LaSalle 9, St. Joseph’s Prep 1

By Rick Woelfel

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— It was pretty much business as usual for LaSalle Friday evening. Sam Lipkin and Daniel Sambuco scored two goals apiece and five other players scored one goal each as the Explorers routed St. Joseph’s Prep 9-1 in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game at Hatfield Ice.

The win assured that LaSalle (15-6, 6-0-1-0 in the APAC) can do no worse than tie for the regular-season title in the APAC’s inaugural season. The Explorers are six points ahead of second-place Malvern Prep with two conference games remaking for each team, including one against each other next Wednesday at Hatfield Ice.

Friday’s game was settled early on. LaSalle took command when Sambuco, Jan Olenginski, and Sam Lipkin scored first period goals to give their team a 3-0 lead. Lipkin’s goal came with a teammate in the penalty box.

The Explorers epitomized balance by scoring three goals in the second and third periods as well. At a point in the season where physical and mental fatigue become increasingly significant, Sambuco says he and his teammates have maintained their focus.

“We know what we want at the end,” the sophomore said. “Obviously, we want the state championship, so that kind of fuels us, every single game, every single day. It just keeps us driving and going and going becaus e window what that end goal will be.”

LaSalle extended its lead when Sambuco scored his second goal of the game 3:32 into the second frame to chase Hawk netminder Dan McGill, who was relieved by Troy Stefano. Lipkin made it 5-0 with a power-play effort at the 8:27 mark before Evan Cassidy scored what turned out to be St Joseph’s Prep’s only goal at 8:59. Nathan Benner scored for LaSalle before the period ended, a prelude to Max Levenberg, Bryan Evans, and Fabrizio Mazzarelli scoring goals in the third period.

William Gross in the LaSalle net didn’t have much to do; he was called on to make just 15 saves.

“Puck movement I think was really good tonight,” said LaSalle coach Wally Meuhlbronner. “We’re coming of a pretty tough stretch where we haven’t scored a ton of goals. We were pinned in our (defensive zone) a lot the past two games and it’s good to see them play the way they did tonight.”

St. Joseph’s Prep coach David Giacomin saw his team fall to 6-14 overall and 1-6-1-0 in conference. The veteran coach was less upset with the result than he was his team’s seeming lack of emotional energy.

“I see good things out of these kids at times,” he said. “And for whatever reason, we go through these games where they just seem to not care.

“And to me, that’s the frustrating part. Once one goal is scored, or a second goal is scored, it’s almost like they give up. And so it’s very frustrating for a coach who puts in a lot of time and effort and practice with them to have them come out and not handle adversity well.”
St. Joseph’s Prep 0 1 0—1
LaSalle 3 3 3—9
First-period goals: Daniel Sambuco (L) from Michael Casey and Jan Olenginski, 5:43; Oleninski (L) unassisted, 6:15; Lipkin (L) from Casey and Olenginski, 15:24 (sh).
Second-period goals: Sambuco (L) from Lipkin, 3:32; Lipkin (L) from Fabrizio Mazzarelli and Sambuco, 8:27 (pp); Evan Cassidy (SJP) from Vincent Bogessi, 8:59;Nathan Benner (L) from Nolan Woudenberg, 12:48.
Third-period goals: Max Levenberg (L) from Ryan Walsh and Zach Baker; Bryan Evans (L) from Woudenberg and Ryan Ferry, 11:36; Mazzarelli (L) from Baker and Lipkin, 14:03.
Shots; St. Joseph’s Prep 16, LaSalle 43; Saves Dan McGill (SJP) 16 and Troy Stefano (SJP) 18, William Gross (L) 15.

WBCB Radio Announces Hockey Broadcast Schedule

WBCB Radio in Levittown, PA will air six high-school hockey games in February.

Five will feature games from the Suburban High School Hockey League, the sixth will be an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference contest. The schedule kicks off Friday night with a matchup between Truman and Pennsbury, the annual Pink Game to benefit cancer patients in Lower Bucks County.

The entire schedule is listed below.

Feb. 1 7:30 pm. Truman vs. Pennsbury
Feb. 7 8:45 pm. Pennridge vs. Pennsbury
Feb. 11 4:00 pm. La Salle H.S. vs. Holy Ghost Prep.
Feb. 13 9:00 pm. C.B. East vs. Pennsbury
Feb. 20 7:20 pm. Truman vs. Neshaminy
Feb. 21 7:20 pm. Pennridge vs. C.R. South

* Games can be heard live on WBCB 1490 AM or wbcbsports.com.

Holy Ghost Prep-Malvern Prep Matchup A Big Step for the APAC

Wednesday night’s matchup between Malvern Prep and Holy Ghost Prep at the Wells Fargo Center was another step forward in the evolution of the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference.

The Friars emerged with a 3-2 overtime win in front of a large and enthusiastic audience.

Holy Ghost Prep Athletic Director Jim Stewart spoke with Hockey Happenings Wednesday night and celebrated the evening’s success.

“It’s a great evening,” he said. “It’s a great opportunity for both programs, especially in the first year of the APAC it’s certainly an experience that the kids playing tonight will never forget, having the chance to play on the ice of the Philadelphia Flyers and it says something about the connections that are being made between the schools in the APAC so far. We’re working to give the kids a great opportunity for competition.”

Stewart noted that the vison the four member schools had of what the league should be is, to this point, being realized.

“There has been really good competition,” he said. “We set out to begin this under the leadership of a couple of the coaches at LaSalle and Holy Ghost Prep and we put some goals out of there of what we wanted to achieve this year in terms of ice time, schedule, varsity and JV play, and it has worked out great.”

Friars and Firebirds Make Memories at the Wells Fargo Center

A lot of history has been made at the Wells Fargo Center since the building opened 12-and-a-half years ago. Holy Ghost Prep and Malvern Prep made some history of their own Wednesday night when they met in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game, but mostly, the players made lasting memories for themselves, memories they’ll be able to share for decades with teammates, family, and friends.

Kenny Connors scored two goals for the Friars in their 3-2 overtime win, including the game winner. He had skated on the Wells Fargo Center in the past as a participant in Mites on Ice, but playing a regulation game there was another matter. ”The environment with the (Malvern Prep student body) coming was a lot different,” he said. It was a lot more noisy environment, fun to play in.”

Connors said stepping on the ice for the warmup was a unique experience. ”You come to games here and you watch the guys play,” he said, “and to be able to be on that same ice as them is something special. And to have people come and watch and to be able to get a win out of it was something that was great for us.”

Malvern Prep 3, Holy Ghost Prep 2 OT

By Rick Woelfel

It was a finish fit for the wetting. Kenny Connors scored a dramatic goal 2minutes, 23 seconds into overtime to give Malvern Prep a 3-2 win over Holy Ghost Prep Wednesday night in front of an energized audience at the Wells Fargo Center.

The game-winner came moments after the Firebirds’ Byron Hartley fired wide at the other end. Malvern’s Nick Martino corralled the rebound and shot up the right wing, sending a cross-ice pass to Connors as the two plyers crossed the blue line. Connors delivered a forehander that beat Firebird netminder Sean Joyce.

“(Martino) had a really great look across and got me open,” the sophomore said. “The goalie came out too far, I thought.

“It was a great win. We played great defense and scored in transition.”

Connors scored two goals for Malvern Prep (11-3, 5-2 in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference) and assisted on the third.

It took a goal from Kyle Washalavitch with 1:18 left in the third period for the Friars to force overtime.

The Firebirds took a 2-1 lead on Byron Hartley’s goal with 6:48 left in the third frame.

But following a Malvern Prep timeout at the 1:21 mark, the Friars won a faceoff in their offensive left wing circle and got the puck back to Waskalavotch at the point who beat Joyce with a wrister.

The teams traded goals in the first period. Connors put the Friars up just 80 seconds into the game. Evan Mudrick answered for Holy Ghost Prep (6-11, 0-7 in conference) when he scored in the midst of a flurry in front of Malvern Prep goaltender Dan Dougherty.

For Holy Ghost Prep, the result was another in a season-long string of frustrations. The Firebirds have lost four game this season in either overtime or a shootout.

“I didn’t think we played a very good second period,” said Firebird coach Gump Whiteside, “but our first period and our third period were great. In overtime, we had a lot of chances. We just can’t find a way to win right now. It’s frustrating.”

Notes—It’s the second this season the Friars have staged a late rally to get a win. They trailed St. Joseph’s Prep 1-0 with 2:52 left in the game on January 11^th and won the game with a pair of shorthanded goals.

Malvern Prep swept the three-game series with Holy Ghost Prep this season. All three games were decided by one goal …. There was plenty of hitting but no nonsense. Referee Greg Liscino let the players play and didn’t call a single penalty.

Malvern Prep 1 0 1 1—3

Holy Ghost Prep 1 0 1 0—2

First-period goals: Kenny Connors (MP) from Quinn Dougherty, 1:20; Evan Mudrick (HGP) from Eric Pohl and Alex D’Angelo, 14:21

APAC Scoring Leaders

Here are the top scorers in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference as of 1-29-19; conference games only.

GP G A Pts

Sam Lipkin Ls 6 7 9 16

Michael Casey Ls 6 5 9 14

Daniel Sambuco Ls 6 5 9 14

Nick Martino MP 5 7 5 12

Kyle Washkalavitch MP 6 3 4 7

Byron Hartley HGP 5 4 1 5

Jan Olenginski Ls 5 2 3 5

Eric Pohl HGP 6 2 2 4

Charlie Andress MP 5 1 3 4

Brandon Leer Ls 6 3 1 4

SHSHL Statistics as of 1-29-19

Suburban High School Hockey League Leaders

Scoring Leaders GP G A Pts

Coleman Peppelman LM 11 31 19 50

Bryan Gary Wiss 10 31 18 49

Sean Gary Wiss 11 27 21 48

Dean Keller PW 12 23 21 46

Vincenzo DeMaio LM 12 26 18 44

Adam Bostock LM 12 16 25 41

Tyler Greenstein NP 13 16 17 33

Ari Nordlinger UD 11 18 14 32

Jake Weikel PW 12 16 15 31

Steven Avellino Tr 10 24 6 30

Chris Trefz CBW 11 7 23 30

Perry Carpenter Ab 12 19 11 30

Reis Bracio CBS 13 18 11 29

Eric Slater Pr 9 22 6 28

Aidan Keogh PW 11 20 8 28

Nathan Oh NP 13 10 17 27

Colin Franzoni PW 12 16 11 27

Devin Green LM 11 11 15 26

Robert Seewagen Nesh 11 16 9 25

Jake Nelson NP 12 15 9 24

Matt Cade Wiss 11 11 13 24

Sean Gorman CBE 10 18 5 23

Jared Albano NP 13 7 16 23

Josh Kaufhold NP 12 8 15 23

Bobby Markus WT 12 13 9 22

Goals Against GP Min GAA

Luke Stranik Pr 9 425 2.37

Oscar Levin CBS 11 456 2.53

Chris McIntyre CBE 8 240 2.60

Nick Ebbinghaus NP 8 384 3.00

Brett Magloff CRS 6 256 3.00

Andrew Zanoni NP 5 240 2.80

Matt Ogonowski CBE 7 336 3.14

Joe Gambino HH 11 478 3.41

Steve Glik Nesh 11 453 3.50

Ben Yuter PW 11 483 3.88

Save Percentage GP Min Save Pct.

Chris McIntyre CBE 8 240 .912

Steve Glik Nesh 11 453 .900

Luke Stranik Pr 9 425 .900

Oscar Levin CBS 11 456 .880

Jonathan Pritchard Soud 12 533 .879

Jeremy Kennard 7 313 .879

Jimmy Sweeney CRS 6 256 .879

Joe Gambino HH 11 478 .876

Jeremy Wedul Tr 10 480 .873

Brett Magloff CRS 6 256 .870

SHSHL Standings as of 1-29-19

Suburban High School Hockey League Standings

Class AA Continental and National Divisions

Won Lost Tied Pts

C.B. South (9-3-1) 7 0 1 15

North Penn (8-2-3) 6 1 2 14

Neshaminy (5-4-2) 4 3 1 9

Pennridge (7-2-1) 4 1 0 8

C.B. East (8-3-1) 4 3 0 8

C.B. West (6-6) 4 3 0 8

Pennsbury (4-5-2) 3 4 0 6

Council Rock South (5-5-2) 2 3 2 6

Abington (3-6-3) 2 4 2 6

Truman (3-6-2) 2 4 1 5

William Tennent (3-8-2) 1 6 2 4

Souderton (1-11-1) 0 8 1 1

Class A American Division Won Lost Tied Pts

Wissahickon (8-1-2) 6 1 2 14

Lower Moreland (7-2-3) 4 2 3 11

Plymouth Whitemarsh (9-3) 5 3 0 10

Hatboro-Horsham (7-4-1) 4 4 1 9

Upper Dublin (3-9) 0 9 0 0

Hatboro-Horsham 6, Lower Moreland 5

WARWICK— Hatboro-Horsham and Lower Moreland kicked into overdrive Friday night. The Hatters and the Lions played run-and-gun hockey most of the evening before the Hatters emerged with a 6-5 win in a Suburban High School Hockey League American Division matchup at Revolution Ice Gardens.

Ben Lerner scored two goals for the Hatters who improved to 7-4-1 overall and squared their divisional record at 4-4-1. Marcus Soucy provided a goal and two assists.

Hatboro-Horsham coach Gianni Lafratta praised Soucy’s work with the puck. “He put the pressure on,” Lafratta said, “he created opportunities for his teammates. It was everything we preach; put pressure on the puck carrier, make them make mistakes, and we go the other way.”

Five different Hatboro-Horsham players scored goals and 10 Hatters got onto the scoresheet.

Adam Bostock delivered a hat trick for the Lions (7-2-3, 4-2-3) who were without Coleman Peppelman, the SHSHL’s leading scorer, who was away on club duty.

The first period was, to say the least, up tempo. It was Bostock who got the scoring started, 3:25 into the period. It was the first of five goals in the first frame, which ended with the Hatboro-Horsham holding a one-goal advantage. Seth Lerner, Aidan Esack and Ben Lerner scored for the Hatters before Bostock added a second goal for the Lions.

Bostock tied the game 2:08 into the second period on a brilliant move up the middle of the ice through the Hatter defense before beat netminder Joe Gambino.

But with Peppleman absent and only eight skaters available, Lower Moreland coach Gus Scalfitti had to make some adjustments. “I rotated the guys,” he said, “but we definitely were missing a big, big chunk of our offense.”

Ben Lerner scored his second goal of the game to put the Hatters up 4-3 just 25 seconds after Bostock completed his hat trick. By period’s end the Hatters held a 6-4 lead.

The key stretch of the third period came early on when the Hatters were able to kill consecutive penalties. Gambino made three big saves in a stretch of half a minute to kill off the first one.

The junior said he was able to refocus while his team was shorthanded. “You can’t worry about it,” he said. “You’ve just got to fight and keep playing.”

Tyler Scolnick scored for Lower Moreland with 4:51 left in the game to set up a wild finish. The Lions swarmed the net in the waning seconds before the final buzzer came to the Hatters’ rescue.

“I think for most of the game, we had control,” Lafratta said. “(At the finish) We got out of hand in our own defensive zone, scrambled, not doing the things we needed to do to support our goaltender.”

By Rick Woelfel

Hatboro-Horsham 3 3 0—6

Lower Moreland 2 2 1—5

First-period goals: Adam Bostock (LM) from Vincenzo DeMaio and Simon Pezalla, 3:25; Seth Lerner (HH) from Marcus Soucy, 5:17; Aidan Esack (HH) unassisted, 5:53; Ben Lerner (HH) from Seth Lerner and Alex Howieson, 7:58; Bostock (LM) from Devin Green, 12:10.

Second-period goals: Bostock (LM) unassisted, 2:08; Ben Lerner (HH) from Kyle Mullen, 2:33; Green (LM) from Alex Silverman, 5:51; Howieson (HH) from Vince Tarsi and Sayvion Jones, 7:08; Tarek Elsabash (HH) unassisted, 7:43.

Third-period goal: Tyler Scolnick (HH) from Bostock and Green, 11:09.

Shots: Hatboro-Horsham 31, Lower Moreland 23; saves: Joe Gambino (HH) 18, Jacob Lungin (LM) 25

The most significant stretch of the high-school hockey season is straight ahead. The Suburban High School Hockey League and the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference are in the final weeks of the regular season.

Following that; the league playoffs and the 40^th Flyers Cup tournament. We’ll be following all the action here at Hockey Happenings and here’s your opportunity to be part of it all.

Contact us to promote your product or service here at Hockey Happenings right through the Flyers Cup and the Pennsylvania state championship.

Our e-mail is rwoelfel2013@gmail.com

Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference Making Its Mark

The Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference has completed exactly two thirds of his inaugural season. LaSalle, Malvern Prep, Holy Ghost Prep, and St. Joseph’s Prep each have three conference games remaining, one each against each other.

APAC Commissioner Jim Britt expressed satisfaction with how the league has evolved. “It is a great start to what we hope is an ever-expanding and developing environment,” he said. “The kids are reacting well because of the support that the institutions, the school administrations, the high-quality coaching staffs that are involved.

“The kids are reacting and progressing as we’d hoped. It is a great environment to develop the students both through hockey and through the academic environment and it’s an exciting time for those programs. I’ve been very pleased with how well teams have been playing, the pace of the games, the skill quality, the fact that people are focused on playing the game right. You strip away some of the stuff that has marred (high-school hockey) in the past and it makes it a great experience for everyone involved. They’re very happy with it.”

Britt notes that a strong conference with a membership of schools committed to hockey is a major step forward for the sport.

“I think it’s important,” he said. I have been involved with high school hockey for over 20 years in a lot of different capacities. I have some very close friends who have given heart and soul, blood sweat and tears, to develop strong programs. I think what we’re doing here with the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference is the next step.

“I know coaches in various programs that are doing a bangup job in the Suburban League and the Intercounty League and (the APAC) takes it to the next step, it takes it to the next level of commitment by the institutions. And that’s important. It’s important at every level of these students’ development, that all of the adults are on the same page, all the adults are pulling for the right things, are trying to do the right things.”

In addition to facing each other three times each, the four APAC schools are all playing a group of four New Jersey institutions; Gloucester Catholic, St. Augustine, Princeton Day School, and the Hun School. Could the APAC expand?

Britt says the member schools are cautiously in that regard. “The approach is to basically take it one step at a time,” he said. The idea is to make sure that we’re doing it not just for the right way, but for the right reasons and that we don’t missing anything. That we’re not forgetting anything because of the way that we are structuring this.

“Having said that, we have had some discussions about the possibility of having other programs joining the conference.”

Batting weather complications, the SHSHL will conclude its league season on February 12. Playoff dates have yet to be announced.”

Wednesday January 30 Malvern Prep vs Holy Ghost Prep 7:00 at Wells Fargo Center

Friday, February 1 St. Joseph’s Prep at LaSalle 5:00 at Hatfield

Wednesday, February 6 Malvern Prep at Lasalle 4:00 at Hatfield

Holy Ghost Prep at St. Joseph’s Prep 4:30 at Class of 1923 Rink

Monday, February 11 LaSalle at Holy Ghost Prep 4:00 at Grundy

Tuesday, February 12 St. Joseph’s Prep at Malvern Prep, 3:55 at Ice Line

Following that; the league playoffs and the 40^th Flyers Cup tournament. We’ll be following all the action here at Hockey Happenings and here’s your opportunity to be part of it all.

Contact us to promote your product or service here at Hockey Happenings right through the Flyers Cup and the Pennsylvania state championship.

Our e-mail is rwoelfel2013@gmail.com