. It’s just a different level but I think we’ve done a really great of adapting to that.”

SHSHL Update 1-26-26

National Division W L T OTW OTL SOW SOL Pts

North Penn (14-1) 11 0 0 – – – – 44

Council Rock South (12-2) 9 2 0 – – – – 36

Central Bucks South (9-4) 8 3 0 – – – 32

Pennsbury (9-3-1) 7 3 1 – – – – 30

Pennridge (5-5-1) 5 5 – – 2 – – 22

Central Bucks East (5-7-1) 5 6 1 1 – – – 21`

Souderton (3-9) 3 7 0 1 1 – – 12

Neshaminy (2-10) 2 9 0 1 – – – 7

Central Bucks West (0-13) 0 12 0 – – – – 0

American Division W L T OTW OTL SHW SOL PTS

Hatboro-Horsham (11-1) 11 1 0 – – – – 44

Plym. Whitemarsh (8-1) 10 1 0 – – – – 40

Wissahickon (3-6) 4 7 0 1 – – – 15

Springfield (3-7) 3 7 0 – – – 12

Abington (0-10) 0 11 0 – 1 – – 1

Scoring All League Scheduled Games

National Division GP G A Pts

Shane Gleisner Pb 13 35 18 53

Jake Weiner CRS 13 34 17 51

Samuel Norton NP 14 17 23 40

Chris Silvotti NP 15 16 16 32

Landon Bishop Pr 10 17 12 29

Jordan Sarne CRS 12 14 15 29

Shane Hicks Pb 12 12 17 29

Max Ryon Sou. 8 16 13 29

James Rush Pr 12 17 11 28

Nolan Shingle 14 14 13 27

Ryan Frey C.B. South 12 9 16 25

Jackson Kelly Soud 8 11 10 21

Dominic Gibson 9 10 10 20

American Division GP G A Pts

Vincent Graziani HH 13 23 23 46

Daniel Guller PW 11 12 26 38

Nate Nemchinov HH 11 19 18 37

Bill Moffa HH 13 11 16 27

Luca Staffieri HH 12 13 13 26

Cooper Kanze PW 8 13 11 24

Mack Risnychok Wiss 11 16 7 23

Grayson Quinn Sp. 11 15 7 22

Blake Ambler PW 9 8 13 21

Reid Rochestie HH 13 7 14 21

Blake Ambler PW 8 7 12 19

Aiden North HH 12 5 12 19

Grayson Quinn Spr. 9 13 3 16

Julia Kaminsky Soud 6 9 4 13

Jackson Kelly Soud 5 6 7 13

Nolan Shingle NP 7 6 7 13

Ryan Burke Pr 5 4 7 11

Cameron Fairweather Sou. 5 3 8 11

James Boyle NP 6 2 9 11

Shawn Mooney Nesh 4 3 4 7

Joseph Mangin HH 3 5 2 7

Cooper Kamze PW 2 5 1 6

Dominic Gibson CBS 3 3 3 6

Goaltenders-Min.200 minutes

National Division GP MP Shots GA Save % GAA

Andrew Norton NP 7 357 134 8 .940 1.14

Cameron Young CBE 6 306 279 24 .914 4.00

Aidan Quigley NP 8 408 179 17 .905 2.13

Brendan Milliken Pb 13 662 395 41 .896 3.16

Trey Prozzillo CRS 11 560 269 28 .896 2.55

American Division GP MP Shots GA Save % GAA

Max Youder PW 5 255 148 12 .919 2.40

Dominic Sestito HH 5 236 80 8 .900 1.73

Lucas Bennett PW 5 254 125 13 .896 2.61

Matthew Evangelist Ab 11 565 482 63 .869 5.69

Eric Miller HH 7 357 144 19 .868 2.71

Flyers Cup Rankings 1-26-26

The Flyers Cup Committee has released its second and last set of rankings for the 2025-26 regular season. The rankings are based on on-ice performance and the evaluations of members of the committee.

The field for the 47^th Flyers Cup Tournament will be announced on the evening of Sunday, February 22.

Class AAA

Holy Ghost Prep
St. Joseph’s Prep
Malvern Prep
La Salle
Father Judge

Class AA

North Penn
Council Rock South
Boyertown
Conestoga
Owen J. Roberts

Class A

Hershey
Kennett
Pernncrest
Marple Newtown
Hatboro-Horsham

Girls

Avon Grove
Downingtown West
Lower Merion Maroon
Conestoga
West Chester East

Pennridge 7 C.R. South 5

It was a game that featured a little bit of everything. In the end, it was one of the SHSHL’s biggest upsets of recent years.

Pennridge overcame two-goal deficits on three occasions and used five third-period goals to stun Council Rock South 7-5 Wednesday night at Hatfield Ice. The Rams, who started the season by losing five of their first six games, are 4-2-1 in their last seven starts. Wednesday’s win, which was achieved with just 11 skaters and a goaltender lifted them to 5-7-1 overall (5-7 in SHSHL National).

“They deserved that tonight,” said Pennridge coach Jeff Montagna,” because of how much better they’ve gotten this year.

“To be down 2-0, 4-2, and 5-3 and keep coming back, with a short bench and everything. I’m glad they could finish this one, because they’ve come so close against good teams. They deserve this one. I’m just so happy for them right now.”

There was little indication early on that the Rams would prevail. The Golden Hawks (12-2, 9-2) took a 2-0 first-period lead on goals from Jordan Sane and Allen Pruning. Sarne’s goal, just 52 seconds into the game, came on an assist from Jake Weiner that made Weiner the all-time leading scorer in school history.

Landon Bishop scored for Pennridge 6:40 into the second frame and Hames Rush tied the game seven minutes later.

By that point, tempers were flaring and the officials were busy; Rush’s goal came on a power play.

Sarne scored twice in the final 2:08 to give his team a two-goal advantage heading into the final period.

Bishop made it 4-3 on a partial breakaway 4:03 into the third period, bowling over South goaltender Troy Prozzillo in the process. Sarne made it a 5-3 game 74 seconds later but South would not score again. Rush scored his second goal of the game exactly two minutes later and Colby Booth tied the game 8:08 left on a play to that featured considerable traffic in the crease. The scuffle that followed saw Weiner banished after receiving his fourth penalty of the game.

Bishop’s game winner came with 3:40 left in regulation. The junior finished with three goals and five points. Ryan Burke scored into an empty net with three seconds remaining.

“It feels amazing,” Bishop said. “Coming out and beating the second-place team in the league, knowing that only North Penn has beaten them? It’s amazing.”

Bishop said the coaching staff’s encouragement fueled his team’s resurgence.

“Our coaches believe in us,” he said. “We don’t quit when the challenge is real. We just keep pushing through. And get the win.”

Weiner called the loss “Just one of those nights.

“It stings,” he said. “But I was glad it happened right now before playoffs come up.

“But it stings. It definitely was a shock. They played harder today. We didn’t play as hard and that’s what it comes down to.”

• The game included 22 minor penalties, 13 against the Hawks, nine against the Rams. Weiner cane into the game with 214 points. He finished the evening with three assists.

C.R. South 2 2 1—5

Pennridge 0 2 5—7

First period goals: Jordan Sarne (CRS) from Jake Weiner, :52; Allen Pronin (CRS) from Xavier Prozorov, 5:35

Second-period goals: Landon Bishop (P) from Kaden Gunning, 6:40; James Rush (P) from Justin Dinsmore and Bishop, 13:46; Sarne (CRS) from Chase Stratton and Wes Mallon, 14:52; Sarne (CRS) frim Aidan Judge and Weiner, 16:46;

Third-period goals: Bishop (P) unassisted, 4:03; Saene (CRS) from Weiner, 5:17; Rush (P) unassisted, 6:52; Colby Booth (P) from Rush and Dinsmore, 8:52; Bishop (P) from Eush and Dinsmore, 13:20; Ryan Burke (P) from Dean Venner, 16:57 (en)

Shots: Council Rock South 41, Pennridge 30; Saves: Troy Prozzillo (CRS) 23, Andrew Slutsky (P) 36

Holy Ghost Prep 4 Hun School 1

Lawrence Township, NJ—Discipline is an important attribute for a hockey team. That trait increases in importance as the stakes get higher

Holy Ghost Prep and the Hun School were playing for high stakes Thursday afternoon. And it was the Firebirds who maintained their focus long enough to post a 4-1 win at Ice Land.

The result assures Holy Ghost Prep (13-2, 7-0 in the APAC) of the top seed when it tries to defend the APAC title when the Founders Cup playoffs commence on February 18. And while the seeding for the Flyers Cup tournament won’t be announced for another five weeks and more, the Firebirds, who are the defending Class AAA champions, seemingly have the inside trac to the top seed in that event as well.

Thursday’s matchup was the second between the Firebirds and Raiders (11-6, 3-3 in the APAC) in six days and the battle scars from that first encounter were still smarting. So, the task of staying attuned to the task at hand had additional significance.

“We know (Hun School) is a real physical team,” said the Firebirds’ Chase Logue. “As long as we just stayed calm, stayed focused, and not do dumb things or take dumb penalties {they would be successful}.

“It doesn’t help when you’re down a guy on the penalty kill but we killed every penalty off.

“The guys worked hard and we deserved this one.”

The Firebirds scrambled their lineup; six regulars were missing due to injury, illness, and club duty. The newcomers stepped up. Josh Zdunkiewicz set up Jake Samron for the first goal of the game with 5:36 left in the opening period. Logue made it a 2-0 game with four seconds and change left in the period.

Zachary Vallee cut the deficit in half with 5:58 left in the second frame with a shorthanded goal when a breakdown left him alone in the neutral zone on the receiving end of a Devin Espana outlet pass. Vallee went in on a breakaway and beat Firebird netminder Matt Salita.

With the teams separated by a single goal entering the third period, the intensity level, already high, kicked up a notch. There were 13 penalties called in the final period.

One against the Raiders led to Logue’s second goal of the game. Nate Trawinski was serving a roughing minor when Logue launches a wrister from the right point that beat Blake Echternacht in the Hun School net with 12:14 left in regulation.

Just over a minute later, emotions boiled over when Espana and the Firebirds’ Brandon Watkins squared off. Each was assessed a fighting major plus a game misconduct.

Zdunkiewicz and Hun School’s Justin Bibeau received roughing minors in the same incident.

Logue completed a hat trick with 6:57 left in the game, getting the better of Chase Kishler, who took over for Echternacht on goal not quite midway through the third period.

“It was a great first period,” said Hun School coach N.G. Welsh, “and we didn’t play our game for the last two.

“They took advantage of it.”

Holy Ghost Prep senior Lucas Gonzalez finished the game with on two assists. He noted the importance of his team’s fast start.

“I think we just had to take it to them,” he said, “instead of letting them take it to us early. I think early in the game we hit everybody got it on net.

“I think if our whole group is going fast and playing hard, we’re tough to beat.”

The APAC semifinals are set for Wednesday, February 18 at Ice Line. The championship game us set for February 25 and will be hosted by the highest-seeded finalist.

Holy Ghost Prep 2 0 2—4

Hun School 0 1 0—1

First-period goals: Jake Smaron (HGP) from Josh Zdunkiewicz, 11:24; Chase Logue (HGP) from Anthony Valeriote and Lucas Gonzalez, 16:56

Second-period goal: Zachary Vallee (HS) from Devin Espana, 8:02 (sh)

Third-period goals: Logue (HGP) from Gonzalez, 4:46 (pp); Logue (HGP) from Smaron, 10:03

Shots: Holy Ghost Prep 32, Hun School 28; Saves: Matt Salita (HGP) 26, Blake Echternacht (HS) 22 and Chase Kishler (HS) 6

PW 8 Wissahickon 4

Keeping up. That’s what Plymouth Whitemarsh’s season is about right now.

All season long, the Colonials have been locked in a day-to-day, shift-to-shift duel with Hatboro-Horsham for supremacy in the SHSHL American Division. Their matchup against Wissahickon Wednesday night was another puzzle.

The Colonials took care of business with an 8-4 win, their ninth victory in 10 starts, all in divisional play. They are even with Hatboro-Horsham in the loss column; the teams have split two meetings and are scheduled for two more.

Plymouth Whitemarsh took dominated the first period Wednesday night but led just 1-0 when the period concluded. The goal came off the stick of Brandon Wooldridge 4:35 into the period.

The Colonials took control of the game in the second stanza when goals from John Zawisliak, Wooldridge, Jack Condon, and Cooper Kanzee extended their lead to 5-0 before Wissahickon (3-7 overall and in the division) got on the scoreboard thanks to Mack Risnychok with 61 seconds left in the period.

“We really just kept our foot on the gas, Wooldridge said. “I thought we played well the first period, I think we had (16) shots, just couldn’t bury it but then we figured it out and got it past their goalie (Fletcher Lynch). He played really well today.”

The Trojans didn’t go away. Goals from Joseph Gambino and Logan Honeycutt sandwiched around a Plymouth Whitemarsh goal from Connor Barclay, making it a 6-3 game with 8:32 still left in regulation but Chris London and Dan Guller added additional goals to put the game away.

Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Vince Forti is still striving to get a solid effort from his troops for a full 51 minutes.

“I think we’re still trying to figure out putting in three full periods of work,” he said. “We get a lead and we end up taking our foot off the gas. And we’re wanting to not create a bad habit for the future because it’s not going to work in the playoffs.”

Wissahickon assistant coach Jason Jaisle has just 12 skaters on his roster and that was a factor on this occasion.

“It’s difficult when you only have two lines,” he said. “They’re rolling three-and-a-half. I thought we’d be tired. I wanted to call timeout, {His players} told me not to.

“But other than that, I’m proud of the guys. Every single one of them We played the best team in the league with two lines and the shots were just about even.

Jaisle says his short bench mandates he slow the pace of the game.

“I try to tell the goalie to cover everything and slow the game down,” he said. “If you’re caught in the defensive one just ice it. Just basic one-on-one hockey from Squirt level really. Unfortunately, without the third line, we’re tired.

‘We have to take advantage of every power play chance we get. We have to kill the penalties

Plymouth Whitemarsh 1 4 3—8

Wissahickon 0 1 3—4

First-period goal: Brandon Wooldridge (PW) from Luke Wynn and Carson Wooldridge, 4:35

Second-period goals: John Zawisliak (PW) from Cooper Kanzee, 1:33; B. Wooldridge (PW) from Daniel Guller, 6:33 (pp); Jack Condon (PW) from Luke Smith and Connor Barclay, 10:27; Kanzee (PW) from Guller and Wynne, 15:50; Mack Risnychok from Chase McClintic and Dryden Jaisle, 15:59

Third-period goals: Joseph Gambino unassisted, 3:02 (pp); Barclay (PW) from Condon and Smith, 6:42; Logan Honeycutt Link Matozzo and Gambino, 8:28; Chris London (PW) from Kanzee, 11:46; Guller (PW) from Kanzee and Wynne, 14:16 (sh); Risnychok from McClintic, 16:13

Shots: Plymouth Whitemarsh 49 Wissahickon 33

Saves: Lucas Bennett (PW) 29, Fletcher Lynch 41

St. Joseph’s Prep 3 Malvern Prep 2

Adam Charraffi’s goal 4:31 into the third period gave St. Joseph’s Prep a 3-2 win over Malvern Prep Friday at the University of Pennsylvania’s Class of 1923 Rink.

It was the seventh straight win for the Hawks, who improved to 12-4 overall and 2-2 in the APAC.

Michael Waslick and Joseph McGonigal gave St. Joseph’s Prep a 2-0 first-period lead before Jake Weingartner scored for the Friars (4-6-2, 2-3).

Pax Hoishik tied the game for Malvern Prep with a power-play goal 7:01 into the second period, which set the stage for Charrafi’s game winner.

Malvern Prep 12 1 0—2

St. Joseph’s Prep 2 0 1—3

First-period goals: Michael Washlick (SJP) from Jake Ely and Adam Charrafi, 1:18; Joseph McGonigal (SJP) from Joseph Darragh and Connor Martin, 3:47; Jake Weingartner (MP) from Paxton Hoishik, 5:16

Second-period goal: Hoishik (MP) from Weingartner and Cole Scabrinsky, 7:01 (pp)

Third-period goal: Charaffi (SJP) from Frank Ely and Bradan Fisher

Shots: Malvern Prep 31, St. Joseph’s Prep 27; Saves: Ryan Caterino (M, 4:31P) 24, Declan Geary (SJP) 29

Knights Embark on Cancer Fight

It was a night when the final score truly didn’t matter. There were four points at stake when North Penn and Souderton squared off on Wednesday night at Hatfield Ice but the focus of the evening was the Knights’ Hockey Fights Cancer effort. The Knights took the ice on Wednesday wearing white sweaters trimmed in purple to commemorate the occasion, which was part of a multipronged effort to promote and raise funds for the fight against cancer.

“We got some contributions from some local businesses, said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. We got their logos put on the backs of the jerseys and were able to get these jerseys made

The North Penn junior varsity will play a Hockey Stops Cancer game of its own on Friday against Father Judge (8:50 at Hatfield) and two North Penn middle-school level teams will take the ice on Sunday against separate opponents.

North Penn assistant coach Frank Stumpo spearheaded the effort. Stumpo is also the North Penn Hockey Club treasurer; his son was diagnosed with cancer in 2024

“It’s incredible,” he said. “We talked about doing this for a couple years. My son was diagnosed with cancer a year-and-a-half ago at age 37. He’s come through it and is very healthy and that was kind of the impetus for us.

“So many of our families, not just on the hockey team but in the community have been affected by cancer. It’s a terrible disease.

“This is an opportunity, and the kids got behind it as well, to give back. We’re trying to play hockey and we’re trying to win hockey games. But we’re developing young men an we’re trying to teach them that’s there’s more to life than just what goes on on the ice so it’s a good opportunity and a wonderful learning experience for them as well.”

North Penn head coach Kevin Vaitis saw the event as a teaching moment for his players.

“I think it’s always good to give back,” he said, “and kind of make these kids aware, and the rest of our families aware; everybody’s going to be impacted to some degree by somebody battling cancer or lost somebody to cancer.

“I think if we can do our part to help raise a little bit more awareness, it goes a long way, and hopefully this is something other high-school teams in the area want to participate in as well so we can make it something bigger over the next couple years.”

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