C.B. South 4 North Penn 3

Central Bucks South scored three times in the third period Wednesday night to earn a place in the SHSHL National Division final with a 4-3 decision over North Penn at Hatfield Ice.

The third-seeded Titans (17-5) will face two-time defending champion Council Rock South Thursday night at Grundy Arena. Second-seeded North Penn will be idle until the quarterfinal round of the Class AA Flyers Cup tournament next Thursday.

“This was a true team win,” said South coach Shaun McGinty. “With three period ahead of us, the boys must continue to play hard in all three zones.

“Our focus remains on team structure and having a team-first mentality.

South’s Sean Cutter and North Penn’s James Boyle traded goals to send the game into the third period all even.

Dom Gibson scored for South to his team up 2-1 2:23 into the final period, but Boyle followed with his second goal of the game with 9:51 left in regulation.

Logan Hood’s goal with 6:21 remaining put the Titans ahead for good. Ryan Frey added an insurance goal 37 seconds later and the policy was needed and Boyle completed a hat trick with 21 seconds left in regulation.

North Penn coach Kevin Vaitis credited the Titans for their effort.

“They had multiple lines coming at us in waves,” he said. “Hats off to them for how they played. I told our boys to keep our heads up as we have to refocus now and get ready for the Flyers Cup.”

C.B. South 1 0 3—4

North Penn 0 1 2—3

First-period goal: Sean Cutter (CBS) from Ryan Frey, 12:44

Second-period goal: James Boyle (NP) from Daniel Cabrales and Sam Norton, 5:45 (pp)

Third-period goals: Dom Gibson (CBS) from Peter Herring, 2:23; Boyle (NP) from Nolan Shingles, 7:09; Logan Hood (CBS) unassisted, 10:39; Frey (CBS) unassisted, 11:16; Boyle (NP) from Chris Silvotto, 16:39

Shots: C.B. South 29, North Penn 23; Saves: Nate Napolitano (CBS) 20, Aidan Quigley (NP) 25

C.R. South 4 C.B. South 1

Council Rock South earned a chance to defend its SHSHL national Division title with the win over the Titans Wednesday night at Grundy Arena. Illia Murkhin, Gavin Niseznon, Evan Mostoller, and Jake Weiner all scored goals for the second-seeded Golden Hawks 19-1, who will face Pennridge Thursday night at Hatfield Ice (7:45 start). They will try to become the first team in six years to successfully defend a National Division title.

“C.B. South played a good game,” said C.R. South coach Joe Houk, “but we had a little more firepower.”

Ryan Frey scored for the third-seeded Titans (13-9-1) in the second period.

“Our defensive zone play was great,” said Titan coach Shaun McGinty. “Transition killed us.”

C .B. South 0 1 0—1

C.R. South 2 1 1—4

First-period goals: Illia Murkhin (CRS) from Peter Pereborow, 8:32; Gavin Niseznon (CRS) from Chase Tovsky, 13:46

Second-period goals: Evan Mostoller (CRS) From Nikita Volobuievm 1:26; Ryan Frey (CBS) From Sean Cutter, 4:15

Third-period goal: Jake Weiner (CRS) from Kevin Koles, 16:13 (en)

Shots: C.B. South 14, CR South 40; Saves: Nathan Napolitano (CBS) 36, Trevor Raksawski 13

SHSHL Playoff Recap 2-21-24

C.B. South 6, Souderton 2

Aidan Linso scored two goals and four other players scored one goal each Wednesday night as the third-seeded Titans bested the sixth-seeded Big Red at Hatfield Ice to earn a place in the National Division semifinals.

Colin Mendham, D.J. Lindenmuth, Sean Cutter, and Ryan Frey all scored for South (13-7-1) which took command in the first period when Linso scored his two goals and Mendham scored in between.

Nathan Napolitano got the win in goal.

Nick Smith and Seth Grossman scored goals for Souderton (7-12).

“We won three periods,” said South coach Shaun McGinty.

Our D-zone play was much better tonight and needs to be as we move forward. We had steady goaltending and capitalized on opportunities. It was a solid effort from both teams and showed the depth of our league.”

The Titans will second-seeded Council Rock South next Wednesday in the semifinals.

Souderton 0 1 1—2

C.B. South 3 1 2—6

First-period goals: Aidan Linso (CBS) from Ryan Frey, :30; Colin Mendham (CBS) from Sean Cutter, 12:11; Linso (CBS) from Mendham, 14:41

Second-period goals: D.J. Lindenmuth (CBS) from Joey Sobodorian, 11:00; Nick Smith (S) from Seth Grossman, 16:48

Third-period goals: Cutter (CBS) from Jeff Kvecher, 1:57; Frey (CBS) from Lindenmuth, 8:12; Grossman (S) from Snith and Max Ryon, 9:03

Shots: Souderton 30, C.B. South 42; Saves: Connor Paulus (S) 36, Nathan Napolitano (CBS) 28

Bensalem 3, Abington 0

The second-seeded Owls (13-3) advanced to the American Division championship game with the win over the third-seeded Galloping Ghosts (6-10-1) in Wednesday night’s semifinal at Grundy Arena.

Lucas Gonzalez gave his team a 1-0 lead 5:17 into the opening period. He extended Bensalem’s lead when he scored his second goal of the night with 3:40 left in the third period. Alex Hood added a goal of his own with 16 seconds remaining.

An altercation following Hood’s goal and another following the final buzzer led to five players being accessed a total of 77 minutes in penalties.

Bensalem will face Plymouth Whitemarsh net Wednesday in the American Division finale.

Abington 0 0 0—0

Bensalem 1 0 2—3

First-period goal: Lucas Gonzalez (B) from Alex Hood, 5:17

Third-period goals: Gonzalez (B) from Cole Salayda and Hood, 12:40; Hood (B) unassisted (en)

Holy Ghost Prep 4 C.B. South 0

Holy Ghost Prep scored three times in the first period Monday night and went on to a 4-0 win over Central Bucks South in a non-league encounter at Flyers Skate Zone Northeast.

The matchup served as a tuneup for both the Titans and the Firebirds as they set their sights on postseason play next week in the APAC and the SHSHL National Division respectively.

Cane Bickel, Matt Cholaj, and Colin Bara all scored for Holy Ghost Prep in a span of 2:18 to put the Firebirds up 3-0 with 2:55 left in the first period.

Patrick Oser added a goal with 2:57 left in the middle period.

C.B. South 0 0

Holy Ghost Prep 3 1

First-period goals: Caine Bickel (HGP) from Anthony Valerote, 11:47; Matt Cholaj (HGP) from Nathan Romer, 12:17; Colin Bara (HGP) from Brian Kinniry, 14:05

Second-period goals: Patrick Oser (HGP) from Daniel McCullion and Valerote, 14:03

Shots: C.B. South 27, Holy Ghost Prep 35

Souderton 9 C.B. South 8 OT

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP—Souderton and Central Bucks South had quite a shootout Thursday night. With SHSHL playoff positioning and possible Flyers Cup seedings in the mix, the Big Red and the Titans, both of whom were coming off losses 24 hours earlier, took the ice at Hatfield Ice with guns blazing.

What followed was a collection of 17 goals, 16 penalties and a result that posed some interesting questions about what the stretch run if the regular season will look like.

It was Souderton who prevailed in the end. Ben Fadden’s power-play goal 68 seconds into overtime gave the Big Red a 9-8 win in a game that reconfigured the SHSHL National Division’s landscape.

The win lifted Souderton to 6-8 on the season and strengthened its hold on the division’s sixth and final playoff spot.

Souderton coach Ryan Uchniat spoke to the significance of the result.

“It’s huge,” he said. “We lost a tough one {Wednesday to Central Bucks West]. We needed this.”

Fadden’s game winner, his second goal of the game, came while the Titans’ Sean Cutter was in the box serving a holding penalty.

“It was a big win,” Fadden said. “We had to have it, we needed it for the team.”

On only one occasion did either team hold more than a one goal lead. That moment came with 5:32 left in the second period when Seth Grossman completed a hat trick and in so doing gave Souderton a 5-3 advantage.

At that point, South coach Shaun McGinty made a goaltender change, lifting Nathan Napolitano in place of starter Dominic Varacallo.

Aidan Linso and D.J. Lindenmuth scored goals for South to tie the game with 2:35 left in the period and neither team led by more than a goal the rest of the way.

At evening’s end the scoresheet listed some impressive totals. Grossman paced Souderton with four goals and two assists while Maxwell Ryon scored two goals and contributed six assists.

D.J. Lindenmuth had a six-point night for the Titans (10-5-1, 10-4-1 in divisional play) on the strength of three goals and three assists. Aidan Linso added two goals and two assists while Jake Stepp contributed a goal and two assists.

The ramifications of Thursday’s result will likely reverberate for some time.

“This is big for us,” Uchniat said. ”It gives our guys some confidence that we can play with the upper-echelon teams. South is one of the top programs in the league and they have been for years.

“The team rallied tonight. We ran into some penalty trouble but our kill was on. Out goalie [Connor Paulus] played strong and gave us an opportunity to stay in it.”

McGinty said his team was impacted by having to spend much of the night in special-teams situations.

“Lots of penalties is just not our game on both sides,” he said. I don’t want to kill penalties. I want to be five on five; we’re a five-on-five team.

“But kudos to then, you’ve got to tip your hat. It’s a loss for us to take and learn from.”

Fadden believes Thursday’s win will help he and teammates set a tone for the balance of the season.

“Just through work ethic and going out and wanting to just take everything we can,” he said. “Every inch of ice. Every step we can possibly take to get past a team.”

Souderton 2 3 3 1—9

C.B. South 2 4 2 0—8

First-period goals: D.J. Lindenmuth (CBS) from Aidan Linso, :49 (pp); Seth Grossman (S) from Nick Smith, 5:51 (pp); Grossman (S) from Max Ryon and Drew Savarese, 15:09; Lindenmuth (CBS) from Peter Herring, 16:44

Second-period goals: Ryan Frey (CBS) from Jake Stepp and Lindenmuth, :20; Savarese (S) from Ryon, 4:38; Ben Fadden (S) from Grossman and Ryon, 5:16; Grossman (S) from Ryon, 11:28; Linso (CBS) from Lindenmuth, 12:05 (pp); Lindenmuth (CBS) from Linso, 14:25 (sh); Linso from Stepp and Lindenmuth, 16:18 (pp)

Third-period goals: Grossman (S) from Ryon, :41 (pp); Ryon (S) from Savarese and Grossman, 1:14; Keith Waldron (CBS) from Jeff Kvetcher and Logan Good, 2:21; Stepp from Sean Cutter, 13:44; Ryon (S) from Smith, 14:24.

Overtime goal: Fadden (S) from Smith and Ryon, 1:08

Shots: Souderton 40, C.B. South 48 Saves: Connor Paulus (S) 40, Dominic Varacallo (CBS) 16 and Nathan Napolitano (CBS) 15

Neshaminy 3 C.B. South 3

HATFIELD TOWNSHIP—Two teams feeling their way plus one hot goaltender added up to an entertaining 56 minutes of hockey Thursday night. At evening’s end, Neshaminy and Central Bucks South left Hatfield Ice deadlocked at 3-3.

The Titans (0-1-1 overall) had the majority of the scoring chances, officially outshooting the ‘Skins 41-20 but Neshaminy (0-0-1) netminder Cory Hemberger kept them at bay and kept his team in the game; officially, he was credited with 38 saves.

“It gives us the most confidence in the world,” said Hemberger’s teammate Ryan DeMatteo. “I think he’s the best goalie in the league and he’s going to help us win games.”

No one in the building was a bigger fan of Hemberger’s effort than South coach Shaun McGinty.

“He did exactly what he was supposed to do,” McGinty said. “The one thing I would say for our boys, we didn’t get frustrated, there wasn’t finger pointing and there wasn’t blaming on the bench.

“We kept getting changes, we controlled the momentum as far as the offensive opportunities. We had our chances, but sometimes the puck just doesn’t go in. Tonight, I give all the credit to [Hemberger].”

After a scoreless first frame, Jeff Kvetcher and Aidan Linso scored goals 37 seconds apart to put the Titans up 2-0 1:22 into the second period.

DeMatteo cut the deficit in half 15 seconds later but Sean Cutter extended South’s lead once more with a power-play goal of his own at 3:45; the fourth goal in a span of exactly three minutes.

But the Titans would not score again. Angelo Veneziale brought the ‘Skins within a goal when he found the back of the net with 2:13 left in the period.

At the start of the third period, Dominic Varacallo stepped into the South net, replacing starter Jason Magarah. DeMatteo greeted him by scoring off a left offensive circle faceoff just 19 seconds into the final session.

That turned out to be the last goal of the evening but there was plenty going on to keep spectators interested.

Neshaminy got a boost when the Titans’ D.J.Lindenmuth drew a roughing penalty with 62 seconds left in regulation and a subsequent bench minor allowed Neshaminy to start the overtime with a two-man advantage.

As it turned out, Lindenmuth himself had the best chance in the extra period; he hit the center of the left post on a breakaway 70 seconds into the five-minute session. But the Titans never found the key to unlock the door that would give them a win.

For Neshaminy coach Bill Keyser, the game served as a ‘Welcome back’ to high-school hockey. Keyser, who previously served as the head coach at Truman, replaced the retired Matt DeMatteo.

“I had a good time with these kids,” he said. “This is what made me come out and coach again, the fight in the dog.

“Even though we were the underdogs, we came out and we kept fighting and we came out with a tie. It felt good to be out here tonight.”

Ice Chips—The Titans wore throwback blue and gray uniforms to commemorate their 20^th anniversary season.

Neshaminy 0 2 1 0—3

C.B. South 0 3 0 0—3

Second-period goals: Jeff Kvetcher (CBS) from Jake Kunkle, :45; Aidan Linso (CBS) from Colin Mendam, 1:22; Ryan DeMatteo (N) unassisted, 1:37 (pp); Sean Cutter (CBS) from Jake Stepp. 3:45 (pp); Angelo Veneziale (N) from Coleman Boles and DeMatteo, 14:47

Third-period goal: DeMatteo (N) unassisted, :19

Shots: Neshaminy 20, C.B. South 41; Saves: Corey Hemberger (N) 38, Jason Magarah (CBS) 3 and Dominic Varacallo (CBS) 14

C.B. South 3 Neshaminy 2

BRISTOL—A hockey team trying to find its way took a big leap forward Thursday night. Aidan Gaffney scored two goals as Central Bucks South surprised previously unbeaten Neshaminy 3-2 Thursday night at Grundy Arena.

It was the first win for the Titans in seven starts this season (1-5-1 overall, 1-1 in Class AA divisional play.

Assistant coach Tyler Skroski noted it was a team win in the truest sense of the term.

“We relied on our older guys, our seniors were coming through,” he said. “Our top players were coming through. That’s a full team win.”

The Titans also got a big contribution from a younger guy; freshman goaltender Jason Magaruh, who was credited with 50 saves.

Dan Kvechner gave South the first lead of the night just 2:28 into the opening period. Jacob Adami responded for the ‘Skins (4-1-1 overall 1-1 in the division) at the 12:50 mark on a shot from the right circle on which Magaruh was screened and it seemed the hosts were getting a handle on things.

But Gaffney put South ahead for the second time just 1:32 into the second period.

“The mindset was just north-and-south hockey,” he said. “We wanted to get pucks in deep and shoot everything we possibly could.”

The Titans skated themselves into a corner at the start of the third period. Kvechner was set off for tripping after 43 seconds. When Justin Montagna was flagged for the same offense at 1:25 South found itself skating two men short. When J.J. Hathaway tied the game for Neshaminy at the 2:22 mark the ‘Skins still had a full minute of power-play time left.

But Magaruh bolstered by his defense corps, held form.

“He’s a young goalie,” Gaffney said. “We’ll always support our goalie no matter what.

Gaffney’s game-winning goal came with 2:20 left in the game off a faceoff.

The ‘Skins enjoyed a 52-36 edge in shots on goal. Neshaminy coach Matt DeMatteo lamented the fact that an abundance of his team’s shot attempts never got to the net.

“I think that their defense stepped up,” he said. “Not that their goalie didn’t play well. We had trouble getting pucks through to him. We got some shots on, but they blocked a ton of shots.

“I think that was their game plan going in to load up the middle and block shots. We just had trouble getting the pucks through to the goalie.”

Gaffney believes the win will be a springboard for the Titans and give them momentum.

“Definitely,” he said. “It’s definitely a turnaround. “We’re looking to turn it around for the rest of the games and I definitely think we can.”

C.B. South 1 1 1—3

Neshaminy 1 0 1—2

First-period goals: Dan Kvechner (CBS) from Matt Crouch, 2:28; Jacob Adami (N) from J.H. Hathaway, 12:50

Second-period goals: Aidan Gaffney (CBS) from Justin Keilman and Aydin Theirolf, 1:32

Third-period goals: Hathaway (N) from Max Gallagher, 2:26 (pp); Gaffney (CBS) from Adam Cusick, 12:40

Shots: C.B. South 36, Neshaminy 52; Saves: Jason Magaruh (CBS) 50, Brian Nelson (N) 33

Pennsbury 5, C.B. South 2

HATFIELD— The eruption came with dramatic suddenness. Pennsbury soured four goals in the third period and went on to a 5-2 win over Central Bucks South Wednesday night in a SHSHL National/Continental matchup that featured two teams with serious postseason aspirations.

The Falcons have not lost a game in regulation all year; they stand at 8-0-0-1 overall (6-0 in league play).Wednesday’s win was their seventh straight. The Titans stand at 4-3-1-0 overall but Wednesday’s loss wast their first in divisional play after three wins.
For two periods, the teams battled on even terms. The Falcons’ Justin Marlin and the Titans’ D.J. Lidenmuth traded goals at either end of the second period to send the teams into third stanza deadlocked at 1-1. Both goals came on power plays

But then Reece Millman trigged the eruption with a sprint down the left wing which concluded with him beating Mason Moyer in the South net just 22 seconds into the period. Millman’s effort was also a power play goal. It was also the game-winner.

Connor Coyne made it a 3-1 game at the 5:09 mark and Brendan MacAinsh extended Pennsbury’s lead just 17 seconds later. Both goals came during four-on-four situations; the game featured 14 minor penalties.
Marlin scored his second goal of the night to make it a 5-1 game with :57 remaining,

“I like the way we played the entire game,” said Pennsbury coach Ryan Daley. “Their goalie was having a great night, and I kept telling the guys ‘The more shots we get, they’re going to go in’ and it all came together. Getting four quick ones is nice.”

Lidenmuth scored his second goal of the game with 6:43 remaining but the Titans couldn’t get any closer.

The Titans were missing several players because of injuries but Titan coach Sean McGinty refused to dwell on that topic. “Pennsbury came to play,” he said. “Our shot total should have been better in the first period to help us set the tone. It wasn’t what we wanted and then second period they shut us down. They tripled us in shots (19-6 in the second period) and they kept coming. Unfortunately, our defense wasn’t good as a whole.”

Daley described his players as “Hungry.”

“A lot of these guys haven’t been in this position,” he said. “We’ve had two good years before this and a not-so-good year before that. So, a lot of these guys know where they came from. They don’t forget that. And they’re really fired up.”

Pennsbury 0 1 4—5
C.B. South 0 1 1—2
Second-period goals: Justin Marlin (P) from Shane Siegmund and Brendan MacAinsh, :26 (pp); D.J. Lidenmuth (CBS) from Aydin Thierolf, 14:52 (pp)
Third-period goals: Reece Millman (P) unassisted, :22 (pp); Connor Coyne (P) from Jake McCaw and MacAinsh, 5:09; MacAinish (P) from McCaw, 5:26 (pp);Marlin (P) from Andrew Falkenstein, 7:03 (pp); Lidenmuth (CBS) from Daniel Kvecher, 9:17
Shots: Pennsbury 44, C.B. South 29; Saves: Marek Jorgensen (P) 27; Mason Moyer (CBS) 39

Updated Playoff Schedule

Wednesday, February 26

4:00 APAC Founders Cup Final: La Salle vs Holy Ghost Prep at Grundy Arena

At Hatfield Ice

6:30 SHSHL Class AA Semifinal C.B. South vs. Neshaminy

8:30 SHSHL Class AA Semifinal North Penn vs C.R. South

At Revolution Ice Gardens

7:20 SHSHL Class A Semifinal Plymouth Whitemarsh vs. Truman

9:00 SHSHL Class A Semifinal Hatboro-Horsham vs. Wissahickon

Thursday, February 27

6:30 SHSHL Class AA Final at Hatfield Ice

8:30 SHSHL Class A Final at Hatfield Ice

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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