Jack Constabile scored two goals and Quinn Dougherty and Jimmy Kirk added one each as Malvern Prep defeated North Allegheny 4-2 Saturday evening in the Class AAA Pennsylvania Cup championship game at the UPMC Sports Complex In suburban Pittsburgh.
It marks the third time the Friars (15-1) have won a state title; the previous two came in 1990 and 2004.
Nate Spak opened the scoring for North Allegheny (16-6-1) when he found the back of the net 3:17 into the first period. Quinn Dougherty tied the game for the Friars with a shorthanded goal at the 7:09 mark.
“I thought that was probably a huge goal,” Dougherty said. “We were down 1-0, we were on a penalty kill, things weren’t really going out way.
“Then we scored on the penalty kill and that just gave us a bunch of life because it was. a hard-work goal and it just showed we weren’t going to quit right away.”
Malvern Prep coach Bill Keenan said Dougherty’s goal was the turning point in the game.
“We were down 1-0, we end up on a penalty and there’s a chance would go down 2-0,” he said. “We were able to put one in the back of the net to make it a 1-1 game and then a couple seconds later, Jack scores a goal and it changed the whole momentum of the game. We were able to settle down a little bit and get into our rhythms and our game plan and play through the rest of the game.”
Constabile put his team in front for good at 7:35 before scoring his second goal of the game at 9:31 to put Malvern Prep up 3-1 after one period.Malvern Prep’s Jimmy Kirk and the Tigers’ Connor Chi exchanged goals in the second frame to complete the scoring.
WEST GOSHEN— A lot of people stepped up for Malvern Prep Monday afternoon. Jack Constabile scored two goals and five other players scored one goal each as the Friars downed St. Joseph’s Prep 7-0 in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game at Ice Line.
The win gave Malvern Prep the APAC regular season title and essentially assured the Friars (10-1 overall, 5-1-2-0 in conference) of the top seed for the Class AAA Flyers Cup, which begins April 5. The Hawks, who were missing several players for an assortment of reasons (they dressed just 16 players) dropped 3-5 overall and 1-5 in conference.
As has been the case for Malvern Prep all season long everyone helped out. “We’re sticking to our basics,” Constabile said. “Everyone is putting in a part, they all have a role. Everyone is doing their job.
“We’re moving pucks fast, getting second opportunities in front of the net. I think that’s been a big part of our success this year.
The first period was contested almost exclusively on Malvern Prep’s offensive side of the red line, but the Friars couldn’t solve Andrew Custer in the St. Joseph’s Prep net; he stopped 12 shots in the period and went on to make 42 saves in the game. His teammates did good work in front of him early on to deprive their opponents of quality chances.
“Our first period, we didn’t play the game we wanted to,” Constabile said. “We weren’t getting guys in front, second opportunities. It was not our typical game but in the second period we started to play our game.”
St. Joseph’s Prep’s Jeffrey Hammond (in red) and Malvern Prep’s Matt Harris follow the play in Monday’s game. (photo by Gracie Cleveland)
The Friars certainly did. Matt Harris beat Custer with a shot from between the faceoff dots at the 2:13 mark for the day’s first goal before he and his teammates broke the game open with a three-goal spurt late in the period.
Quinn Dougherty finished off an end-to-end rush up the right wing before beating Custer with a backhander at 11:34. Constabile made it 3-0 42 seconds later when he finished off a game of tic tac toe with Harris and Jimmy Kirk. When Hayden Campbell found the back of the net at the 14:33 mark, it was Malvern Prep’s third goal in a span of 2:59.
Jeremy Jacobs, Chris Blango, and Constabile all scored goals in the third period.
Senior forward Ryan Sambuco finished the afternoon with two assists. He noted his team thrived on a back-to-basics approach, in part because of its depth.
“We have big depths going into the games,” he said. “We can get consistent from our first through our fourth line. It’s huge going into it and it makes it easier for us to kept it simple and just roll the lines and keep moving forward throughout the game.”
Ice Chips— Anthony Puerto made 15 saves in the Malvern Prep net before being relieved by Riley McCarry with 5:11 left in the game. McCarry made four saves of his own and preserved the shutout … The Friars were listed first in the Class AAA Flyers Cup rankings that were released Monday, while the Hawks were ranked fourth. No further rankings will be published prior to the tournament field being announced on Sunday, March 28. The APAC playoffs will not affect the Flyers Cup seedings.
St. Joseph’s Prep 0 0 0—0 Malvern Prep 0 4 3—7 Second-period goals: Matt Harris (MP) from Pierre Larocque and Jack Constabile, 2:13; Quinn Dougherty (M) unassisted, 11:34; Constabile (MP) from Kirk and Harris, 12:16; Hayden Campbell (MP) from Matt Donatucci and Chris Blango, 14:33 Third-period goals: Jeremy Jacobs (MP) from Jack Sharer, :58 (pp); Blango (MP) unassisted, 8:25 (pp): Constabile (MP) from Blango, 14:27 Shots: St. Joseph’s Prep 19, Malvern Prep 49; Saves: Andrew Custer (SJP) 42, Anthony Perti (MP) 15 and Riley McCarry (MP 4
WEST GOSHEN—In a normal hockey season, the field for the Flyers Cup tournament would be announced about now. Because of the pandemic, the 2021 regular season still has a month to go. But Wednesday night, Holy Ghost Prep and Malvern Prep demonstrated what a Flyers Cup game should look like.
Jack Constabile scored in the bottom of the fourth round of a shootout to give the Friars a 3-2 win over the Firebirds in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game at Ice Line. The win kept Malvern Prep in six starts this season (3-0 in the APAC). It was the first loss for Holy Ghost Prep in four tries (2-1 in conference).
It was the first of three regular-season meeting between the two teams who have emerged as the top contenders for the APAC championship. On Wednesday night, there was little that separated them.
“I thought Holy Ghost played a tremendous game,” said Malvern Prep coach Bill Keenan.”‘I think it’s a testament to our league, and how good the teams are, the strength.”
Malvern Prep’s Jack Constabile (in white) battles with Holy Ghost Prep’s Sean Marshall (photo: Gracie Cleveland)
On a night when the level of play was superb, the brightest star in the heavens was Friar goaltender Anthony Perti. He made 28 saves over the course of 48 minutes of regulation play and five minutes of three-on-three overtime including a half dozen that belong on a highlight reel. The junior sensed the importance of the occasion.
“I kind of knew,” he said. “Big moments, you’ve got to be ready for them if you want to be a big-time player, so I was definitely ready for them. It was a massive game.”
Bobby Baehser in the Firebirds’ net didn’t have to be as spectacular as his counterpart but he was just as efficient; he also finished with 28 saves.
Brady Baehser opened the scoring for Holy Ghost Prep 4:48 into the first period off a turnover deep in the Malvern Prep defensive zone. It took the Friars just 15 seconds to respond; Jeremy Jacobs won a goal-mouth scrum at the 5:03 mark.
The hosts took the lead with 1:05 left in the second stanza when Matt Harris tipped in Steven Getsie’s shot from the left point.
A few minutes prior to that however, Perti made his best save of the game when he denied Anthony Sparo at the end of a two-on-none rush.
The Firebirds stepped up the pressure in the third period, outshooting the Friars 13-5. It was Shaun Moore who scored the tying goal on a backhander from the right side of the net at the 8:11 mark.
Both teams had chances in overtime but only Constabile could find the net in the shootout. It wasn’t for a lack of trying however; the Firebirds found iron three times in four attempts.
“It was a great high-school hockey game,” said Holy Ghost Prep coach Gump Whiteside. “Two good teams. I though their goalie played really well, made some big stops.
“I thought at times we didn’t have good puck luck either, a couple posts here and there. But that’s hockey.”
Ice Chips—The Firebirds and the Friars will face each other Monday afternoon at Grundy Arena and again on March 11, also at Grundy with additional meetings possible in the APAC playoffs and during the Class AAA Flyers Cup tournament … The Friars unveiled a new set of white sweaters Wednesday which featured a logo commemorating the 50th anniversary of the school’s hockey program. The school fielded its first team in 1970.
Matt Harris and Jack Constabile each scored two goals as Malvern Prep downed Cardinal O’Hara 7-2 Thursday night at Ice Line. Hayden Campbell, Jimmy Kirk, and Jonathan Holt also scored for the Friars, who recorded their second straight win to open the 2020-21 season.
The Lions got goals from Nathan Fox and Steve Graney to take a 2-1 lead after the first period but Malvern Prep took control from there.
“The boys got off to a slow start,” said Malvern Prep coach Bill Keenan. “It was our first game in a few weeks and first time on the ice as a full team since Thanksgiving. “We were missing some key players to our team tonight but we found a way to grind it out and come out with a win.’ Anthony Perti got the win in goal, making 27 saves.
Cardinal O’Hara 2 0 0—2
Malvern Prep 1 3 3—7
First-period goals: Nathan Fox (CO) unassisted, 9:26; Jack Constabile (MP) from Matt Harris, 12:18; Steve Graney (CO) from Fox, 16:12 (pp).
Second-period goals: Harris (MP) from Jeremy Jacobs, 1:27; Harris (MP) from Chris Blango, 9:16; Hayden Campbell (MP) from Matt Donatucci, 15:39.
Third-period goals: Jimmy Kirk (MP) from Blango, :16 (pp); Jonathan Holt (MP) from Jimmy Jacobs and Will Traynor, 5:44. Constabile (MP) from Harris and Jeremy Jacobs, 16:58.
Visiting Hun School scored three goals in a span of 9:15 in the third period and went to a 5-4 win over Malvern Prep at Ice Line on Thursday. Matt Donatucci, Jack Constabile, Andrew Harder and Matt Harris scored the Friar goals.
HATFIELD— The finish would have made a wonderful ending to a movie. Pierre Larocque scored a goal 1:54 into overtime to give Malvern Prep a 5-4 win over La Salle Wednesday’s evening in an APAC matchup at Hatfield Ice.
Moments earlier, Larocque assisted on Ryan Sambuco’s goal that tied the game with 20 seconds left in regulation.
“We were really aggravated with the way we were playing at the time,” Larocque said. “So we had to stay positive in order to play better.”
Malvern Prep (5-4 overall, 3-2-1-0 in the APAC) was playing its first game since December 11 but they got off to a fast start against the Explorers (7-9, 0-2-1-1) who played a game this past Monday. Harrison Campbell and Jack Constabile scored goals 67 seconds apart to put the Friars up 2-0 with 3:18 left in the first period.
But goals from David Kimmel and Collin Keiser drew the Explorers even at 3:35 of the second frame. Jimmy Kirk put the Friars in front once more at the 5:05 mark but Jake Harmon and David Bruner scored 48 seconds apart to put La Salle back in front with 1:17 left in the period,
The third period was scoreless until Sambuco and Larocque provided their heroics. The Friars prevailed despite being outshot 26-16.
“It was nice to see them battle back there at the end,” said Malvern Prep coach Bill Keenan, and pop one in late and keep possession and get a heck of a shoot by Pierre Larocque.
Malvern Prep’s Pierre Larocque (dark jersey) carries the puck against La Salle. Number 26 in white is La Salle’s David Kimmel (photo by Gracie Cleveland).
Larocque was idled much of last season by an ankle injury. this year he’s spent time both up front and on the blue line.
“He battles every time he’s out there,” Keenan said. “For him to get going there and get that goal, it means a lot to us, it means a lot to our team.”
Larocque is enjoying simply being back on the ice. “I missed it a lot,” he said,” he said. “I watched (hockey) a lot, it was really tough.”
Keenan is hoping that Wednesday’s win will energize the Friars for the second half of the season. “We had a couple good practices right before this,” he said, carried it into today, and we’re forward to what’s ahead.”
Malvern Prep 2 1 1 1—5
La Salle 0 4 0 0—4
First-period goals: Harrison Campbell (MP) unassisted, 11:35; Jack Constabile (MP) from Matt Harris and Ryan Sambuco, 12:42.
Second-period goals: David Kimmel (L) from Andrew Budyzski and Keenan Schneider, 2:40; Collin Keiser (L) unassisted, 3:35; Jimmy Kirk (MP) from Matt Donatucci, 5:05; Jake Harmon (L) from Budzynski and Schneider, 13:55; David Bruner (L) from Daniel Whitlock and Max Maddalo, 14:43.
Third-period goal: Sambuco (MP) from Harris and Pierre Larocque, 15:40.
Overtime goal: Larocque (MP) from Harris and Quinn Dougherty, 1:54.
Shots: Malvern Prep 16, La Salle 26; Saves: Anthony Perti (M) 22, Liam Gross (L) 11.
Hockey Happenings 