Fox Chapel sees fruits of talent, coaching in lead-up to Pens Cup final

By: Josh Rizzo
Monday, March 17, 2025 | 6:16 PM

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Ryan Loebig felt fortunate he didn’t have to build the Fox Chapel hockey program from the ground up. When Loebig took over before this season, his desire was to tinker with some small things to make the team more productive.

The Foxes will see if that is enough to get over the top when they take on Erie Cathedral Prep in the Class 2A Penguins Cup final at 6:15 p.m. on Tuesday at UPMC Lemieux Complex. The Foxes have never won a Pens Cup.

“I jumped on a moving train. It was good the players knew each other,” Loebig said. “The process has been implementing what I like to do and getting the guys to buy in. Since the new year, everything has been going well.”

The Foxes (18-3-0-0-1) won 10 of their last 11 games to close the regular season to earn the top seed, finishing three points ahead of the Ramblers. Fox Chapel scored 116 goals, which was 14 more than the next closest team, Penn-Trafford, to lead Class 2A.

“We like to cause havoc and create turnovers,” senior captain Tyler Goldstein said.

Cathedral Prep (16-4-2) has made a strong run through the playoffs as a No. 2 seed. The Ramblers didn’t concede a goal during their two playoff wins.

Tucker Kinnear is Cathedral Prep’s leading scorer, contributing 20 goals and 14 assists. Chris Bruschi (12 goals) and Ethan Cunningham (11) were also double-digit goal scorers for the Ramblers.

Fox Chapel swept Cathedral Prep during the season, winning 4-2 and 3-1.

“They are a tough, strong team,” Loebig said. “They played us hard, and we know it will be a tough game.”

The Foxes made the Penguins Cup in 2023 when they were in Class A. It was Fox Chapel’s first appearance in the championship game in 20 years. Losing to Kiski was a difficult pill for Goldstein to swallow.

“There will be a lot of urgency,” said Goldstein, who finished with a goal and 10 assists during the season. “It’s like a Game 7. Win or go home.”

The Foxes have plenty of firepower in their lineup. Dominic Casile led the Foxes with 32 goals and 25 assists. Tucker Cullen (28 goals), Hayden Ferra (14) and Liam Wiseman (12) also reached double-digit goals for the Foxes.

Casile leads Fox Chapel in the playoffs with four goals, and Ferra has three. Grant Watson has made two starts in goal for the Foxes and has a .912 save percentage and a 2.50 goals-against average.

Goldstein said this is an opportunity he doesn’t want to miss.

“I thought when we moved up to 2A that we had the talent base to win,” Goldstein said. “Winning would be great because Fox Chapel has never won a Penguins Cup. It would be history for the organization.”

Tags: Fox Chapel