Pennsbury 12 Souderton 2

HATFIELD—Pennsbury entered the season as the defending SHSHL Class AA championship and accompanied by an assortment of expectations. The Falcons had an up-and-down first half of the campaign in part due to injuries. On Thursday night however, they were in fine form.

Brendan Macainsh scored three goals and assisted on another as the Falcons steamrolled Souderton 12-2 at Hatfield Ice in a Class AA game that was terminated with 3:26 left in the third period via the 10-goal mercy rule.

Pennsbury improved to 4-2-1 overall and 2-1 in divisional play. While that record may not raise eyebrows among their SHSHL foes, the level of Thursday night’s performance likely will. The Falcons launched 37 shots in 47 minutes and 34 seconds of playing time.

“I love to have a lot of shots,” said Pennsbury coach Ryan Daley. “A lot of shots equals a lot of opportunities.

They’re really good at it. Kids love to score and it’s not too hard to get them to buy in on that.”

Macainsh echoed those sentiments. “When everything’s working, it’s always fun to play,” he said. “our defense was working tonight and our offense was on point. so, you can’t complain about much.”
The blitz began early. Macainsh put in a rebound of Shane Siegmund’s shot 3:10 into the first frame to give Pennsbury the lead and the Falcons pushed their advantage to 4-0 by period’s end on additional goals from Logan Doyle, Macainsh, and Reece Millman.

Carter Povazan got Souderton (5-5, 3-4) on the scoreboard 3:14 into the middle period but Siegmund and Evan Eisler quickly answered for the Falcons and even after Timothy Alexander scored Souderton’s second goal the outcome was never in doubt. The abbreviated third period was a mere formality.

“We got hit by a truck,” said Souderton coach Ryan Uchniat. “That Pennsbury team is very good.

“It took us a little bit to get our bearings. We had a tough time getting it out of our zone and they crashed our net with a lot of speed. We had problems playing man on down low; I think that’s where it started.

In addition to Macainsh’s four-point night, Siegmund contributed a goal and four assists.

Pennsbury 4 4 4—12

Souderton 0 2 0—2

First-period goals: Brendan Macainsh (P) from Shane Siegmund and Justin Marlin, 3:10; Logan Doyle (P) from Andrew Falkenstein, 4:27; Macainsh (P) from Marlin and Siegmund, 10:37 (pp); Reece Millman (P) from Connor Coyne, 16:02

Second-period goals: Carter Povazan (S) from Sean Ryan, 3:14 (pp); Siegmund (P) from Marcus Roberts, 4:16; Evan Eisler (P) from Marlin, 5:41; Timothy Alexander (S) from Liam O’Neill, 12:47 (pp); Reese Picker (P) from Doyle, 14:21; Eisler (P) from Siegmund, 16:24

Third-period goals: Falkenstein (P) from Eisler, 10:39; Stephen Grosscup (P) from Macainsh, 11:07; Macainsh (P) from Coyne, 11:57; Colin Michalak (P) from Siegmound and Jason Fowler, 13:34.Game terminated with 3:26 remaining in the third period.
Shots: Souderton 12, Pennsbury 37; Saves: Noah Connor (S) 25, Aaron McDaniel (P) 10

Abington 9 Plymouth Whitemarsh 7

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP—The calendar says January, not July, but there were plenty of fireworks at Hatfield Ice Wednesday night. Abington and Wissahickon combined for 16 goals before the Galloping Ghosts prevailed 9-7 in a matchup of the two titans of the SHSHL’s American Division.

Abington improved to 6-1 overall and a division-leading 5-0 while the Colonials (5-1, 3-1) tasted defeat for the first time this season.
It was a big night for Abington junior Pat Stelacio who scored four goals. Luke Weikel matched him for the Colonials.

Stelacio got support however from teammates Matt Kramer (three goals), his brother Joe Stelacio, and Sam Paulik

“We knew it was going to be a tough game,” said Abington coach Ken Brozowski. We know that we’re going to get the best game from most teams in the league and you’re playing a team like PW; they’ve got a couple really good players on their team. Absolutely, we knew it was going to be a close game.

The fireworks show began early; each team scored twice in the first 7:34 of the opening period. Pat Stelacio and Weikel scored for Abington while Weikel found the back of the net twice for the Colonials.

Stelacio followed up with two additional goals 19 seconds apart. With 4:19 left in the first frame he already had a hat trick and his team had a 4-2 lead.

Stelacio, a junior, started his high-school career at Roman Catholic but switched to Abington this season.

“I wanted to play with my brother at Abington,” he said. “I have a lot of friends here, so it was the right move.”

Weikel completed his own hat trick just 28 seconds into the middle period, but Abington responded with five straight goals to build an 8-3 lead by period’s end.

Kramer, who came into the game leading the entire SHSHL in scoring, ended the period by completing his own hat trick. He now has 17 goals and nine assists on the season.

Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Josh Aiello was expecting a lot of offense, to a point.

“I wasn’t expecting a shootout,” he said, “but you have two teams that are able to put the puck in the net and you’ve seen it over the course of this season. I didn’t expect it, but I guess it’s not a surprise.”

The Colonials made a run early in the third period, scoring three goals in a span of 35 seconds to make it an 8-6 game with 10:09 still remaining in regulation. Danny Smith played a key role in the surge, scoring one of the goals and assisting on the other two.
But Plymouth Whitemarsh could get no closer. The teams traded goals down the stretch; the last goal of the night was Stelacio’s fourth.

Plymouth Whitemarsh 2 1 4—7

Abington 4 4 1—9

First-period goals: Pat Stelacio (A) from Griffin Carpenter, 2:09; Luke Weikel (PW) from Matthew Flynn and Aidan Keogh, 3:09; Sam Paulik (A) unassisted, 7:34; Weikel (PW) from Conlan Carpenter and Keogh, 10:03 (pp); Pat Stelacio (A) unassisted, 12:22; Pat Stelacio (A) unassisted, 12:41

Second-period goals: Weikel (PW) unassisted, :28; Matt Kramer (A) from Joe Stelacio, 2:12; Joe Stelacio (A) from Kramer and Brian Murdoch, 8:50; Kramer (A) from Joe Stelaio and Paulik, 12:04; Kramer (A) from Joe Stelacio and Paulik, 16:39

Third-period goals: Danny Smith (PW) unassisted, 6:16; Weikel (PW) from Smith and Keogh, 6:30; Tim Murphy (PW) from Smith and Weikel, 6:51; Pat Stelacio (A) from Ian Heydt, 7:22; Weikel (PW) from Mishkin, 15:50.
shots: Plymouth Whitemarsh 32, Abington 34; Saves: Kolton Galie (PW) 8 and Christopher Maslij (PW) 17, Ben Panella (A) 25

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Quakertown 8, William Tennent 5

WARWICK—A new hockey program does not achieve maturity overnight. The process takes time and there are likely to be growing pains along the way. Quakertown is in its third season now in the SHSHL and progress the Panthers have made is readily apparent.

Melanie Pezzano and Anthony Pagliei scored two goals each as Quakertown built leads of 6-0 and 7-2 before going on to an 8-5 win over William Tennent Wednesday night at Revolution Ice Gardens.

The win lifts Quakertown to 4-3 in the SHSHL’s American Division and 4-5 overall.

Head coach Keith Krem took a moment to reflect on the progress has team has made over the course of its existence.

“We’re a much better balanced team than we have been in years past,” he said, “and playing a little bit better away from the puck, which has helped tremendously.”

Pezzano, a senior who skated at left wing on her team’s top line, has played a significant role in her team’s evolution.

“I think we got a good foundation from the last couple years,” she said. “I know we weren’t the best, but we really put in the work this summer and at the beginning of the year. I think we’re a really good group, where we are right now.”

Quakertown got off to a fast start. Brandon McNally and Anthony Pagliei scored goals to put their side up 2-0 8:55 into the opening period. William Shaw and Pezzano added goals in the second frame before Lucas Cunnane and Pezzano extended Quakertown’s lead in the third.

Frank Rosenberry got William Tennent (0-8, 0-5) on the board with back-to-back goals to make it a 6-2 game at the 7:15 mark of the final period.

At that point, the floodgates opened. A total of nine goals were scored in the third period, five of them over the last 9:45 of regulation.

Tennent coach Vince Rosica lamented his team’s sluggish start.

“It’s hard to win hockey games with 11 skaters, he said, “and it’s a lot harder to win hockey games when you only play 10 minutes of the game.

“I’ll always give my players credit for stepping on the ice very week knowing they’re half the roster size of (many of their opponents) but at the end of the day we need to find ways to compete all three periods. From the coaches to the players, all of us have to find ways to do so.”

Pezzano had a pair of assists to go with her two goals. McNally also had a four-point night. Andrew Metz scored two of Tennent’s goals.

Quakertown 2 2 4—8

William Tennent 0 0 5—5

First-period goals: Brandon McNally (Q) from William Shaw and Melanie Pezzano, 3:06; Anthony Pagliei (Q) from McNally and Pezzano, 8:55 (pp);

Second-period goals: Shaw (Q) unassisted, 2:45; Pezzano (Q) from McNally and Shaw

Third-period goals: Lucas Cunnane (Q) from Connor Elmore and Randy Rhodomoyer, 4:01; Pezzano (Q) from Elmore 5:00; Frank Rosenberry (WT) unassisted, 5:26; Rosenberry (WT) from Nate Silverman and Tre Dyer, 7:15 (pp); Jack Dilberto (Q) from McNally, 9:00 (sh); Andrew Metz (WT) from Silverman and Gavin Loughlin, 13:03 (sh); Metz (WT) from Loughlin, 14:05; Pagliei (Q) unassisted, 14:19 (pp); Quinn Morena (WT) from Brennan Corcoran, 15:18

Shots: Quakertown 43, William Tennent 29; Saves: Matt Krem (Q) 24. Thomas Lomas (WT) 35

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Abington 11 Hatboro-Horsham 0

WARWICK TOWNSHIP—Abington took the ice this season with something to prove. A loss in the SHSHL Class A final a year ago (and being left out of the Flyers Cup field) has served as a motivating force and the Galloping Ghosts are off to a 3-1 start (2-0 in divisional play) in the wake of their 11-0 two-period win over Hatboro-Horsham Friday night at Revolution Ice Gardens, a win that set a message to the rest of the SHSHL’s American Division, and anyone else who may be interested.

“We definitely have that loss in the back of our minds, said senior forward Pat Stelacio, “every practice and every game. Just trying to get back to where we were last year and win it all instead of losing in the finals.”

Senior Ben Panella is one of the SHSHL’s most experienced goaltenders. “I think the loss in the finals last year was al kick in the butt,” he said. “This year, we are coming out with something prove. We are hoping that we can take it all this year. We have a deeper lineup and we just want the league to know what we can do.”

Junior Matt Kramer led the scoring barrage for the Galloping Ghosts, scoring five goals and assisting on two others. Three of his goals and both his assists came in the first period as Abington took a 7-0 lead.

“A good start is what we need,” Kramer said.

At that point, Abington coach Ken Brzozowski had his troops ease up against the Hatters (1-3, 0-2) who had just 10 skaters dressed, and focused his attention on finding ice time for some of his second-line athletes. In addition to Kramer, four different players scored goals. Matt Cholaj finished with two while Jordan Heydt, Ton Rourke, and Jonathan Walker added one each.

Brzozowski noted he has a deeper lineup than is typical in the SHSHL’s Class A sector. “We’re lucky that we’ve progressed here over the last couple of years,” he said. ”We’ve got some juniors and seniors on the team. But the biggest thing is, we’ve got a couple new players on our team that really have some skill. Between the first, second, and third lines, we’ve got some players who can put the puck in the net.”

First-year Hatboro-Horsham coach Shane Smith praised his team’s effort despite being shorthanded. “The team came out and fought hard,” he said. “They battled hard. I saw a lot of things from players that they reached down in and pulled out some stuff they didn’t think they had.
“Obviously the score didn’t go the way we wanted it to but I think there were a lot of good thigs out on the ice. I think there was a lot of good, hard, forechecking and we had a few good opportunities that were there.”

Abington 7 4 x—11

Hatboro-Horsham 0 0 x—0

First-period goals: Mathew Cholaj (A) from Matt Kramer, :43; Kramer (A) unassisted, 1:24; Jordan Heydt (A) unassisted, 7:38, Kramer (A) from Sean Doyle, 9:43; Tom Rourke (A) from Seamus Donofry, 11:13; Kramer A) from Joe Stelacio, 13:00 Cholaj (A) from Kramer, 13:42
Second-period goals: Kramer (A) from Stelacio, 2:59; Ryan Portner (A) from Ian Heydt 3:08; Jonathan Walker (A) from Heydt, 10:54; Kramer (A) from Vinny Menniti, 13:36

Shots: Hatboro-Horsham 16, Abington 43; Saves: Mason Rush (HH) 32; Ben Panella (A) 16

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Souderton 5, North Penn 3

HATFIELD—Call it a Souderton Surge. Trailing North Penn 2-0 early in the second period of Wednesday’s SHSHL Class AA matchup, the Big Red erupted for three goals in a 10-miute span and went on to record a 5-3 decision over the Knights at Hatfield Ice.

The win lifted Souderton to 3-2 overall (1-1) in divisional play. After an abbreviated 2021 campaign that saw them win just twice, the Big Red is making some major strides.

“We’re trying to play Souderton hockey,” said Head Coach Ryan Uchniat. “We’re trying to establish something here and I told the boys ‘It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish.’”

Uchniat’s players took that advice to heart Wednesday night.

Jack Bates and Ryan Kaufhold scored first-period goals to give the Knights (1-4, 0-1) the lead.
Rex Grossman got Souderton on the board 4:20 into the middle period with a wrister from in front of the net.

By the midway point of the period the pace of the game had picked up and that worked to Souderton’s advantage.

Grossman tied the game at the 13:37 mark during a power play after stationing himself to the left of the Knights’ crease. Just 26 seconds later, Nick Smith gave Souderton a 3-2 lead.

Justin Yothers tied the game for North Penn 3:27 into the final period but Smith put the game winner behind North Penn netminder Nick Ebbinghaus with 7:34 left in regulation.

Tim Alexander scored an empty-net goal with 23 seconds remaining.

“Their intensity rose in the second period and we didn’t match it, in the second,” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. “I thought we played a great first period. We’re up 2-0 and outshooting them 15-7. They stepped it up a little bit in the second period. We didn’t capitalize on it, and then we couldn’t get the puck out of our zone and had too many turnovers.

“Unfortunately, if you have too many turnovers, one is going to end up in the back of your net.”

Grossman finished the evening with two goals and two assists. He’s played in three of Souderton’s five games and has produced four goals and three assists. He said the second-period flurry was a matter of willpower.

“I think we just wanted to win,” he said, “and we didn’t want to lose against one of our biggest rivals. I think everybody just wanted to go out there and do what they could to get the win.”

Grossman, a sophomore, says the fact that last year’s young team is now collectively a year older has helped spur its improvement.

“To me, the biggest thing is everybody has gotten older, everybody has gotten better, he said. “We’ve all bonded I think as a team. We’re all starting to playa s one team, passing the puck better, shooting the puck better. (Goaltender Noah Connor) has played big all year and I think that people have stepped up when they need to step up.”

Ice Chips— Smith has six goals in four games. The Big Red outshot the Knights 36-30.

Souderton 0 3 2—5

North Penn 2 0 1—3

First-period goals: Jack Bates(NP) from Julian Ma, 1:48; Ryan Kaufhold (NP) unassisted, 11:30

Second-period goals: Seth Grossman(S) from Jaime Avaria and Liam O’ Neill, 4:20; Grossman (S) from Tim Alexander, 13:37 (pp); Nick Smith (S) from Grossman, 14:03

Third-period goals: Justin Yothers (NP) from Nolan O’ Toole, 3:27; Smith (S) from Carter Potvazan and Grossman, 9:26, Alexander (S) unassisted, 16:37 (en)

Shots: Souderton 36, North Penn 30; Saves: Noah Connor (S) 27, Nick Ebbinghaus (NP) 31

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Council Rock South 11, Council Rock North 4

WARWICK TOWNSHIP—The evening’s recipe featured hockey with an ample helping of tradition. After a year’s hiatus, Council Rock North and Council Rock South resumed their Thanksgiving Eve series Wednesday night.

The teams did not meet last year because North did field a varsity hockey team last season and because the SHSHL schedule did not begin until January. Thus, Wednesday’s meeting was something of a reunion, for the players, and for the fans who packed Revolution Ice Gardens for the occasion.

The more-experienced Golden Hawks had control of the game by late in the first period and rolled to an 11-4 win to claim the Rock Cup. But the fact that the two teams were sharing a sheet of ice was cause for celebration.

“It’s great,” said South captain Matt Constantini. “I missed it a lot. The fans were amazing. It’s just great to be out here for my senior year and Covid is somewhat gone.”

The flow of the game resembled that of a boxing match in which the champion has to work hard to dispatch the underdog but is not at serious risk of defeat.

The Indians (1-2, 0-1 in divisional play) actually took an early lead with a shorthanded goal. Wilton Pasch was in the box serving an interference penalty when his teammate Lucas Siomos sent the puck the length of the ice toward the Golden Hawks’ crease. South goaltender Carson Lopez muffed the puck and North’s Karson Grainey was on hand to put it behind him just 1:43 into the opening period.

The Golden Hawks (3-0-1, 1-0 in the division) soon returned fire with four goals in a span of 10 minutes, 22 seconds. David Vergules scored twice in between goals from Julian Wagenmann and Gavin Nisenzon.
South extended its lead in the second frame. Julian Sarne, and Nisenzon scored goals to give the Hawks a 6-1 advantage 4:50 into the period.

Zach Weisman scored for North at the 8:39 mark, but Vergules, Constantini, Kevin Koles, and Chase Trovsky rattled off four goals in a span of span of less than four minutes before Grainey scored for the Indians with 30 seconds remaining in the period.

“I think what you saw was a team that was established,” said North coach Greg McDonald, “and a team (North) that was throwing haymakers and trying to find it. But we weren’t organized, they were, and they outlasted us.”

North’s Nick Hahn and Vergules traded goals in the third period.

Vergules left the building with four goals and an assist. NIsenzon and Grainey also finished with two goals.

The Golden Hawks enjoyed a 54-28 advantage in shots. Ian Goldberg stood tall in the North net, making 43 saves.

South coach Joe Houk praised the Indians’ effort. “They got that first goal,” he said, “And then we kind of knuckled down. I think it kind of caught the guys off guard. They had a system as to what they were going to do, but they had a short bench so they kind of ran out of juice after we scored the second or third goal.”

C.R. North 1 2 1—4

C.R. South 4 6 1—11

First-period goals: Karson Grainey (CRN) unassisted, from Lucas Siomos, 1:43 (sh); Julian Wagenmann (CRS) from Sam Cherkassky, 4:07 (pp); David Vergules (CRS) from Nolan O’Brien, 9:39; Vergules (CBS) from Wagenmann and Evan Mostoller, 12:30; Gavin Nisenzon (CRS) from Matt Constantitni, 14:29

Second-period goals: Julian Sarne (CRS) unassisted, 1:08; Nisenzon (CRS) from Chase Trovsky, 4:50; Zach Weissman (CRN) from Grainey, 8:39; Vergules (CRS) from Wagenmann and Constanrini, 9:06; Constantitni (CRS) from Nisenzon and Vergules, 9:54; Kevin Koles (CRS) from Phillip Mayo and Sarne, 11:38; Trovsky (CRS) from Cherkassky and Blaize Pepe, 12:57; Grainey (CRN) unassisted, 16:30

Third-period goals: Nick Hahn (CRN) from Grainey and Jackson Mosley, 3:51; Vergules (CRS) from Wagenmann and Constantini, 9:46

Shots: Council Rock North 28, Council Rock South 54; Saves: Ian Goldberg (CRN) 43, Carson Lopez (CRS) 24

In other games on Wednesday:

Neshaminy 6, Pennsbury 3

Holy Ghost Prep 9, Father Judge 2

Central Bucks East 2, Central Bucks West 1

North Penn vs. Central Bucks South

Pennridge vs. Souderton

Hatboro-Horsham vs. Upper Moreland

William Tennent vs. Archbishop Wood

Malvern Prep vs. Cardinal O’Hara cancelled

C.B. East 9 Wissahickon 4

WARWICK—Ideally a hockey team will mature and evolve over the course of a tournament (see: 1980 U.S. Olympic team) or the course of a season. Central Bucks East took a step in the right direction Friday night.

Tyler Godown scored four goals and added an assist as the Patriots pulled away from Wissahickon in the last wo periods and went on to a 9-4 win in a SHSHL interconference affair at Revolution Ice Gardens.

It was the first win for the Class AA Patriots in three tries Wissahickon, the SHSHL’s defending Class A champion, dropped to 2-1.

For a young Patriot squad looking to find its way, the victory was extremely significant. Godown, one of just four seniors on the roster, stressed the importance of being a positive role model for his younger teammates.

“You just need a lot of leadership,” he said. “If you play hard, they’ll play hard. Don’t act scared, they’ll be good.”

Godown was his own best example, putting his team in front just 67 seconds after the opening faceoff before making it 2-0 at the 4:40 mark.

The Patriots were dominant for most of the opening period, outshooting their foes 10-1 at one point. Will and Nick Hussa scored goals for Wissahickon to make it a 2-2 game at period’s end but that score was misleading. Trojan goaltender Michael Bonnani kept his team in the game by making 13 saves in the opening 17 minutes.

But in the second period East scored four times to break the game open. Phil McIntyre and Aiden Schmidt scored the first two goals, both while East was shorthanded. Godown added the last two, one of them on a penalty shot, the second while his team was shorthanded.

Wissahickon coach Ken Harrington said his team simply ran out of gas.

“They were gassed after the first period because they were going so hard,” he said. “They never recovered, really”.

The teams combined for five goals in the final period. McIntyre added his second goal for the Patriots. Carter Keiser scored a goal before Schmidt scored his second of the game.

A.J. Pounds scored for the Trojans before Will Hussa scored his second of the night with 14 seconds remaining.

East coach Jeff Mitchell is looking for his younger players to understand their roles as the season progresses.

“Definitely defensive minded first,” he said. “Take care of home before you go and try to do anything fancy at the other end of the rink.

“And accountability. That’s the main thing with my younger players. I just to make sure that they actually realize what their responsibilities are out on the ice.”

Ice Chips—SHSHL games are now being played in 17-minute periods. The Patriots held a 41-28 shot advantage.

C.B. East 2 4 3—9

Wissahickon 2 0 2—4

First-period goals: Tyler Godown (CBE) from Bodgon Borodeko, 1:07; Godown (CBE) from Corey Kosick, 4:40; Will Hussa from A.J. Pounds and Ty Schiff, 6:07; Nick Hussa from Pounds and Konrad Foulk, 14:30

Second-period goals: Phil McIntyre (CBE) from Kosick, 2:09 (sh), Aiden Schmidt (CBE) from Borodenko, 4:08 (sh); Godown (CBE) penalty shot, 14:55; Godown (CBE) unassisted, 15:48 (sh)

Third-period goals: McIntyre (CBE) from Stephen DiRugeris, 5:11.; Carter Keiser (CBE) from Kosick, 8:22 (pp); Pounds from Will Hussa, 9:29 (sh); Schmidt (CBE) from Kosick, 14: 38 (pp); Will Hussa from Nick Hussa and Nolan Pounds, 16:46.

Shots: C.B. East 41, Wisssahickon 28; Saves: Matt Mangiacapre (CBE) 24. Michael Bonnani 32

Council Rock South 5, Central Bucks South 3

Council Rock South stepped up at a key moment Thursday night. The result was a 5-3 win over Central Bucks South in a SHSHL Class AA game at Hatfield Ice Arena.

Gavin Nisenzon provided two goals and an assist and Kevin Koles also scored two goals to help his team to its second straight win.

But it was the Golden Hawks’ effort in the third period that made the difference.

The game featured two distinct segments. For two periods and change the teams battled on essentially even terms to a 2-2 standoff.

Nisenzon and Julian Sarne registered goals for the Golden Hawks while D.J. Bray and Matt Crouch found the back of the net for the Titans.

But 3:45 into the third period, emotions boiled over in the form of a fight that resulted in four players being accessed a total of 51 penalty minutes. Three players, the Golden Hawks’ Matt Constantini and Kyle Boss and the Titans’ Bray received game misconducts and the contest was delayed approximately 20 minutes while student spectators were removed from the building.

Following the delay the Titans had a five-minute power play but couldn’t do anything with it. They then found themselves shorthanded at the 11:19 mark when Crouch was called for two penalties during the same sequence, a slash and a trip.

Koles put the Golden Hawks in front just 24 seconds later on a shot from the right circle that beat Titan goaltender Dominic Varacallo and Nisenzon gave his team a 4-2 lead with his second goal of the night with 2:57 left in regulation.

Aidan Linso made it a one-goal game when he scored for the Titans with 1:46 still left but Koles scored into an empty net with five seconds remaining.

Council Rock South assistant coach Colin Murphy credited his team for maintaining their momentum after the delay, when the emotional energy in the building all but evaporated.

“The incident definitely charged us up a little bit more,” Murphy said. “I think losing their fans kind of killed their momentum and they lost the upper hand.”

Murphy noted the Golden Hawks were able to regroup despite losing two key players. “I know with our guys, their big thing was the ‘next man up’ mentality,” he said. They realized that we lost two guys and figured they needed to step up and keep their composure.”

Titans assistant coach Tyler Skroski pointed to his team’s failure to convert on its four power-play chances. “We did some good things tonight,” he said, “but when you fail to generate scoring opportunities on power plays, especially a five-minute major, you’re going to struggle to win games.

“It’s early in the season and we’re looking forward to fixing it as a team.”

C.R. South 1 1 3—5

C.B. South 2 0 1—3

First-period goals: Gavin Nisenzon (CRS) unassisted, 7:38; D.J. Bray (CBS) from Dan Kvechner, 9:11; Matt Crouch (CBS) from D.J. Lidenmuth and Aidan Gaffney, 15:06

Second-period goal: Julian Sarne (CRS) from David Vergules, 3:20 (pp)

Third-period goals: Kevin Koles (CRS) From Nisenzon and Sarne, 1:43 (pp); Nisenzon (CRS) from Sarne, 14:03; Aidan Linso (CBS) unassisted, 15:14 (sh); Koles (CRS) from Chase Trovsky, 16:55 (pp), (en)

Shots: Council Rock South 28, Central Bucks South 26; Saves: Carson Lopez (CRS) 23, Dominic Varacallo (CBS) 23

Upper Dublin Flying Cardinals Back in the SHSHL Nest

A common saying in hockey circles is ‘A goaltender is a team’s last line of defense.’ Emmett Kepniss took that mindset to a new level Thursday night.

Kepniss is Upper Dublin’s starting and only goalkeeper. It was his presence alone that allowed the Flying Cardinals to face Souderton in what was their first official SHSHL game since the 2018-19 season.

The Big Red prevailed 7-2 in the non-conference matchup, but in a way, Kepniss was the most important player on the ice.

For two seasons, Upper Dublin was barred from SHSHL play because they were considered impure; the club had to look outside the its student population to find a goaltender. This season, Kepniss answered the call.

The senior has an athletic background; he was a two-way lineman in football and is a midfielder in lacrosse. But, despite being a lifelong hockey fan, he had never been on skates until a few weeks ago when he was approached by some of his fellow seniors who were on the hockey team.

“They were trying to get someone in the school,” Kepniss said. “My girlfriend’s dad runs the club, He approached me, I talked to him further, and now I’m here.

Prior to Thursday’s game, Kepniss had several practices plus two scrimmages to get a sense of what playing in goal is all about. On game night, he experienced live fire.

“It’s a lot faster,” he said. “You have to be quicker on your feet. In practice, there’s a little more leeway because it’s your team. But (Thursday’s game) counts so you kind of have to play your best hockey and give it your all really.”

Which Kepniss did. He had some early jitters and allowed three goals in the first period on seven shots but gradually grew more comfortable and made several quality stops later in the game. He finished the evening with 23 saves.

“I told the guys I was going to get nervous a little bit,” he said. “It was the first game but …. The guys told me ‘Don’t worry about it.”

Upper Dublin coach Anthony Richichi praised Kepniss’s effort. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to have Emmett as our goalie,” he said. “he showed up, completely volunteered, and, with limited practice time, has worked really hard.
“Obviously, he’s hot some work to do but we as a team, we need to understand our roles in supporting him.

Liam O’ Neill and Nick Smith each scored twice for Souderton

Souderton 3 2 2—7

Upper Dublin 1 0 1—2

First-period goals: Liam O’ Neill (S) from Anthony Lanzilotti, 3:40; Jamie Avaria (S) unassisted, 7:01; Tim Alexander (S) unassisted, 9:33; Kevin McGinley (UD) from Gus Plat, 11:20

Second-period goals: O’Neill (S) unassisted, 5:58; Nick Smith (S) from Evan Thacker, 14:54 (pp)

Third-period goals: Alexander (S) unassisted, :25; Marco Morina (UD) from Louis Gamburg and Jonah Fisher, 3:40; Smith (S) 13:28.

Shots: Souderton 30, Upper Dublin 33; Saves: Liam Kelly (S) 31, Emmett Kepniss (UD) 23

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Opening Night for Upper Dublin and Souderton

Golden Hawks Open With a Win

Council Rock South got its season off to an impressive start Wednesday night. The Golden Hawks scored four goals in the first period and went on to a 6-1 win over North Penn in a SHSHL non-league curtain raiser at Revolution Ice Gardens.

Julian Sarne and Kevin Koles scored two goals apiece as the Golden Hawks picked up where they left after a 2020-21 campaign that saw then reach the SHSHL Class AA final.

Sarne got his team on the board 9:11 into the first frame off a feed from Koles on a play that started behind the North Penn net. Matt Yothers answered back for the Knights just 64 seconds later but Sarne scored his second goal at the 11:16 mark and the Golden Hawks rolled on from there. Koles made it 3-1 on a breakaway at 11:16 when North Penn got caught in a line change and Bobby Gilbert extended his team’s lead two seconds before the period ended.

Sarne, a senior, stressed the importance of the fast start. “I think it was very important that we came out buzzing today,” he said. “We need a good start to the season. We’ve got to kick it off great. It’s our senior year. We just needed a win in the books.”

Koles scored his second goal 4:24 into the second session and Matt Constanini completed the scoring at 14:36.

South coach Joe Houk was pleased with the win, but offered a qualifier. “It’s good to get off to a fast start.” he said. “I thought we didn’t play our best game. We were very sloppy, we had a couple selfish players, and stuff like that, But I thought overall, we did a good job.”

Houk said he was concerned about his team maintaining its focus in the late going. “I thought the flow of the game was okay,” he said. “But, when we get games like that, we get real complacent and we start doing stupid stuff. But, we haven’t had a lot of time together yet. By we’ll work on it. We’ll get back at it at practice on Monday.”

The evening’s unsung hero was North Penn goaltender Nick Crist who faced a barrage of 62 shots and stopped 56 of them. It was the junior’s first varsity game.

“He did a great job for us,” said North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis. Sixty-two shots and six goals. “He kept is in it. It could have been worse.”

Vaitis noted that the evening was a learning experience for a young team. “We have some young players that got some quality minutes tonight,” he said, “and we’re going to look to kind of grow and build upon that.”

North Penn 1 0 0—1

C.R. South 4 2 0—6

First-period goals Julian Sarne (CRS) from Kevin Koles, 9:11; Matt Yothers (NP) from Justin Yothers, 10:15; Sarne (CRS) from Sam Cherkassky, 11:16; Koles (CRS) unassisted, 12:55; Bobby Gilbert (CRS) from Cherkassky, 15:58

Second-period goals: Koles (CRS) from Blaize Peppe, 4:24; Matt Constantini (CRS) from Koles, 14:36

Shots: North Penn 21, C.R. South 62; Saves: Nick Crist (NP) 56, Carson Lopez (CRS) 20