Abington 7 Plymouth Whitemarsh 2

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP—The Galloping Ghosts are still rolling along. Pat Stelacio delivered a hat trick that helped Abington overcome a 2-1 first-period deficit and go on to a 7-2 win over Plymouth Whitemarsh Wednesday at Hatfield Ice night to claim its second consecutive SHSHL American Division championship.

The win marks the eighth time Abington (16-0-1-1) has won a SHSHL title of some sort and marks the 50th anniversary of its first. The Galloping Ghosts claimed the first three SHSHL titles from 1974-76 and won another championship in 1978. They won back-to-back National Division titles in 2003-04 before taking the American Division title last season.

The historical significance of Wednesday night’s win was not lost on Abington coach Ken Brzozowski.

“That’s exactly what I talked to the boys about,” he said. “We talked about that with our players before the game. That wasn’t lost on them as well., that they had a chance to really cement themselves as one of the best teams that came out of Abington.

“We’ve won back-to-back championships but we lost the (American Division) championship three years ago by one goal to a very good Wissahickon team. So, these players have been at this level for three years in a row.”

Stelacio transferred to Abington at the urging of an older brother. Those have been the best two years of my life,” he said.

The Colonials (12-7) jumped in front on a goal from Dylan Novitsky 10:04 into the opening period. Jordan Heydt answered for Abington two-and-a-half minutes later before Novitsky scored a power-play goal with 61 seconds remaking in the period.

The goal came just seven seconds after Abington’s Ian Heydt received a two-minute sentence for hooking.

It would prover to be the Colonials’ last hurrah.

Matt Kramer tied the game for Abington 7:28 into the middle period on a shot from the right circle off an offensive zone draw.

Stelacio put Abington in front with a shorthanded effort with 6:11 left in the period in a prelude to a surge that saw Stelacio, Steven Dorn, and Ian Heydt all beat Colonial netminder Chris Maslij in the final 1:59 of the second session. Heydt’s a shot from the left wing hit the back of the net just before the buzzer sounded. At that point, Abington was home free.

“They jumped quick,” Stelacio said. “They got two. It was 2-1 and we bounced back. We just ran from there. That was amazing.”

Stelacio recalls watching his brother play for the Galloping Ghosts before he enrolled at Abington. “I came to the games,” he recalled. “I completely wanted to be part of this experience, all the energy they had. It was great I really wanted a part of that.”

Ice Chips—Abington is seeded 12^th for the Class AA Flyers Cup and will face fifth-seeded Pennsbury on Tuesday at 6:15 at Grundy Arena. The Colonials are the ninth seed in Class A and will face eighth-seeded Penncrest Monday at 7:00 at the Skatium.

Plymouth Whitemarsh 2 0 0—2

Abington 1 5 1—7

First-period goals: Dylan Novitsky (PW) from Matt Flynn, 10:04; Jordan Heydt (A) from Ian Heydt and Ryan Portner, 12:42; Novitsky (PW) from. Conlan Carpenter, 15:59

Second-period goals: Matt Kramer (A) from Ian Heydt, 7:28; Pat Stelacio (A) from Ian Heydt, 10:49 (sh); Stelacio (A) from Griffin Carpenter, 15:01; Steven Dorn (A) from Sam Paulik, 15:58; Ian Heydt (A) from Jordan Heydt, 16:59

Third-period goal: Stelacio (A) from Sam Abramson and Carpenter, 9:53 (pp)

Shots: Plymouth Whitemarsh 21, Abington 40; Saves: Chris Maslij (PW) 33, Sam Nemec (A) 19

SHSHL Playoff Update

Wednesday, March 1

National Division Semifinals

Council Rock South vs. Neshaminy

7:20 at Grundy Arena

Council Rock South (15-1-0-1)

Coach: Joe Houk

How the Hawks got here: Via a bye in the quarterfinals. Blaize Pepe and Jake Weiner lead the team in scoring, each with 30 points. Pepe has produced 13 goals and 17 assists for while Weiner has scored 21 goals and provided 9 assists. Kevin Koles is next with 12 goals and 16 assists for 28 points. Goaltender Carson Lopez is one of the area’s best.

Neshaminy (12-5-1)

Coach: Matt DeMatteo

How the ‘Skins got here: Defeated Central Bucks South 6-3 in the quarterfinals. Max Gallagher scored three goals and assisted on another. Nolan Geria provided two goals and two assists. Gallagher has 26 goals and 12 assists for 38 points. Geria has contributed 11 goals and 17 assists for 28 points.

This season:

Pennridge vs. Pennsbury

8:30 at Hatfield Ice

Pennridge (13-4)

Coach: Jeff Montagna

How the Rams got here: Via a bye in the quarterfinals. The defending National Division, Class AA Flyers Cup and state champions are paced by Kevin Pico who has collected 24 goals and 25 assists for 49 points. Andrew Savona has added 18 goals and 27 assists for 45 points while Shane Dachowski has contributed 19 goals and 14 assists for 33 points.

Pennsbury (13-5)

Coach Ryan Daley

How the Falcons got here: Defeated Central Bucks East 6-4 in the quarterfinals., Brendan Macainsh delivered a pure hat trick and added two assists; he has 34 goals and 19 assists for 53 points this season, including the quarterfinal. Andrew Falkenstein has provided 6 goals and 26 assists for 32 points while Justin Marlin has contributed 15 goals and 16 assists for 31 points. Falkenstein (4) and Marlin (3) had seven assists between them in the quarterfinal.

This season:

11-3 Pennsbury 6 Pennridge 3

1-12 Pennridge 11 Pennsbury 4

What comes next: Wednesday’s winners play for the National Division title on Thursday. The highest seeded finalist will host. All four semifinalists will compete in the Class AA Flyers Cup tournament.

American Division Championship Game

Abington vs. Plymouth Whitemarsh

7:20 at Hatfield Ice

Abington (15-0-1-1)

Coach: Ken Brzozowski
How the Galloping Ghosts got here: Earned a place in the final as the regular-season division champion. Matt Kramer leads the team in scoring with 26 goals and 19 assists for 45 points, Ian Heydt has added 13 goals and 20 assists for 33 points. Sam Abramson has contributed 14 goals and 19 assists for 33 points while Sam Paulik has provided 18 goals and 14 points for 32 points. Sam Nemec will start in goal.

Plymouth Whitemarsh (12-6)

Coach: Dave Cox

How the Colonials got here: Defeated Quakertown 7-2 in the semifinal. Matt Flynn and Dylan Novitski each scored two goals in the win. Flynn added two assists. Flynn has scored 28 goals this season and added 22 assists for 50 points, David Branigan has added 13 goals and 27 assists for 40 points. Chris Maslij will start in goal.

This season:

11-3 Abington 8 Plymouth Whitemarsh 5

1-5 Abington 5 Plymouth Whitemarsh 1

1-26 Abington 4 Plymouth Whitemarsh 3

What come next: Both finalists will compete in the Flyers Cup tournament, Abington in Class AA, Plymouth Whitemarsh in Clsss A

SHSHL Recap 2-20-23

Final Regular Season Standings

National Division W L T OTL Pts

C.R. South (15-1-0-1) 9 0 0 1 19

X Pennridge (13-4) 8 2 0 0 16

Pennsbury (12-5) 7 2 0 0 14

Neshaminy (11-5-1) 6 3 1 0 13

C.B. South (9-7-0-1) 6 4 0 0 12

C.B. East (8-8-1) 4 5 1 0 9

C.R. North (5-10-1-1) 3 5 1 1 8

C.B. West (5-11-0-1) 3 6 0 1 7

Souderton (5-11-0-1) 3 7 0 0 6

Bensalem (3-13) 2 7 0 1 5

North Penn (5-10-1-1) 1 7 1 1 4

X Pennridge finishes second on the basis of having defeated Pennsbury in their second meeting, which was the game that counted in their divisional records

American Division W L T OTL Pts

Abington (15-0-1-1) 10 0 1 1 22

X Plymouth Whitemarsh (11-6) 7 5 0 0 14

Quakertown (10-4-1-1) 6 4 1 1 14

Wissahickon (9-7) 6 6 0 0 12

Springfield (0-16) 0 12 0 0 0

Plymouth Whitemarsh finishes second on the basis of having won the season series with Quakertown

Scoring

National Division G A Pts

Kevin Pico (Pr) 24 25 49

Brendan Macainsh (Pb) 31 17 48

Andrew Savona (Pr) 16 22 38

Max Gallagher (Nesh) 23 11 34

Seth Grossman (Soud) 19 13 32

John Stinson (NP) 20 11 31

Shane Dachowski (Pr) 17 12 29

Aydin Thierolf (CBS) 15 14 29

Blaise Pepe (CRS) 12 16 28

Corey Kosick (CBE) 18 10 28

Andrew Falkenstein (Pb) 6 22 28

Jake Weiner (CRS) 19 8 27

Kevin Koles (CRS) 11 16 27

Alex Hood (Ben) 21 6 27

American Division G A Pts

Matthew Flynn (PW) 26 20 46

Matt Kramer (Ab) 26 19 45

David Branigan (PW) 12 25 37

Will Hussa (Wiss) 26 7 33

Ian Heydt (Ab) 13 20 33

Sam Abramson (Ab) 14 19 33

Sam Paulik (Ab) 18 14 32

Branden McNally (Q) 17 15 32

Danny Hussa (Wiss) 18 11 29

Pat Stelacio (Ab) 18 11 29

Dylan Novitski (PW) 15 12 27

SHSHL Recap for 2-11-23

National Division W L T OTL Pts

C.R. South (14-1-0-1) 8 0 0 1 17

Pennsbury (11-5) 7 2 0 0 14

Pennridge (11-4) 6 2 0 0 12

Neshaminy (10-4-1) 5 2 1 0 11

C.B. South (8-7-0-1) 5 4 0 0 10

C.B. East (8-7-1) 4 4 1 0 9

C.R. North (5-9-1-1) 3 4 1 1 8

C.B. West (5-10-0-1) 3 5 0 1 7

Souderton (5-10-0-1) 3 6 0 0 6

North Penn (5-9-1-1) 1 6 1 1 4

Bensalem (2-13) 1 7 0 0 2

American Division W L T OTL Pts

Abington (14-0-1-1) 10 0 1 1 22

Plymouth Whitemarsh (10-6) 6 5 0 0 12

Wissahickon (9-6) 6 5 0 0 12

Quakertown (9-4-1-1) 5 4 1 1 12

Springfield (0-15) 0 11 0 0 0

Teams in bold have clinched SHSHL playoff spots

Philadelphia Blind Hockey works to ensure that every individual who is blind or partially sighted has the opportunity to participate in the sport. Find out more HERE

Scoring

National Division G A Pts

Brendan Macainsh (Pb) 27 17 44

Andrew Savona (Pr) 16 22 38

Kevin Pico (Pr) 18 19 37

Max Gallagher (Nesh) 21 10 31

John Stinson (NP) 19 10 29

Shane Dachowski (Pr) 17 12 29

Seth Grossman (Soud) 17 11 28

Aydin Thierolf (CBS) 14 14 28

Jake Weiner (CRS) 18 8 26

Kevin Koles (CRS) 11 15 26

Alex Hood (Ben) 20 5 25

Corey Kosick (CBE) 15 10 25

Andrew Falkenstein (Pb) 5 20 25

American Division G A Pts

Matthew Flynn (PW) 21 19 40

Matt Kramer (Ab) 25 15 40

David Branigan (PW) 11 21 32

Branden McNally (Q) 17 15 32

Ian Heydt (Ab) 13 19 32

Seth Abramson (Ab) 13 17 30

Will Hussa (Wiss) 24 5 29

Sam Paulik (Ab) 16 11 27

Dylan Novitski (PW) 15 12 27

Pat Stelacio (Ab) 15 10 25

Abington 7 Quakertown 2

WARWICK TOWNSHIP—It’s the nature of hockey that teams will skate a portion of each game shorthanded. Abington and Quakertown were shorthanded before Friday’s SHSHL American Division game even began.
Abington was down five players because of injuries and illness while the Panthers had just nine skaters dressed.

The Galloping Ghosts made the most of what they had, rolling to a 7-2 win at the Bucks County Ice Sports Center.

Ian Heydt and Sam Paulik each scored two goals in the winning effort, which pushed Abington to 11-0-1 overall and 10-0-1 in divisional play;

Quakertown dropped to 7-4-1 overall and 6-4-1 in the division.

The Panthers sit in second place in the division, eight points behind the Galloping Ghosts.

The win was Abington’s second in three tries against Quakertown this season. The third, a 2-2 tie on December 23 is the only blemish on Abington’s record. The Galloping Ghosts scored a 5-4 win over the Panthers on December 9.

Abington got off to a fast start. Owen Adamski and Paulik scored goals to give their team a 2-0 lead 4:56 into the opening period.

“It’s always good to get a good first step in the game,” Paulik said, “and try to get one in the net quick to set the momentum of the game.”

Quakertown answered when Jack Diliberto beat Abington netminder Sam Nemec at the 9:16 mark. Lucas Cunnane tied the game 2:58 into the second session. But that was all the Panthers could manage as the lack of numbers caught up to them. Abington scored the last seven goals of the evening.

“I don’t think we gave up a ton of big plays in terms of breakaways and things like that,” Quakertown coach Keith Krem said. “But, there’s a lot in front of the paint, right in front of the net, that’s where they scored. They didn’t score from the outside, they scored from right in front of the net.”

Back-to-back goals from Heydt plus a tally from Matt Kramer gave Abington a 5-2 lead after the second period. Paulik and Griffin Carpenter added goals in the third.

Abington came into the season with high expectations and Carpenter, the Galloping Ghosts’ captain says for the most part, those expectations have been met.

“I’d say we came up to expectations,” he said. “We started off hot, and we keep going.”

Abington hasn’t lost a game since the first round of last year’s Class AA Flyers Cup tournament. Carpenter doesn’t consider the 12-game unbeaten streak to be a burden.

“I don’t feel like it,” he said. “I feel like we can just keep going and keep winning.”

Quakertown 1 1 0—2

Abington 2 3 2—7

First-period goals: Owen Adamski (A) from Brian Murdoch, 3:41; Sam Paulik (A) from Griffin Carpenter, 4:56; Jack Diliberto (Q) from Josh Tolchin, 9:16

Second-period goals: Lucas Cunnane (Q) from Cole Slemmer, 2:58; Ian Heydt (A) from Sam Abramson and Matt Kramer, 4:56 (pp); Heydt (A) from Kramer, 8:53; Kramer (A) from Abramson, 15:10

Third-period goals: Paulik (A) from Seamus Donofry, 2:49; Carpenter (A) from Heydt, 111:58 (pp)

Shots:Quakertown 39, Abington 46; Saves: Matt Krem (Q) 39, Sam Nemec (A) 37

Abington 5 Plymouth Whitemarsh 1

HATFIELD TWNSHIP— With their halo of invincibility having disintegrated, Abington took the ice Thursday night with a renewed sense of purpose.

And it showed. Three goals in four-and-a-half minute span late in the first period left the Galloping Ghosts in command on the way to a 5-1 SHSHL American Division win over Plymouth Whitemarsh at Hatfield Ice Arena.

It was the first start for Abington (9-0-1, 8-0-1 in the division) since it sustained the only blemish on its record, a 2-2 standoff with Quakertown two days before Christmas. Thursday’s result allowed the Galloping Ghosts to leave that game far behind them.

“It was very important to start fast,” said senior forward Jordan Heydt. “This is arguably the most important game of the season. It solidifies us for a really good chance at first place, taking about the playoff bracket for this year (which will include three teams).

“(The regular-season champion) having a first-round-bye is huge.”

Abington has built its record despite the fact that two of its top scorers, Pat Stelacio and Matt Kramer remain sidelined with injuries. That has led some line juggling and other adjustments.

“We really have to have our players step up,” Heydet said. “We have to have our assistant captain, captain, and even the freshmen, they all have to step up.

“They all have to play their roles. They don’t have to do a lot, but they just have to play the system and play like they know how to play.”

Griffin Carpenter gave Abington a 1-0 lead 10:25 into the first period off a feed from Sam Abramson. Heydt made it a 2-0 game at the 11:53 mark, and Sam Paulik gave his team a three-goal advantage when he scored during a power play with 2:01 left in the period.

Playing their third game in three nights, the Colonials (6-4, 5-3 in the division) found themselves trying to dig out of a deep hole.

“We’ve done it before,” said Plymouth Whitemarsh coach Dave Cox. “But tonight, it just wasn’t there. Our third game in three days, I think started to take its toll.”

The Colonials’ Conlan Carpenter beat Abington netminder Sam Nemec on a power-play effort 1:16 into the middle period. But that was all he and his teammates could manage.

Heydt and Abramson added goals for Abington in the third period.

“We came out with energy tonight,” said Abington coach Ken Brzozowski. “We kind of knew it was a big matchup, they’d been winning some games, they’re right behind us in the standings.

“We knew if we could come out of here with a win, it would really put us in a good spot for the rest of the year.”

• Ice Chips— The two teams will play again in a non-league game at the Wells Fargo Center on January 18 to celebrate both teams’ Senior Nights. Face-off time is now set for 7 p.m.; the Senior Night celebration will precede the opening faceoff.

Abington 3 0 2—5

Plymouth Whitemarsh 0 1 0—1

First-period goals: Griffin Carpenter (A) from Sam Abramson, 10:25; Jordan Heydt (A) from Sean Doyle and Seamus Donofry, 11:53; Sam Paulik (A) from Donofry and Devin Bates, 14:59 (pp).

Second-period goal: Conlan Carpenter (PW) from Dylan Novitsky, 1:16 (pp)

Third-period goals: Heydt (A) from Paulik. 4:17; Abramson (A) unassisted, 5:37

Shots: Abington 39, PW 20; Saves: Sam Nemec (A) 19, Chris Maslij (PW) 33

Abington 6 Wissahickon 3

HATFIELD Township—With two of its leading scorers idled by injury, Abington needed a big game from its goaltender Thursday night, and it got it. Sam Nemec came up big as the Galloping Ghosts remained unbeaten with a 6-3 decision over Wissahickon in a SHSHL American Division encounter at Hatfield Ice.
Abington stands a perfect 8-0 on the season heading into the Christmas break and 7-0 in divisional play. The Galloping Ghosts’ last loss came to Council Rock South last March in the opening round of the Class AA Flyers Cup tournament.

On Thursday, they were without Pat Stelacio, the SHSHL’s leading scorer, and Matt Kramer, who between them have combined for 26 goals and 17 assists this season. That scenario raised expectations for Nemec and the senior delivered. Officially, he was credited with 37 saves against a Wissahickon team that came in averaging better than seven goals a game.

“It was definitely one of my busier games this year,” Nemec said, “and I felt I had it locked in as soon as the puck dropped. I felt good in warmups tonight.”

Like many goaltenders, Nemec prefers a lot of work.

“I would much rather be busy, rather than stay cold and face a couple shots a period,” he said. “I enjoy being busy down there.”

Abington coach Ken Brzozowski called Nemec’s effort the best game of his Abington career.

“I told him that was the best game I’d ever seen him play,” Brzozowski said. “I’ve been watching him play for four years and we asked him before the game; we said ‘We need one, we need a good game.’ And that’s what he did tonight, he gave us a great game.”

Jordan Heydt gave Abington a 1-0 lead 4:58 into the first period. Danny Hussa answered for Wissahickon (4-4, 4-3 in the division) five-and-a-half minutes later.

The Trojans took the lead when Hudson Honeycutt scored of a setup from Jack Raebiger 3:04 into the second period on a play that started when Raebiger made a rush up the left wing. But Sam Paulik tied the game for Abington with a power-play goal less than two minutes later before Heydt scored his second goal of the night to put the Galloping Ghosts back in front with 3:52 remaining in the period.

Ian Heydt extended Abington’s lead to 4-2 1:29 in to the third period but the Trojans weren’t finished. Will Hussa scored off a setup from Danny Hussa and it was a one-goal game once more with 5:14 still left in regulation. But Ian Heydt responded for Abington just 19 seconds later.

Devin Bates added an empty-net goal just before the final buzzer.

Wissahickon coach Ken Harrington said his team ran out of energy in the late going.

“We were gassed,” he said. “We had a short bench tonight. They were (fatigued) on the bench

“But, we just couldn’t get the puck over the goalie.”

Wissahickon 1 1 1—3

Abington 1 2 3—6

First-period goals: Jordan Heydt (A) unassisted, 4:58; Danny Hussa from Nolan Pounds and Griffin Lynch, 10:31

Second-period goals: Hudson Honeycutt from Lynch, 3:04; Sam Paulik (A) from Sean Doyle 4:56 (pp); Jordan Heydt (A) unassisted, 12:08

Third-period goals: Ian Heydt (A) from Sam Abramson, 1:29; Will Hussa from Danny Hussa, 11:46; Ian Heydt (A) from Abramsom and Brian Murdoch, 12:05; De vin Bates (A) unassisted, 16:59 (en)

Shots: Wissahickon 39, Abington 18; Saves: Fletcher Lynch 12, Sam Nemec (A) 36

Abington 4 Wissahickon 2

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP —Abington worked a very long time, all season in fact, for the right to hoist the SHSHL American Division (Class A) championship trophy, all season in fact.

But in the wake of their 4-2 win over Wissahickon Thursday night at Hatfield Ice, could be argued the top-seeded Galloping Ghosts had been working for far longer than that; Thursday’s win gave Abington its seventh SHSHL title but its first since 2004.

“It’s a huge win for our program,” said Abington coach Ken Brozowski. “We talked about before the game, about the history that Abington has. And it was important for us to come through and win this game.

Matt Cholaj and Pat Stelacio each scored two goals and each added an assist as top-seeded Abington won its 15^th straight game after opening the season with a loss to new SHSHL Class AA champion Pennridge.

“We lost the first game of the season,” Chelaj said, “but we came out hot after that We really didn’t let much get to us. We kept our heads in every game.

“It’s good when all four of our lines can really get going and score goals. All four of our lines are putting up points this year and it was just an overall good season.”

Cholaj put Abington in front 5:19 into the opening period. A.J. Pounds answered for third-seeded Wissahickon (9-8) at the 9:42 mark.
Abington’s next three goals came on power plays. Stelacio put his team in front for the second and last time with 3:11 left in the opening session before Abington broke the game open early in the second stanza thanks to consecutive Trojan penalties that gave the Galloping Ghosts a two-man advantage; Cholaj and Stelacio each scored goals during that interlude to put their team up by three goals just 3:01 into the middle period.

Will Hussa made it a 4-2 game at the 6:34 mark. Wissahickon had no further success against Ben Panella in the Abington net although the Trojans had two goals disallowed during the game.

Abington is classified Class AA for the Flyers Cup and as the 14^th seed will face third seed Council Rock South on Tuesday at Hatfield Ice. Wissahickon is seeded 10^th in Class A and will go against seventh-seeded West Chester Henderson Monday at Ice Line

The Grundy Skate Shop is a full-service hockey pro shop inside the Grundy Arena, offering a great selection of equipment, brands and various services. We do a full range of repairs as well as offer custom hockey jerseys. Owner Bill Keyser, has over 25 years experience in the industry and specializes in skate sharpening, including profiling. Please visit our Facebook page or stop in and check us out!

Abington 6 Quakertown 2

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP— Abington took its first steps on its postseason journey Thursday night. Matt Kramer and Jordan Heydt scored two goals each as the Galloping Ghosts downed Quakertown 6-2 in a SHSHL American Division semifinal at Hatfield Ice.

Top-seeded Abington (14-1) will learn Sunday if it qualifies for the Class AA Flyers Cup field before taking the ice against Wissahickon for the American Division title Thursday.

Fourth-seeded Quakertown, playing its first playoff game in its three-year tenure in the SHSHL, finishes at 7-9.

Abington coach Ken Brzozowski noted his team turned in a workmanlike effort. “It’s kind of what we’ve been doing all year,” he said, “working hard. Our philosophy is ‘Carry the puck wide, get it deep, and and then go to work. We’ve got got some skilled guy that have got some pretty good hands and can find a little hole there through open space.”

Kramer and Heydt scored first-period goals to stake their team to a 2-0 lead.

Heydt extended his team’s lead with a backhander from the low slot midway through the second session. Ryan Porter made it a 4-0 game with 56 seconds left in the period.

The Panthers however did not back down. Anthony Pagliei and Lucas Cunnane scored goals 45 seconds apart to make it a 3-2 game 3:01 into the third period.

But Quakertown couldn’t get closer. Kramer scored his second goal of the game midway through the period before Sam Paulik added a goal of his own down the stretch.

“We couldn’t be prouder of the boys,” said Quakertown coach Keith Krem. “They came out and they played hard. It didn’t go where we want it to go but we were happy to be in a playoff game and taking our season to a new step.”

Quakertown 0 0 2—2

Abington 2 2 2—6

First—period goals: Matt Kramer (A) from Joe Stelacio, 9:48; Jordan Heydt (A) unassisted, 13:33

Second-period goals: Heydt (A) 8:13; Ryan Portner (A) from Stelacio, 16:04

Third-period goals: Anthony Pagliei (Q) unassisted, 2:16; Lucas (Q) from Wilham Shaw, 3:01; Kramer (A) from Heydt and Brian Murdoch, 8:32; Sam Paulik from Pat Stelacio,15:50

Shots: Abington 29, Quakertown 20;

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