Archbishop Ryan Raiders

MT LEBANON – They were parking on Cedar Boulevard and on the sidewalks and all over the hillside for what was billed as ‘the game’. You see the Mt Lebanon Recreation Center is a mecca of sorts and when Bethel Park and Mt Lebanon lock horns, everything else gets thrown out the window because this is a great rivalry, which has stood the test of time for over 25 years. We all remember the 1997 game at Rostraver, when the Blue Devils held a 4-0 lead entering the third period and Bethel Park stormed back to win it with five unanswered tallies en route to their first ever Pennsylvania Class AAA crown. And in 2002, when Mt Lebanon rode a wave all the way to the Penguins Cup only to be dispatched by the Hawks, who were on their way to their third consecutive Pa State crown. The common denominator has been Jim McVay, who always has his Bethel Park teams prepared and especially for rival Mt Lebanon. Mt Lebanon Paul ‘Pat’ Taibi has not had a lot of sleep lately, because of this game to be honest. The # 1 seed, a great season for the Blue Devils and a possible dream of that elusive State Championship could all go away if Mt Lebanon could not beat Bethel. The last meeting of the two teams saw Bethel Park hold a 1-0 lead until late in the third period, but the Blue Devils rallied to win 3-1. This one would have a lot more meaning and significance if Mt Lebanon could beat Bethel Park before a fantastic standing room only crowd 2-3 deep around the glass and along the railing settled in at the Mt Lebanon Recreation Center. Oh how important the opening goal would be in this one and both teams knew it as the first period was fiercely contested and displayed tight checking and some clean but physical play. BP goalie Bryce Merriam made a nice stop on Tony Valerino at 11:15 and another on Chad Uddstrom after a nice feed from Eric Sloan at 8:20. Bethel went on the power play at 4:27, but the Blue Devils killed it with a nice penalty killing effort. The shots were 6-5 in favor of Mt Lebanon, but Bethel Park looked as if they were the aggressor at times in the opening period. Merriam continued to shine as he made an acrobatic save on Michael Jordan from just in front at 10:51. The Blue Devils went on the power play and this time they would capitalize as Billy Leckenby unleashed a wicked slapshot from the center point which Merriam juggled and dropped for a rebound, which Chad Uddstrom found and swept past the big Hawk keeper for a 1-0 Lebo lead at 9:25. The Blue Devils pressed for the second goal but Bethel Park staved off the Mt Lebanon surge and 10-4 second period shot advantage. Bethel Park was still very much in this hockey game entering the third period and Mt Lebanon was struggling with a few turnovers early on. Michael Diethorn intercepted a neutral ice pass and transitioned the play into the Blue Devil zone. On a tremendous individual effort, Diethorn somehow got a shot off on a 1 on 2 and the shot eluded Matt Vaughn and apparently hit the post to the right of Vaughn at 9:52. The Bethel Park fans thought it went in, but the referees ruled no goal, which was a huge turning point in this hockey game and an even bigger break for Mt Lebanon. The Blue Devils seized the opportunity as Eric Sloan took the puck from his own end and raced into the Bethel zone and around the net. Sloan showed great quickness and hands as he swooped around the Bethel net on a wraparound and beat Merriam to the post at 8:28 for a big insurance goal and a 2-0 Mt Lebanon lead. Bethel Park tried to rally but Matt Vaughn and the Blue Devils shut the door and when Chad Uddstrom found the empty net with just :49 seconds left, the Blue Devils would march one more step in the process with a 3-0 victory over BP.