Hun School 2 La Salle 1

HAMILTON TOWNSHIP, N.J.—The momentum of a hockey game can change in the blink of an eye. So it was at Iceland Tuesday afternoon. Elian Estulin and Seth Kaplan scored third-period goals to propel The Hun School past La Salle 2-1 in a tightly contested Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference matchup.

The win lifted the Raiders (7-6 overall) to 2-2-0-1 in APAC play.
The Explorers fell to 6-7 overall and 3-3-0-1 in conference.
La Salle’s Keenan Schneider scored the afternoon’s first goal on a forehander from the low slot with 4:25 left in the second period.

Keenan Schneider scores the games first goal (Erin Schneider)

That was all the two teams could manage through the first two period against a pair of hot goaltenders, the Explorers’ Aries Carangi and the Raiders’ Stephen Chen, although the Raiders had a goal disallowed early in the period because, according to Hun School coach Ian McNally, the whistle blew before the puck crossed the goal line.

Early in the third fame however, the flow of the game shifted rather abruptly in Hun School’s direction. The sequence began at the 4:38 mark when La Salle’s Ryan Warner was flagged for slashing. Just 17 seconds later, Max Maddalo was sent off for cross checking, giving the Raiders an extended two-man advantage. Estulin tied the game at the 5:12 mark with a shot from the right side of the slot.

The Raiders had the momentum from that moment forward. Seth Kaplan scored the winning goal on a partial breakaway with 3:37 remaining in regulation.

“(The coaches) trust in our power-play unit,” Estulin said. “I was on the right side and got a five-hole goal We celebrated, then we got back out and got one.”

Seth Kaplan scores the winning goal

La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner cited the back-to-back penalties as the key point in the game.

“We talked going into the third about being smart and staying out of the box,” he said. “We took a couple penalties, it was unfortunate. I thought we played well.

“A couple of the guys that were in the box were guys that normally kill for us as well.”

Muehlbronner was quick to credit the Raiders for their effort.

“I thought Hun played well,” he said. “They’re a tough team to play against. They’re and they had some good opportunities.”

McNally noted there was sniping in the Raider locker room while the ice was being resurfaced before the third period but was glad his players maintained their composure.

“No one could get over the non-call goal he said. “I was worried we weren’t going to be able to regroup. And we did.”

The win keeps the Raiders mathematically alive in the quest for the APAC regular-season title. They can finish in first place alone if they win their three remaining conference games in regulation. Estulin however says he and his teammates are taking things one step at a time and not worrying about what the standings look like.

“We’re just going to play our game,” he said. “We’re not going to worry about who is 5-0 or who is 3-2. We’re just going to play our game.”

Tempers flared at the close of regulation when the teams scuffled behind the Hun School net. Maddalo, his teammate Chase Hannon, and Hun School’s Nick Dimatos and Mark Gall were accessed a total of 50 minutes in penalties.

La Salle 0 1 0—1

Hun School 0 0 2—2

Second-period goal: Keenan Schneider (L) from Tim Whittock and Chase Hannon, 12:25

Third-period goals: Elian Estulin (HS) from Riley Frost and Nick Dimatos, 5:18; Seth Kaplan (HS) from Dimatos and Frost, 13:23

Shots La Salle 39, Hun School 30; Saves: Aries Carangi (L) 28, Stephen Chen (HS) 38

For more information about La Salle College High School CLICK HERE

For more information about The Hun School CLICK HERE

La Salle 5 Holy Ghost Prep 1

BRISTOL—The La Salle Express is getting up a full head of steam. Max Maddalo scored two goals and assisted on another as the Explorers scored a 5-1 decision over Holy Ghost Prep Monday afternoon in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game at Grundy Arena.

The win boosts La Salle to 6-6 overall and 3-2-0-1 in the APAC. While the Explorers could theoretically tie Malvern Prep for first place in the conference standings by winning their two remaining APAC games (Tuesday against Hun School and February 9 against St. Joseph’s Prep) the Friars would win the tiebreaker for the regular-season title, having beaten the Explorers twice.

Holy Ghost Prep (9-8, 1-4-1-1) took an early lead on John Seravalli’s goal 4:02 into the first period but Maddalo and Chris Wnek responded for La Salle before the first period ended and La Salle was in control from then on.

While the Explorers have scored just 15 goals in six APAC games they have allowed just 13. Maddalo says he and his teammates make defense their top priority.

“(Head Coach Wally Muehlbronner) usually drills it into us at the beginning of the year to play team defense,” the senior said. “So, we just play good team defense and that shows on offense.”

Gavin O’ Connell and Keenan Schneider scored second-period goals for La Salle before Maddalo scored into an empty net with 1:54 left in regulation.

The Explorers dropped their first four games of the season but are 6-2 since December 1.

“The first few games it starts out slow,” Maddalo said. “The new kids are trying to learn (Muehlbronner’s system). But, after midseason we started to pick up the pace on it.”

Muehlbronner expressed satisfaction with his team’s performance.

“Especially in the second period we really played well,” he said. “We had good tempo. All four lines were going. I think our defense really played just simple, smart hockey, getting pucks out or getting pucks deep, the way we need to play.”

Muehlbronner says his players, particularly the newcomers, have become more comfortable with his system as the season has progressed.

“The second half, they’ve done a pretty good job of sticking to it,” he said. “We’ve had our lapses at times, but we need to remember what’s going to make us have success.”

Will Braun got the win in goal, making 24 saves.

“We’ve ben rotating (our goaltenders),” Muehlbronner said,” and they’ve both done a really nice job.”

La Salle’s Aidan Mann launches a shot Holy Ghost Prep’s Colin Mudrick makes the save.

For Holy Ghost Prep, it was another disappointing result after a promising start. The Firebirds have lost seven straight.

“We started off the game really hard the first seven minutes,” said Holy Ghost Prep coach Gump Whiteside. “We got that first goal. I thought we played horribly in the second period and then battled in the third, but you’ve got to play three solid periods and we weren’t able to do that tonight.”

La Salle 2 2 1—5

Holy Ghost Prep 1 0 0—1

First-period goals: John Seravalli (HGP) from Shaun Moore and Landon Stout, 4:02; Max Maddalo (L) from Chris Wnek, 11:14; Wnek (L) from Maddalo, 13:04 (pp)

Second-period goals: Gavin O’ Connell (L) from Chase Hannon and Charlie Kennedy, 4:11; Keenan Schneider (L) unassisted, 7:21

Third-period goal; Maddalo (L) from Schneider, 15:06 (en)

Shots: La Salle 27, Holy Ghost Prep 25; Saves: Will Braun (L) 24, Colin Mudrick (HGP) 22

For more about La Salle College High School CLICK HERE

For more about Holy Ghost Prep CLICK HERE

Video provided by Nur B. Adam

La Salle 2 St. Joseph’s Prep 1

HAVERFORD TOWNSHIP—Despite the winter chill outside, the air inside the Skatium was crackling with intensity Friday. That’s a common occurrence when La Salle and St. Joseph’s Prep square off, whatever the sport.

Keenan Schneider’s power-play goal 6:12 into the first period proved decisive as the Explorers prevailed 2-1 in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference matchup.

The win lifted La Salle to 5-4 overall and 2-2 in APAC play. The Hawks fell to 4-5-1 and 1-2-0-2.

La Salle, which has won four of its last five games, jumped in front when the Hawks coughed up the puck in front of and just to the left of their own net. Patrick Brace was one hand to coral the puck and put it behind Hawk netminder Rocco Bruno just 93 seconds after the opening faceoff.

Schneider’s goal came off a faceoff in the circle to Bruno’s right.

Keenan Schneider scores the game-winning goal

St. Joseph’s Prep countered when Nick Storti beat La Salle goaltender Aries Carangi from the left side of the slot 6:12 into the second session.

That was the last goal of the night but both teams maintained a high level of intensity and physicality the rest of the way. Through the first two-and-a-half periods the referees called 11 minor penalties, six against the Explorers, five against the Hawks, but passed on incidents that might have been whistled down on another occasion.

Emotions boiled over with 1:28 remaining in the third period and La Salle trying to protect its one-goal lead.

Eight players, four from each team, were accessed a total of 72 penalty minutes. Two La Salle players Carangi and forward Tim Whittock, were given game misconducts for receiving four penalties during the game and will serve one-game suspensions as a result.

Muehlbronner also faces a suspension; his team was accessed 16 penalties.

When all the penalties were sorted out, St. Joseph’s Prep had a power play. Coach David Giacomin pulled Bruno at that point, giving his team a six-skaters-to-four advantage for the duration of the game but the Hawks couldn’t score.

Will Braun took over for Carangi in the La Salle goal. His only warmup came while the officials were sorting out the penalties but he made two saves over the final 88 seconds of playing time.

“I was happy that we hung on,” Muehlbronner said. “We had a lot to overcome in the third period.”

Muehlbronner made his thoughts clear regarding the late-game incident. “In my eyes, that’s very preventable, what took place,” he said. “It’s not what I expect.

“I don’t think the lack of discipline came on our part. It was a disgrace, what happened at the end. I expect my guys to play hard, play the game the right way. “Thankfully we did that in the first period and that’s what got us through.”

Giacomin noted the teams took turns dictating the flow of the game.

“It was up and down,” he said. “They had a really good first period, I think we played really good in the third period, and that made for an interesting third period, at least the first part of it.”

Giacomin indicated the rivalry between the two schools contributed to the altercation.

“You don’t like to see it,” he said, “but you understand why it happens You’ve just got to hopefully teach the kids from this point on that that’s not the way we play, period. Both teams.”

La Salle 2 0 0—2

St. Joseph’s Prep 0 1 0—1

First-period goals: Patrick Brace (L) unassisted, 1:33; Keenan Schneider (L) from Charlie Kennedy, 6:12 (pp)

Second-period goals: Nick Storti (SJP) from Joey Samango and Dante Passio, :49

Shots: La Salle 38, St. Joseph’s Prep 34; Saves: Aries Carangi (L) 31 and Will Braun (L) 2, Rocco Bruno (SJP) 36

For more information about La Salle College High School CLICK HERE

For information about St. Joseph’s Prep CLICK HERE

Christian Brothers Academy 5 La Salle 1

HATFIELD—The hockey season is only a few weeks old but La Salle took a demanding test Tuesday afternoon. Patrick Reilly scored two goals to lead Christian Academy to a 5-1 win over the Explorers in a non-league matchup at the Hatfield Ice Arena’s Green Rink.

The Colts, who have won eight New Jersey state championships in their history, have started their 2021-22 schedule with two wins. La Salle dropped to 0-4.

“We knew they were good,” said La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner. “They were fast, they moved the puck well. They’re a good, strong team.”

The Colts got on the board just 41 seconds into the opening period on a goal from Leighton Blesiadecki, who beat Wilum Braun in the La Salle net. Reilly made it 2-0 at the 12:47 mark before adding his second goal with 1:22 left in the period.

For a team that has scored just five goals in its first four games, the three-goal deficit was a steep hill to climb. To complicate matters further, the Explorers lost senior forward Keenan Schneider late in the period with an upper-body injury.

Zachary Wagnon made it a 4-0 game with his own power-play goal 8:06 into the middle period before assisting on Sean Guinnessey’s effort at 14:43.

La Salle got on the board 59 seconds into the final period when Ryan Desmond was able to solve Christian Brothers Academy netminder John Donohoe.

Muehlbronner took some steps on Tuesday to try to ease the Explorers’ goal-scoring woes. “We mixed the lines up a little bit,” he said. “I think we’re making progress, but we’ve just got to keep at it.”

Muelbronner is expecting his team to take some lessons away from the loss.

“They certainly should,” he said. “I think one thing we have to realize is how much we have to simplify our game when we play against a team like that. We didn’t really do it. We were holding on to the puck too long and they were on us quick. They took us off the puck, created plays.

“They moved the puck extremely well, so I guess our younger guys can learn from that. But we didn’t adapt to it quick enough.”

Ice Chips—The Colts outshot the Explorers 35-26. The Explorers will open Mid-Atlantic Prep League play next Wednesday on the road against Wyoming Seminary.

CBA 3 2 0—5

La Salle 0 0 1—1

First-period goals: Leighton Blesiadecki (CBA) from Zachary Wagnon and Sean Guinnessey, :41; Patrick Reilly (CBA) from Antonio Donohue and E. Burg, 12:47; Reilly (CBA) from Wagnon, 15:38 (pp)

Second-period goals: Wagnon (CBA) unassisted, 8:06 (pp); Guinnessey (CBA) from Wagnon and Christian Chewha, 14:43

Third-period goals: Ryan Desmond (L) from Charles Kennedy, :59

Shots: CBA 35, La Salle 26: Saves: John Donohoe (CBA) 25, Willum Braun (L) 30

For more information about La Salle College High School Click Here

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La Salle 3, Holy Ghost Prep 0

BRISTOL— LaSalle seems poised for a stretch run in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference. Three different players scored goals Monday afternoon as the Explorers shut out Holy Ghost Prep in an APAC matchup at Grundy Arena.

The win was La Salle’s third straight in APAC after the Explorers (4-4 overall) started the conference campaign with three consecutive defeats. They were listed third in the Class AAA Flyers Cup rankings that were released Monday prior to game time.

“We’re starting to play hard,” said LaSalle coach Wally Muehlbronner. “We’re scoring some goals, which has helped and Liam (goaltender Liam Gross) is giving us a chance to win.

On this occasion Gross, a senior, stopped all 33 shots he saw. He noted the Explorers have picked up their play defensively of late.

“We struggled in the beginning of the year with that,” he said. ”But, the group is really coming together, especially the defensive four and the other goalie (Aries Carangi) so it’ really good to see how they battled for me, blocked shots, and made plays.”
Gross says the seniors on the La Salle roster have been providing effective leadership. “All the guys want to win so badly this year,” he said. “We felt like we could have won (a Flyers Cup) last year too (before the season was halted by the pandemic) so this is sort of like a redemption year and I think our leadership is really coming together. We have a young team this year. (The seniors) are leading the young guys on and showing them the way., and they’re picking up pretty fast too.”

After a scoreless first period, Dan Whitock beat Bobby Baehser in the Firebird net just 37 seconds into the second session. The Explorers extended their lead with 1:24 in the period when Ryan Warner poked in a rebound of a David Kimmel shot from the right point. That was it until Kimmel scored into an empty net with 1:07 remaining in regulation.

The Firebirds, who have lost three straight, saw their record fall to 4-4 overall and 3-4 in conference. They were listed second in Monday’s Flyers Cup rankings.

“I thought it was a good game,” said Holy Ghost Prep coach Gump Whiteside. “I liked our jump … We played well but not well enough. We’ve got to start finding ways to win.”
Whiteside said he’s encouraging his team to take a back-to-basics approach. “Just sticking with the fundamentals,” he said. “Doing things that they do well and not try to do things they can’t do well.”

La Salle 0 2 1—3

Holy Ghost Prep 0 0 0—0

Second-period goals: Dan Whitock (L) unassisted, :37; Ryan Warner (L) from David Kimmel and Michael Casey, 15:24

Third-period goal: Kimmel (L) from Casey, 14:53 (en)

Shots: La Salle 31, Holy Ghost Prep 33: Saves: Liam Gross (L) 33, Bobby Baehser (HGP) 30

For more about La Salle Click Here

For more about Holy Ghost Prep Click Here

La Salle 8, Roman Catholic 1

HATFIELD— Keenan Schneider is playing his first season of varsity hockey for La Salle. But the sophomore is making his presence felt, night in and night out. Schneider scored four goals and added two assists Thursday night as the Explorers rolled over Roman Catholic 8-1 in a Class AAA Flyers Cup quarterfinal game at Hatfield Ice.

Next up is the semifinal round; the Explorers will face third-seeded St. Joseph’s Prep in a game that is tentatively set for next Wednesday or Thursday. The site and time are expected to be finalized sometime Friday.

Schneider, who plays left wing, had plenty of help from his linemates. Center David Kimmel, a junior, scored a goal and assisted on five others, including all four of Schneider’s. Right wing Jake Hannon, also a junior, added a goal and an assist.
The trio joined forces in midseason. Coincidentally, it wasn’t long after that that La Salle’s fortunes took a great leap forward.

“We just have good chemistry together,” Schneider said. “We get along in school, we’re good friends. We just play. Once we get one, we want to get a lot more.”
La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner credited the line for giving La Salle some early momentum Thursday night. “That line has had really good chemistry,” he said. “We kind of stumbled into that line, by default almost, but they’ve really clicked.”

Second-seeded La Salle 13-11-2-2 overall) skated the scoring at the 5:43 mark of the first period when David Kimmel beat Cahillite goaltender Michael Smith with a forehander from midway between the two circle. The Explorers had much of the better of the play from there and finished the first frame with a 12-3 edge in shots.

La Salle broke the game open in the second period as Schneider completed a natural hat trick in a span of exactly four minutes to make it a 4-0 game with 6:04 left in the period.

The seventh seeded Cahillites (10-10) rallied briefly when Brandon Finnimore scored 23 seconds into the third period but Schneider answered with his fourth goal of the night just 66 seconds later before Hannon, Max Maddallo, and Dan Dolan added additional goals.

Tempers flared with 8:33 left in the game and four players were caught up in the ensuing altercation. Roman’s Brennan Whittaker drew a major penalty for fighting plus an automatic game misconduct. His teammate Andrew Hotolitz was booked for two minutes for head contact plus a 10-minute misconduct. Maddalo along with the Explorers’ Jake Armstrong were also received minor penalties plus misconducts for head contact.

La Salle finished with a 42-15 edge in shots.

In other Class AAA Flyers Cup quarterfinals
#1 Holy Ghost Prep 8 #8 Bishop Shanahan 0
#5 Father Judge 6 #4 Malvern Prep 2
#3 St. Joseph’s Prep 3, #6 Cardinal O’Hara 2

The semifinals will match La Salle against St. Joseph’s Prep and Holy Ghost Prep against Father Judge, Those games are tentatively set for next Wednesday or Thursday.

Roman Catholic 0 0 1—1
La Salle 1 3 4—8
First-period goals: David Kimmel (L) from Keenan Schneider and Andrew Budzynski, 5:43;
Second-period goals: Schneider (L) from Jake Hannon and David Kimmel, 5:56; Schneider from Kimmel, 6:45; Schneider (L) from Jake Hannon and Kimmel, 9:56.
Third-period goals: Brandon Finnimore (RC) unassisted, :23; Schneider (L) from Kimmel, 1:29; Hannon (L) from Kimmel and Schneider, 5:46; Max Maddalo (L) from Jake Armstrong and Collin Keiser, 7:14; Dan Dolan (L) from Francis Ford, 14:56.
Shots: Roman Catholic 15, LaSalle 42; Saves: Michael Smith (RC) 34, Aidan McCabe (L) 14

La Salle 5 St. Joseph’s Prep 2

HATFIELD— Having just played each other 72 hours previously, La Salle and St, Joseph’s Prep picked up where they left off Monday afternoon. The result was an intense, grind-it-out Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference semifinal that saw the Explorers prevail 5-2 at Hatfield Ice.

Second-seeded La Salle (14-13) which has now won five of its last six games, will face top seed Holy Ghost Prep for the Founders Cup Wednesday afternoon at Grundy Arena (time TBA).

La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner was not surprised by the tone of the afternoon. “Honestly, I thought that was the way it was going to be,” he said. “I thought it was going to be a tight game. That’s what i would expect. That’s the way it’s going to be down the stretch.”

Nate Benner scorers twice for the Explorers to send them into Wednesday’s final. “There were no skill goals today,” he said. “It was just rebounds and deflections, get it to the net, second and third opportunities. That’s what comes with Therese kinds of games.”

The Hawks got things started at 5:46 of the first period when Michael Urbani scored a power-play goal on a shot from midway between the top of the two circled that stayed along the ice and beat La Salle netminder Aidan McCabe on his stick (right) side. The Explorers’ response came just 23 seconds later when Chris Wnek beat Andrew Custer from after a dash down the left wing. Benner put La Salle in front with 35 seconds left in the opening period.

The second period was scoreless. Benner scored his second goal of the game 4:22 into the third frame to restore La Sale’s two-goal lead but Paulo Colavita’s goal with 6:11 left in regulation got the Hawks (11-13) back into the game.

It took LaSalle just 61 seconds to respond. Nick Astolfi restored the Explorers’ two-goal lead before Nolan Woundenberg added an empty net goal with 1:14 remaining.

“We’ve got to bring a solid (48) minutes,” said St. Joseph’s Prep assistant coach Rich Black. “We played a great seven minutes. We came out hard, we were moving … We just need to put together a full game giants these guys.”

Top seed Holy Ghost Prep defeated Malvern Prep 4-1 in the other semifinal. La Salle will be seeded second in the Class AAA Flyers Cup and will face seventh-seeded Roman Catholic on March 5 at 7:30 at Hatfield Ice in a quarterfinal game. The Hawks, who are seeded third, will face sixth-seeded Cardinal O’Hara in a quarterfinal game the same night at the Skatium. Game time will be 8:45. The Explorers have won all four meetings over the Hawks this season but two of the four required overtime.

St. Joseph’s Prep 1 0 1—2
La Salle 2 0 3—5
First-period goals: Michael Urbani (SJP) from Austin Amato, 5:46 (pp); Chris Wnek (L) from Francis Ford, 6:09; Nathan Benner (L) from Jake Armstrong and Ryan Ferry, 15:25;
Third-period goals; Benner (L) from Armstrong and Colin Keiser. 4:22; Nolan Woudenberg L) from Andrew Budzynski and Aidan McCabe, 14:46 (en).
Shots: St. Joseph’s Prep 27, La Salle 31: Saves; Andrew Custer (SJP) 26; Aidan McCabe (L) 25

The Hill School 4, La Salle 1

HATFIELD— Hill School had a substantial head start in its matchup against La Salle Wednesday afternoon. The Blue scored twice before the contest was three-and-a-half minutes old and went on to a 4-1 win over the Explorers at Hatfield Ice in a Mid-Atlantic Prep League encounter.

The Explorers (8-12) found themselves outgunned in the early going. Gabriel Shipper opened the scoring for the Blues (9-4-1) just 23 seconds after the opening faceoff when he beat La Salle netminder Aidan McCabe. Will Schiller made it a 2-0 game at the 3:26 mark.

“(The Hill School) is a tough team to play catch-up against,” said La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner. “We know what we’re up against. Most of these Mid-Atlantic Prep schools are older than us across the board. They’ll have guys repeat a grade. But that’s very good for us, I think.
‘We have to learn to move our feet, compete harder, for the things that ultimately in the end will make us a better team.”

Schaller scored his second goal of the game on a power play effort with 43 seconds left in the first frame. After that, the two teams skated on something closer to even terms. Thomas Beaudoin extended Hill School’s lead with a goal in the final minute of the second period,

Meantime, Sean Parker was impregnable in the Blues’ net. Colin Keiser finally got La Salle on the scoreboard 1:19 into the final period, But that was all the Explorers could manage.

Next up for La Salle is an APAC matchup against St. Joseph’s Prep on Friday.
“We’re hoping for a good practice tomorrow,” Muehlbronner said, “Get ready for Friday night, which will be our Senior Night. That’s our focus right now.”
Hill School 3 1 0—4
La Salle 0 0 1—1
First-period goals: Gabriel Shipper (HP) from Henry Gartner and Michael Rockovich, :23; Will Schaller (HS) from Otto McLaughlin and Brock Weimar, 3:26; Schaller (HS) from McLaughlin and Shipper, 16:17 (pp)
Second-period goals:Thomas Beauvoir (HS) from Nico McCurrach,14:49;
Third-period goals: Colin Keiser (L) from Keenan Schneider and Jake Harmon, 1;19.
Shots: Hill School 28, La Salle 16; Saves: Sean Parker (HS) 15; Aidan McCabe (L) 24

La Salle 6, Holy Ghost Prep 1

HATFIELD— A half season’s worth of effort is seemingly starting to pay dividends for the La Salle Explorers. Keenan Schneider scored twice and three other players added one goal each as the Explorers bested Holy Ghost Prep 6-1 Friday night in an Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference game at Hatfield Ice.

It was the first regulation win in league play for La Salle, which improved to 1-2-1-1 in the APAC and 8-10 overall versus a schedule that would best be described as rugged.

“As fas as league games go, it’s the best three periods we’ve played this year,” said La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner. “We played consistent from start to finish. So, it’s something to build on for sure.”

The Firebirds (8-4, 2-3-0-1 the APAC) were making their first start since December 20. It was not an auspicious beginning to the new year.

“We just didn’t come to play,” said Holy Ghost Prep coach Gump Whiteside. “We laid an egg. We didn’t play well collectively and the better team beat us tonight.”

The Explorers were outshot 10-5 in the opening period but found themselves up 1-0 at its conclusion, thanks to a goal from Nathan Benner at the 3:11 mark. Aidan McCabe provided support in goal, making 10 saves in the first frame, a number of them while his mates were dealing with two Firebird power plays.

The Explorers extended their lead in the second session. Jake Armstrong scored on a shot from the left circle exactly three minutes into the period and David Bruner made it a 3-0 game at 11:10 from a deep angle on the right wing that got inside the right post past Firebird netminder Bobby Baehser.

Holy Ghost Prep (8-4, overall, 2-3-1-0 in the APAC) got a goal from Brady Baehser with 2:33 left in the period but the Explorers pulled away in the third frame on a goal from David Kimmel and two more from Schneider.

“We’re coming together as a team,” Schneider said. “Right now, we’re playing as a team and we’re just rolling, honestly.”

Muehlbronner has focused on keeping his lines together to build cohesiveness. Schneider, a sophomore was teamed with Kimmel and Jake Hammond.

“We’ve kind of fought through a lot of the adversity by trying to get the lines staying together,” he said, “not making wholesale changes. We’ve done it, burn I think there’s definitely some chemistry starting to grow between the guys.”

Holy Ghost Prep 0 1 0—1
La Salle 1 2 3—6

First-period goal: Nathan Benner (L) unassisted, 3:11;
Second-period goals: Jake Armstrong (L) from Max Maddalo, 3:00; David Bruner (L) from Maddalo, 11:10; Brady Baehser (HGP) from Carlos Rodriguez and Aidan Mulholland, 13:27.
Third-period goals: David Kimmel (L) from Jake Hammond and Keenan Schneider, 6:56; Schneider (L) from Kimmel and Nolan Woudenberg, 9:40; Schneider (L) from Hammond, 15:51.
Shots: Holy Ghost Prep 17, La Salle 18; Saves: Bobby Baehser (HGP) 12, Aidan McCabe (L) 16.

Elsewhere

Malvern Prep 5, St. Joseph’s Prep 4 SO

Chris Blango scored in the third round of a shootout to Malvern Prep a 5-4 win over St. Joseph’s Prep Friday night in an APAC matchup at the Class of 1923 Arena at the University of Pennsylvania.

Blango scored two goals in regulation for the Friars (6-4 overall, 2-3-2-0 in the APAC), who moved within two points of St. Joseph’s Prep (6-8, 3-0-0-3 in conference) in the league standings.

Michael Urbani scored twice for the Hawks, who scored twice in the third period to force overtime.

Malvern Prep 2 2 0 0 (1)—5

St. Joseph’s Prep 2 0 2 (0)—4

First-period goals: Jimmy Craig (SJP) from Michael Urbani, 3:15 (pp); Urbani (SJP) from Craig and Ben Briskin, 5:42 (pp);Pierre Larocue (MP) unassisted, 11:54 (sh); Jimmy Kirk (MP) from Quinn Dougherty, 13:15.

Second-period goals: Chris Blango (MP) from Jack Constabile. 3:35 (pp); Blango (MP) from Constabile and Matt Harris, 13:24.

Third-period goals: Urbani (SJP) from Matt Moresco and Jeffrey Hammond, 1:01; Moresco (SJP) from Dominic Fantozzi, 10:49 (pp).

Check out out Hockey Happenings podcast as well count down to the 2020 Flyers Cup. I’m joined by Flyers Cup Committee President Eric Tye.

Catch it HERE. New episode each Friday.

LaSalle Strives to Make its Students the Best They Can Be

Ever since its founding in 1858 by the Brothers of Christian Schools, LaSalle College High School has been committed to developing young men spiritually and socially as well as academically. Situated in Springfield Township, Montgomery County, just outside Philadelphia, LaSalle boasts a student population of 1,050 boys in grades 9-12.

Wally Muehlbronner, the school’s hockey coach, is also LaSalle’s assistant director of admissions.

“A LaSalle education is about really getting to know your students and touching the hearts of the students,” he said. “So, it’s much more than obviously developing them academically. Being the best student they can be is obviously very important, but really getting to know the students and helping them develop into the best versions of themselves would be the ultimate goal.”

There are over 500 applicants each year for 265-275 places in LaSalle’s freshman class. The pool of applicants includes students from over 100 different grade schools and middle schools. Muehlbronner offers an overview of what the school is seeking in prospective new students.

“First and foremost, we want good kids,” he said. “We want good character kids. We want students who are willing to work hard to be the best students that they can be academically, and students that are going to get involved outside of the classroom, So, we want certainly well rounded students, but first and foremost, we want good character kids who are going to help make the community here stronger.

“So academically, obviously, they need to be good students, and they need to perform well on the scholarship entrance exam but we also look very heavily on their recommendations and their prior performance academically at their grade schools.”
Muehlbronner says most prospective students start thinking seriously about LaSalle in the seventh grade, but adds this caveat.

“It’s gotten and earlier and earlier the longer I’ve done this,” he said. “The kids start exploring the options at an earlier age. We even offer sixth-grade practice test. So, we have sixth graders that will come in in March and take a practice test, as well as seventh graders that would take a practice test in March, and that gives them a good feel of what to expect at schools like LaSalle on the entrance exam for when it matters the most, in eighth grade.

“But most of the students attend an open house in the fall of their seventh-grade year. They take the practice test in March. Some of the students, as seventh graders, may choose to come and visit and spend a full day with us, and shadow a current student.”

Muehlbronner says the intensity of the application process picks up in a student’s eighth-grade year. “They come and they spend a full day with us in the fall,” he said. “They take the scholarship entrance exam, typically in early November or the end of October, and then decisions start getting made on admissions in December.”

The school takes steps to make the freshmen feel comfortable, even before they officially begin their careers at LaSalle.

“We have a Mass together to kick things off,” Muehlbronner says. “That’s done in March of every year. All the families will come in and we have a Mass the Class of 2023 will have their Mass coming up in March and then from there we do freshman orientation with them.
“There’s a lot of different icebreakers so the guys get to meet each other. A lot of times it’s homeroom competitions that they’ll have to create a little bit of camaraderie amongst the homerooms, but then get to meet all the other students.
“Then from there it’s really just staying with them. The freshman guidance counselor, the dean of students, all the different things that go in to helping to introduce them to LaSalle.”

Like the other three school in the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference, LaSalle is a single-sex institution, a setting that Muehlbronner says some distinct advantages.

“The single-sex environment helps the guys I think really be themselves,” she said. “They’re not trying to do things to try to impress somebody.

“We hear from the guys when we talk to them. We do different panels here where our students will talk to prospective families about their experience at LaSalle, and oftentimes the parents will ask them ‘What’s it like to go to an all-boy school?’ And the first thing we here is that they love it; there’s a brotherhood, you can be yourself. Nobody’s putting on airs to try impress somebody, but it is a good competitive environment, where guys want to do the best they can in the classroom and outside the classroom. They’re very comfortable getting involved in many different things.

“We have kids that kids that are involved in the theatre program here, the music program here, that are also some of the best athletes in the school. So, there are an awful lot of things they can get into not feel like it’s not the cool thing to do. It’s cool to get involved and it’s cool to be yourself and make the most out of your experience here.”

Muehlbronner notes that students who are considering LaSalle are likely considering all-male schools as well, including the other members of the Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference.

“The competitiveness at all four of our schools is a healthy competiveness,” he said, “and I think there’s tremendous support here for the guys to help them along the way. They’re going to fail in things at times but that’s okay. That’s part of learning and growing.”

Muehlbronner has been LaSalle’s hockey coach for 21 seasons and the program has compiled has compiled a remarkable record in that time. His teams have won eight Flyers Cups four state titles and, this season, the APAC’s inaugural championship.

As successful as the program is however, it is but one of a number of outlets for LaSalle students to express themselves.

There’s a pretty clear understanding with the guys as far as what’s expected of them,” Muehlbronner said, “just like all the athletes here. But it’s no different from what’s expected from the kids that are on the robotics team or are heavily involved in the music program; it’s the same. Something that enhances their experience here and helps them grow as young men.”

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By Rick Woelfel