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Penn-Trafford beats Hempfield to win program’s 1st Penguins Cup title

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Monday, March 16, 2026 | 10:42 PM

If they gave a star of the game in the PIHL Class 2A Penguins Cup final, Penn-Trafford goalie Tyler Funk would have won it.

A close second would have been Brock Bienemann, who scored two goals and assisted on a third, to lead Penn-Trafford to a 4-3 victory Monday night against regular- season champion Hempfield.

It was the first Penguins Cup title for Penn-Trafford (17-5-0-0-1), and it comes with a trip to the state finals against the winner of Wednesday’s game between North Penn and Boyertown at 2 p.m. Saturday at Ice Line in West Chester.

Hempfield (18-4-0-0-1) was in its first Pens Cup final.

Funk made 45 saves on 48 shots.

“Tyler Funk,” Penn-Trafford coach Brian Zagorac said. “I do not think I have seen a goalie performance like that in a long time. We would not be here without him.”

Funk, a junior, is 6-1 in the PIHL playoffs. He was in goal in 2024 when the Warriors were defeated by Thomas Jefferson.

“I play better when there is a lot of action,” Funk said. “I have a lot of high-shot games. It keeps me focused. I started thinking about this game when I woke up this morning. It feels great.”

Zagorac said losing to Thomas Jefferson probably prepared Funk for this game.

Funk also had help from his defense. If he allowed a rebound, his defense was there to clear the loose pucks.

“This feels amazing to have my name on the first banner,” Funk said. “It is an honor.”

Hempfield had consistent pressure on Penn-Trafford’s defense and Funk all game.

“He was a wall,” Hempfield coach Mike Albright said. “His defense was also outstanding. We just made a couple of mistakes, and they capitalized.

“He kept them in this game. The shot totals (48-21) do not lie. He was a big part of it. He is a great goalie.”

Penn-Trafford scored an early goal when Bienemann’s shot from the left faceoff circle beat Hempfield goalie Evan Saltzgiver. Liam Lehneke assisted.

The Warriors made it 2-0 in the second period by scoring a power-play goal on a pretty but sneaky play from behind the net.

Zagorac called the play “Fake Michigan.”

Bienemann started to his right, feigning a lacrosse-style attempt and drawing Saltzgiver with him. But he left the puck to the right of the net, which allowed Ben Zierski to grab it and tuck it into a wide-open net.

“We tried it at practice, and when we pulled it on Tyler, we knew it would work on any goalie in the world,” Zagorac said. “I was waiting for the right time to call it. I felt if we could get a second goal on them, it would deflate them and they executed it perfectly.”

Hempfield finally beat Funk on its 29th shot when Colby Herron scored 1 minute, 32 seconds left in the second period to make it 2-1. Jonathan Holtzman and Nathan Planey had assists.

“I felt we played a solid game,” Albright said. “I would say nine times of out 10, we win that game. But they had Funk, and he was a wall.”

Bienemann scored his second goal of the game and fourth of the playoffs to make it 3-1 with 11:58 left. Jordan Tucek and Sean Goodman had assists.

But Hempfield got some life with 9:39 left when Guerin Gardner scored on a penalty shot to make it 3-2.

Penn-Trafford’s Sean Goodman answered with a slap shot with 17 seconds left for a 4-2 lead.

“Adversity never got to these guys,” Zagorac said. “Their fight, they never got down. We told them if they scored a goal, keep going and get the next one, and Ben did.”

Hempfield had one more chance as senior Mats Martz scored unassisted with 59 seconds left to cut the lead to 4-3.

“This program has come a long way,” Albright said. “We were barely a playoff team last year, and we were No. 1 in the division. We fought all season to be in this position. One team had to win, and it was not us.”

Funk and the Warriors stayed strong and never let the Spartans tie the score.

“It is euphoric,” Zagorac said. “I could not believe the game was over. I thought they scored with seven seconds left.

“I asked my coaching staff, ‘Was this real?’ I am so proud of this team. It means the world to me to bring it to the team, the school and these kids. I cannot wait to see our banner hung at the school.”

Paul Schofield is a TribLive reporter covering high school and college sports and local golf. He joined the Trib in 1995 after spending 15 years at the Daily Courier in Connellsville, where he served as sports editor for 14 years. He can be reached at pschofield@triblive.com.

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