PIHL High School Hockey Notebook – 01/16/2012

By: HSSN Staff
Monday, January 16, 2012 | 5:43 PM

Welcome to another edition of “PIHL Notebook,” your weekly companion to “The PIHL Power Play” on the MSA Sports Network. This week, Pittsburgh Central Catholic, Latrobe, Serra Catholic and Wheeling Central Catholic are among the teams “Melting the Ice” while the “Scoreboard Watch” includes a hat trick of overtime thrillers.

PIHL CLASS AAA:

MELTING THE ICE

Canon-McMillan’s quest for perfection continues with a 13-0-0 mark … Staying in Section 1, Peters Township and Upper St. Clair have points in two straight while Bethel Park has recorded a point in its last three … Mount Lebanon continues to lead Section 2 after two consecutive victories … Pittsburgh Central Catholic has gotten back to .500 with points in two straight … Penn-Trafford is coming off back-to-back wins atop Section 4 while State College has points in two straight.

SCOREBOARD WATCH

1/9/12 – Section 4: Penn-Trafford 4, Norwin 1 … After a scoreless first, Joe Aiello started the scoring for Penn-Trafford on a power play at 4:05 of the second … Conlan Sodrosky would net the eventual winner just 2:43 later … Dante Youhon got Norwin on the board at 3:08 of the third, but Dan Maier would add insurance markers at 8:39 and 13:47, the latter coming with the man advantage … Dan Petrovay and Sodrosky picked up two assists while Maier added one … Scott Cromling turned aside 24 shots in a losing effort while Mike Cheswick made 31 saves to earn the victory.

1/9/12 – Non-section: State College 2, Pittsburgh Central Catholic 2 (OT) … James Pozycki got the Vikings on the board at 6:21 of the first … Dalton Bown answered just 2:15 later on the power play, but Tristan Ramage answered with the man advantage for a 2-1 Pittsburgh Central lead … It held until 3:05 of the third when Stefan Horgas tied it with another Little Lions power play goal … Zach Woytowich stopped 20 shots for State College, but Brian Burger stole the show with 32 saves at the other end.

PIHL CLASS AA:

MELTING THE ICE

West Allegheny continues to cruise atop Section 1 with an eight-game winning streak while Moon has captured two straight victories … Bishop Canevin and Erie Cathedral Prep are tied for the Section 2 lead with five and seven-game winning streaks respectively … Latrobe has gained control of Section 4 after back-to-back wins.

SCOREBOARD WATCH

1/9/12 – Non-section: North Hills 5, Franklin Regional 4 … When you put two struggling teams together, sometimes you wind up with an exciting hockey game, and this one fit the bill … After the Panthers scored just 23 seconds into the contest, the Indians scored four unanswered to take a 4-1 lead 30 seconds into the second … Lucas Chiala of Franklin took over from there, recording a natural hat trick starting at 1:11 of the second and ending at 5:03 of the third … It looked like we were heading to overtime until Tyler Heisel netted the winner during a North Hills power play at 13:05 for his second goal of the contest … Tyler Volc (1 G, 1 A) and Ryan Kuchnicki (2 A) also contributed multiple points to the winning effort while Nicholas Cecere (3 A) and Austin Avampato (2 A) did the same in the loss … Nick Resnick made 23 saves to earn the victory, but tip your cap to Macioce Richard’s 47 stops.

1/12/12 – Non-section: Latrobe 5, Chartiers Valley 3 … The Colts looked good early, but the Wildcats dominated the third period to steal the win … Chartiers Valley led 1-0 after one and 3-1 when the Zamboni made its appearance, but Latrobe netted four during the final 15 minutes … Jacob Koluder was all over the ice, ending up with three goals including the winner, one on the power play and one assist … Brandon Harris (1 G, 3 A) and Zameron Roth (2 A) were also busy for Latrobe … Anthony Franks (PPG, 1 A) was the only multi-point performer for Chartiers Valley … Shane Brudnok stopped 23 shots to earn the victory while Noah Stevenson made 29 saves.

PIHL CLASS A:

MELTING THE ICE

Serra Catholic is back on the right track after taking two straight decisions … Mars and Quaker Valley have matching nine-game winning streaks in Section 2 … Hampton is still cruising in Section 4 with a four-pack of victories.

SCOREBOARD WATCH

1/10/12 – Non-section: South Fayette 4, Westmont Hilltop 3 (OT) … The Lions simply refused to say die in this one and gained a huge momentum boost over a quality program … The Hilltoppers struck first midway through the second, but it was 1-1 at the break … The two teams would continue to alternate goals in period three with Nick Schultz tying it at 9:52 … Joe Testa would get the winner just 1:35 into the extra frame unassisted … Nick Schultz (2 G, 1 A), Ryan Schultz (PPG, 2 A) and Testa (1 G, 2 A) each had three-point nights … Westmont Hilltop got two power play goals from Evan Good and three assists from Stephen DeMarco … Nicholas Blocher made 26 saves for South Fayette while Adam Ayre stopped 19 pucks.

1/12/12 – Non-section: Quaker Valley 5, Kittanning 4 … The Wildcats had this one under control early, but let it slip away as the Quakers keep their winning streak alive … Kittanning led 2-0 at 6:15 of the first and 3-1 at 3:02 of the second, but Quaker Valley scored three unanswered before intermission to grab a 4-3 lead … The Wildcats scored just 36 seconds into the third and almost held on, but James Perkins won it for the Quakers at 10:49 … Jayson Lottes starred for QV with four points (2 G, 2 A) with help from Perkins (1 G, 2 A) and Kevin Kenny (1 G, 1 A) … Heinz Koster was his usual self for Kittanning with three points (2 G, 1 A) while Christian Miller (1 G, 1 A) and Hunter Grafton (2 A) chipped in two points apiece.

PIHL OPEN CLASS:

MELTING THE ICE

John Marshall remains within a point of Morgantown atop Section 1 thanks to a six-game unbeaten streak … Wheeling Central Catholic is righting the ship with a hat trick of victories getting the Maroon Knights to 6-9-0 … Blackhawk has moved to 6-5-1 with points in its last three contests … Ford City’s seven-game winning streak has been enough to keep control of Section 1, but Indiana is only a point back and knocking on the door with back-to-back victories … Baldwin has pushed its winning streak to six games.

SCOREBOARD WATCH

1/10/12 – Section 1: Morgantown 4, John Marshall 4 (OT) … The Mohawks led 2-0 after one, but the Monarchs stormed back and took a 3-2 lead to intermission … Morgantown tied it back up early in the third before gaining a 4-3 lead at 8:15, but it lasted less than a minute as Isaac Fitzpatrick ended the scoring at 9:03 for his second of the night … Tyler Rice was the only other player with multiple points, putting up a goal and an assist for the Mohawks … Zach Taylor stopped 26 shots for Morgantown while Drew Balcar made 20 saves for John Marshall.

1/11/12 – Non-section: Indiana 3, Greensburg Salem 1 … The Indians snap a four-game winning streak for the Golden Lions while cementing their spot as a serious contender for the Chiefs Cup … Patrick Kuta scored on an Indiana power play at 12:51 of the first … Logan Lazor netted the winner at 1:37 of the second … Michael Cochran added some insurance midway through the third before Regis Garris spoiled the shutout bid at 10:08 … Kuta and Cochran each picked up one assist … Andrew Boschert made 24 saves in the losing effort while Austin Moody turned aside 14 shots.

UPCOMING MSA BROADCASTS

1/19/12 – Open Class – Section 4: Baldwin @ Greensburg Salem … The Highlanders will look to keep their winning streak alive and avenge an 8-5 loss back on December 2 to the Golden Lions … Sean Beichner stole the show in that contest, registering six points (5 G, 1 SH, 1 A) … Greensburg Salem also got multiple points from Cody Austad (3 A), Shawn Sperlik (PPG, 2 A) and Logan Davis (2 G) … Baldwin got three points from Dakota Becker (2 PPG, 1 A) and Brian Dee (2 G, 1 A) … The puck drops at 7:15 PM with Matt Vandriak and Josh Rowntree on the call.

1/22/12 – PIHL All-Star Sunday @ Rostraver Ice Gardens … Don Rebel and Mark Schaas start the day at 11:30 AM with the Class A game … Steve Nagler and Brandon Rebel are up next with Class AA at 1:30 PM … Bob Orkwis and Mike Azadian have you covered with Class AA at 3:30 PM … Adam Hoerner and Josh Rowntree call the night cap with Class AAA at 5:30 PM.

THEY SAID IT:

“There’s nobody more frustrated than me the last couple of November’s and December’s. I know there are parents who hate me, and some of the players don’t like me, but our thing is we keep the same lines, try to do the same things and keep getting better throughout the year. Beating Peters Township and North Allegheny has helped, but if we peak now it doesn’t do anything if we lose in March. I don’t care if we win at the end. I just care that we’re playing our best.” – Bethel Park head coach Jim McVay on the Black Hawks’ recent trend of slow starts and hot finishes

That wraps up this edition of “PIHL Notebook,” but check back every Monday from now through March for the most current news from around the league. First, though, Adam Hoerner and Josh Rowntree host another episode of “The PIHL Power Play” on Wednesday night at 8:00. Joining us this week will be Greensburg Salem forward Sean Beichner to discuss his assault on the league scoring title. The exclusive home for the 2012 Penguins Cup Playoffs is the MSA Sports Network!

Tags: Baldwin, Bethel Park, Bishop Canevin, Blackhawk, Canon-McMillan, Erie Cathedral Prep, Ford City, Greensburg Salem, Hampton, Indiana, John Marshall (WV), Latrobe, Upper St. Clair, West Allegheny, Wheeling Central Catholic (WV)