Baldwin Highlanders - 1975 & 1988 AAA

Media Coverage of Deer Lakes, Franklin Regional, Freeport, Fox Chapel, Kittanning, Plum and Valley

HARMARVILLE ~ Bethel Park has had an interesting season under Jim McVay, in a season in which the Hawks have had a lot of highs including a 3-1 win over Meadville last Thursday and lows a 6-2 loss to rival Baldwin on Monday. BP had a lot riding on its game with Central Catholic including a home playoff berth for as many years as I can remember so we will just say the last 8 or so to be safe. The emergence of Bryce Merriam as Bethel Park’s # 1 goaltender has really spurred the Hawks to a better second half of the season and made it a real dangerous team as the playoff bell rings. As Kevin Zielmanski read off the seniors and introduce the parents before a packed house at Harmarville, it made me wonder if some of these seniors and a couple of juniors may be realizing that their careers are winding down as Vikings and the opportunity to win a State Championship will never come again after their next loss. So the Vikings could have taken the attitude that the game against Bethel was meaningless since they have the # 4 seed and home ice for the first two rounds of the playoffs in the bag. Coach Z knows that his team must prepare for McDowell or Shaler, who are both teams which the Vikings have struggled against and certainly will be entertaining thoughts of upset in the first round of the playoffs and what better team to prepare themselves than the ole nemesis Blackhawks. In a very tight checking first period, shots were few and far between and while Central tried to pressure Bethel, the Hawks stretched the ice to keep CC honest on the defensive side of the ice. Adam Kaczmarek made Jim McVay’s strategy look brilliant as he found his way behind the Central Catholic defense on the breakaway and just beat Russ Hefner on the backhand at 2:58 to give BP a 1-0 lead. The second period was quite a different story as Central Catholic turned up the heat outshooting Bethel 12-4. The Vikings tied the game at 12:14, as freshman Chris Urso lofted a wrist shot over the glove hand of Bryce Merriam and we were all knotted up at 1-1. The Vikings really picked up their game in the third, but Merriam with a little help was the story. Matt Friday had a wide open net at 10:30 but hit the right post. Then at 8:45, Merriam stoned Eddie Martin with a diving save to keep the game tied. With 1:17 remaining, Merriam stacked the pads to stop Matt Urso and the game headed to overtime. The Vikings would finally score at 2:58 of overtime as Eddie Martin fed J.R. Hess at the right point, and the right handed shooting defenseman fired a shot through traffic which found the net giving Central Catholic a thrilling 2-1 victory over Bethel Park.

DELMONT ~ The Plum Mustangs have had just plain and simple a horrible second half of the year. After starting off the year at 8-0-0, the Mustangs have gone a less than stellar 6-8-1 ever since and look to be a team heading south as the playoffs begin. With Travis Senchur and David Dincau still on the shelf with injuries, Plum was looking for a little light at the end of the tunnel with a strong performance against a very desperate Gateway team. Jerry ‘Dr. Evil’ Bass was looking to guide the Mustangs to a victory and a possible first round match-up with Butler. Gateway is a mix of very young players and a sprinkling of veterans who have been through the playoff rigors over the past few years. Coach Lou Biancanello’s squad has been playing in the playoffs for the past two weeks, with a thrilling 4-3 win over Shaler on Monday, watched next door as Franklin Regional obliged by defeating Hempfield 5-0, putting the Gators a win away from an unbelievable run just to get in the playoffs. In a pretty evenly played first period, Gateway broke out on top as Ryan Whitfield converted a Steve Lyons pass for a 1-0 lead midway through the first period. The Gators extended the lead to 2-0 as Michael DeLorenzo outmaneuvered the Plum defense and beat J.P. Balson on the backhand at 4:41. Plum went on the power play and Jonathon Smith found a loose puck in between the circles and buried a wrist shot upstairs to cut the lead to 2-1. Mike Dunlap had a golden opportunity to tie the game at 2:02 and hit the post after having J.D. Dominick in real trouble. Dominick robbed Jonathon Smith with just 19 seconds left and Gateway was clinging to a 2-1 lead. The second period was all Plum with 12 more shots on Dominick, who was looking pretty strong between the pipes. With Plum on the power play Steve Lyons carried the puck all the way into the Plum zone and threaded a beautiful pass to freshman brother Scott Lyons, who took the pass in stride and buried it past Balson for a 3-1 Gateway lead at 10:17. Aaron Arnold hit the post as Plum tried to climb back into the game at 2:43 of the middle period. Gateway was looking real tired and Plum took advantage as Jonathon Smith’s wrist shot through traffic found the net and we have a 3-2 game with 12:00 to play in regulation. With 10:30 remaining, Dominick stopped John Kalichuk and then Phil Mains on the rebound to preserve the lead. Dominick came up big at 4:30 stopping Smith’s bid for a hat trick and it looked like the Gator’s could hold on. Phil Mains had a different idea as the defenseman took the puck from his own end and unleashed a wicked slapshot from just over the blueline which handcuffed Dominick and trickled over the left shoulder to tie the game at three apiece with 2:49 to play. Plum had a great opportunity to win the game on the power play on a very marginal call by the officials, but the Gators dug in and killed the penalty sending the game into overtime. With a majority of the Hempfield team watching with a packed house at the House of the Genie Garage door opener rink at Center Ice, the rowdy Gateway fans went into bedlum as Steve Lyons somehow got a shot off through a screen of two Plum defenders and beat J.P. Balson on the stick side for a great victory for the Gateway hockey club and sending the young Gators into the playoffs with the 16th and final playoff spot with a 4-3 win in OT .

NEW KENSINGTON ~ Fox Chapel enter the season finale on the brink one of the greatest seasons in the program’s 32 year history dating back to 1971 with an 20-2-1 record. There was 1975-76, where the Foxes went 18-2-2 and fell to eventual Pa State AA Champion Abington 6-3 or 1996 when FC went 18-2-3 and fell in the first round to eventual Pa State AA champion Greensburg CC in the first round 6-4 or 1997 when the Foxes rode a wave all the way to the Penguins Cup Finals, only to be trounced by Cathedral Prep 8-2 after upsetting undefeated Plum in double overtime in the semis. Coach Keith Kearney could care less about that and is more concerned about getting leading scorers Matt Quigley and Joe Budz in the lineup for the playoffs, because if they have Quigley in the lineup, they are an undefeated hockey team and when he’s not they have a loss to Mt Lebanon and Meadville and a tie against a not-so-hot Latrobe team. Shaler has been in a battle just to make the playoffs for the last few weeks and head coach Ron Steedle was hoping for a little magic to avoid a trip to Meadville for the first round of the playoffs. The Titans clinched a playoff spot on Tuesday with a great effort in beating a very improved Penn Hills team 6-2. Shaler was looking to use this game against the Foxes as a measuring stick to atone for a 7-3 beating at the hands of the Foxes in November and possibly a .500 season at 10-11-2, with an upset of Fox Chapel. Shaler came out and took the play to Fox Chapel in the first period outshooting FC 15-9 and scored the first goal as Jim Rouda scooped up a rebound and deposited past Todd Hendry at the 10:00 mark. The second period was all Fox Chapel as they returned the favor outshooting Shaler 11-4 and tying the game on a great pass from Ryan McDonald to a wide open Dan Thiessen on the back door, who buried a snap shot past Nick Bennardo on the power play with 4:35 remaining. The third period and overtime period were just outstanding with end to end action as Shaler held a slim 6-5 shot advantage in the 3rd and the Foxes a 3-1 advantage in OT. The goaltending of Todd Hendry [25 saves] and Nick Bennardo [27 saves] shined as the teams battled to a 1-1 tie. Fox Chapel had the best chance on a 3 on 0 in the 3rd period but Ryan McDonald’s shot glanced of the crossbar as Bennardo just got a glove on it. Shaler had an excellent chance on a 2 on 1 but Jim Rouda’s shot of a Tom Carter pass just went wide. This sets up a re-match in two weeks in the first round of the playoffs as Fox Chapel will more than likely be the # 3 seed and Shaler will be the # 14 seed.

Special Report to Pa Hockey provided by Indiana and Kittanning Hockey ! KITTANNING - Indiana High School Varsity Ice Hockey team ended their season in an exciting rematch against Kittanning Thursday night with a 3-3 tie, curfewing the game before they could play it out in overtime. The Indians scored twice in the first three minutes of the game, first on a power play goal by Zach Diamond, assisted by Mike Hart. Michael Jack came back just 40 seconds later with another goal aided by Zach Damico. Indiana did not get on the scoreboard again till the third period when Cory Mills dropped one in with 6:38 remaining in the game on an assist from Hart and Brad McCoy. Goaltender Mike Mentch had 33 saves on 35 shots for the night. After Indiana built a 2-0 lead, Kittanning rallied for three unanswered goals as Pat Schneider [6:54 of 2nd], Dustin Kellner [1:52 of 2nd] and Shane Troup scored for the Wildcats. The game was curfewed before completion which is a problem that the PIHL current administration just sits back and accepts and has never even addressed at ONE MEETING. This is what make Interscholastic Hockey an illegitimate sport in the eyes of the Media because the game was NEVER decided and will NEVER be decided and its more like a Little League Baseball game than a Varsity Sport with Major League Baseball COSTS and No Collective Bargaining since the League is a Self Serving organization concerned SOLELY about money and not a non-profit Service Organization under its 501 c 3 .....its time for an Audit people !!!!