NORTH ALLEGHENY SPORTS NETWORK

Ice Hockey

 Photo courtesy of Al Durick, Portraits Plus Studio

THIRD PERIOD GOAL BY BETHEL PARK BEATS TIGERS, 2-1

Coach Brian Hershberger’s Tigers battled to the very end but came up a goal short as they lost to the defending PIHL Champion Bethel Park Blackhawks, 2-1, on Tuesday night at Bladerunners in Bethel Park.  Freshman defenseman Paul Dittrich had given NA a 1-0 lead early in the first period.  Bethel tied the game with a power play goal in the second period.  Bethel’s Grady Clingan defected the game winner into the net with just 5:54 remaining in the game.

The Tigers started out with a strong physical game, featuring several crushing checks dished out by senior winger Brian Maloney.  The strategy seemed to throw off the Bethel Park attack and paid dividends when Scott Sheeser was called for hooking, giving NA an early power play.  Dittrich was able to drive the puck into the left hand corner of the net on a slap shot from the left point.  Maloney and sophomore Derek Rusbarsky picked up assists as the Tigers took a 1-0 lead.  Bethel came back to threaten the NA goal for the remainder of the period, but junior goalie Bobby Daly came up big as the Tigers took a 1-0 lead to the first intermission.  Bethel Park outshot NA, 12-4, in the opening stanza.

Early in the second period, junior forward Joe Smarto had a good scoring chance down the right wing, but Bethel goalie Matt Feige got a glove on the shot and knocked it off the right post.  Junior defenseman Joe Williams was called for holding just 3:06 into the second period.  The Tiger penalty killers kept Bethel off the board as NA continued to hold the 1-0 lead.  With a little over five minutes left in the period, Bethel forward Branden Hanley made a brilliant move and came in alone against Daly.  After Daly did not bite at Hanley’s fakes, the Tiger goalie stopped Hanley’s backhand attempt.  With 3:01 remaining in the period, sophomore defenseman Jacob Ridley was called for interference giving the Blackhawks their fourth straight power play.  This time, Bethel converted.  Connor McLean made a good pass across the crease to Clingan who tapped it into the net to tie the game.  There was no further scoring and the teams went to the second intermission with the scored knotted at 1-1.

Both teams played cautiously throughout most of the third period.  NA had a great opportunity early in the period when Michael Martik took a high sticking penalty at the 12:34 mark.  The Tigers had chances, but Feige was equal to the occasion and NA did not score.  The game winner came when Aaron Adrian’s soft shot bounced off Clingan into the net to give Bethel Park a 2-1 lead.  The Tigers pulled Daly with about a minute to go but were unable to score.

It was a tough loss for NA to close out the season.  The Tigers finished with a 12-13-1 overall mark, but they finished the year with three wins in their final four games, including a 3-2 OT win at Cathedral Prep in the first round of the playoffs.  The North Allegheny Sports Network selected senior defenseman Joe Rosenberg as the Player of the Game for his consistent defense throughout the game.

GAME SUMMARY
BETHEL PARK – 2          NORTH ALLEGHENY – 1

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

PENALTIES

GOALTENDER STATS

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PENGUIN CUP PLAYOFFS

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WALDSCHMIDT'S GOAL IN OVERTIME BEATS CATHEDRAL PREP

Senior Bill Waldschmidt scored with 1:08 remaining in overtime as the Tigers upset #3 seed Cathedral Prep, 3-2, in Erie on Thursday night.  Senior Marc Clermont had tied the game with a goal late in the second period.  In a well-played game from the outset, Prep outshot NA, 29-25, but junior goalie Bobby Daly made 27 saves to earn the victory.

Even though the Tigers bus broke down on the way, getting the team to the arena just minutes before the starting time, the Tigers took the lead with 5:10 remaining in the first period when NA's leading scorer, senior Tim Ward, scored a power play goal.  Waldschmidt and junior Joe Smarto picked up assists as the Tigers took a 1-0 lead into the first period intermission.  Last year, Prep defeated NA, 3-2, to knock the Tigers out of the playoffs in the second round.

Kyle Rogers came back for Prep with a pair of goals in the second period as the Ramblers jumped back on top, 2-1.  In an earlier game at Erie, Prep had defeated NA, 2-1, but this time the Tigers came back.  With 2:41 left in the period, Clermont got the equalizer, on assists from sophomore Brandon Lied and senior defenseman Chad Rittle.  Neither team could score again and the period ended with the score tied at 2-2.

The teams battled through a scoreless third period, although the Tigers came on strong near the end of the period.  NA dominated the overtime period and Waldschmidt finally ended things with his goal.  Assists went to Ward and Lied as the Tigers advanced to the quarterfinal round of the Penguin Cup Playoffs.

Coach Brian Hershberger said, "They're a very physical team and they play with a lot of pride.  They beat us last year in the playoffs and they wanted to complete the sweep."  Hershberger added, "When you play a team twice in a year, that has a lot to do with it.  Both times we  played them tough.  Both games were close, but in one of our losses we felt that we outplayed them.  We knew then we could outplay them."  The Tigers were 1 for three on the power play while holding the Ramblers to 0-for-3.

NA will meet top seed and defending champion Bethel Park at Bethel Park in the next round of play.  The Tigers lost two tough games to the Blackhawks, 3-2 and 4-2, during the regular season and look for revenge.  We will have the date and time for the game as soon as we receive it.

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 3  CATHEDRAL PREP - 2 (OT)

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

GOALTENDER STATS

Stats Courtesy of Dave Rosenberg

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WARD’S HAT TRICK LEADS TIGERS OVER SHALER, 6-2

Senior Tim Ward scored three goals to lead the Tigers to a 6-2 win over the Shaler Area Titans on Friday night at Bladerunners in Warrendale.  Senior Bill Waldschmidt added four assists as the Tigers built a 3-0 lead only to see Shaler come back to cut it to 3-2 after two periods.  A big three-goal third period put the game away for NA.

Sophomore forward Brandon Lied got the Tigers off and running as he scored just five seconds into the game.  Waldschmidt won the opening faceoff and got the puck to Lied who drilled it past Shaler goalie Drew Weinheimer to give NA a 1-0 advantage.  After the Tigers killed off two minor penalties, Ward scored his first goal of the game on a rebound with Waldschmidt earning his second assist.  The Tigers went to the first intermission with a 2-0 lead.

Early in the second period, sophomore Matt Pekins scored to give the Tigers a 3-0 lead after 2:38 seconds of play.  At this point, it looked the Tigers were on their way to an easy victory.  Shaler’s Justin Thomas made a brilliant offensive play halfway through the period as he skated through or around almost all of the NA defenders.  His shot from the right circle was stopped, but Tom Carter was there to poke in the rebound to cut the lead to 3-1 with 7:55 left in the period.  After a big scramble in front of the NA net, Chris Szczynski was able to poke the puck under Tiger goalie Bobby Daly to cut the margin to 3-2 with 4:17 left.  Neither team was able to score before the end of the period, and the Tigers went into the final period with a one-goal lead, 3-2.

The Tigers came out strong in the final period and got some breathing room just nine seconds into the period.  It was Ward again rebounding Waldschmidt’s shot into the upper left hand corner to give NA a 4-2 advantage.  The Tigers continued to press the Titans but could not score again until Ward scored from in front of the net with 5:52 left.  The third goal by Ward put the game out of reach as NA led, 5-2.  After two coincidental minor penalties, the Tigers got a power play with a minute and a half remaining.  Senior Marc Clermont was able to score the final Tiger goal with 59 seconds left as NA won convincingly, 6-2.

The win gave the Tigers a final PIHL record of 11-12-1 to place them fourth in the West Division and 14^th overall in the Class AAA standings.  Unofficially, NA will travel to Erie early next week to meet the Cathedral Prep Ramblers.  We will have the official word early next week.  Shaler dropped to 9-14-1, 3^rd place in the North Division and 16^th overall.  For his hat trick, the North Allegheny Sports Network named Tim Ward as the Player of the Game.  The Tigers outshot the Titans, 36-16, with junior Bobby Daly making 14 saves to earn the victory.

For additional playoff information this weekend, go to:  www.nsnsports.com.

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY – 6            SHALER AREA – 2

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

PENALTIES

GOALTENDER STATS

SHOTS ON GOAL

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TIGERS DESTROY ALLDERDICE, 13-0, TO MOVE CLOSER TO PLAYOFF SPOT

The Tigers had little trouble with Allderdice last night as they easily defeated the Dragons, 13-0, to move closer to a spot in the PIHL playoffs.  NA, North Hills, Shaler, Upper St. Clair, and Penn-Trafford are all fighting for the last four slots in the post-season.

By winning last night, the Tigers moved up a spot in the standings to 14th place.  Upper St. Clair picked up a big win over Central Catholic, 4-2, to stay two points ahead of the Tigers.  This week, North Hills will play Baldwin, Upper St. Clair will meet McDowell, Penn-Trafford will be at Bethel Park, and Shaler and NA will play of Friday.  

The top sixteen teams in Class AAA will take part in the 2003 Penguin Cup Playoffs.  NA is currently in 15th spot with one games to play.  The Tigers will host Shaler in the regular season finale on Friday night at Bladerunners in Warrendale.  The North Allegheny Sports Network will be there to broadcast the game LIVE on the internet beginning with the pre-game show at 7:10 pm.  Game time is scheduled for 7:20 pm.

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MEADVILLE EDGES TIGERS, 1-0, AT BLADERUNNERS

The Tigers were defeated by the Meadville Bulldogs, 1-0, on Friday night at Bladerunners in Warrendale.  Phil Sivero scored the only goal of the game with 2:18 remaining in the second period, and Meadville held off the Tigers in the third period for the win.  The Tigers outshot the Bulldogs, 9-2, in the final period but could not beat goalie Dan Oshurak.  Junior Bobby Daly was outstanding in the net for NA, stopping 22 of 23 shots.

The Tigers had a great opportunity to score in the early minutes as junior Joe Smarto’s centering pass was blocked away by Oshurak.  Neither team was able to score  in the opening stanza with Meadville controlling play in outshooting NA, 8-3.

The action heated up in the second period.  After junior Bill Weiler picked up a holding penalty early in the period, Meadville’s Jeff Holabaugh hit the post to the right of Daly.  The Bulldogs continued to pressure the NA defense as senior Marc Clermont was forced to take a cross-checking penalty in front of the Tiger goal with 5:56 remaining in the period.  NA successfully killed the penalty, but Meadville was able to score just minutes later.  Forward Brian Bahurinsky brought the puck out from the right corner and found Sivero wide open in front of the net.  Sivero beat Daly to upper left hand corner giving the Bulldogs a 1-0 lead with just 2:18 left in the period.

The Tigers came out aggressively in the third period and took the action to Meadville.  Once again, Oshurak was tough in goal, making several sprawling saves to preserve the shutout.  NA got a final chance to tie the game when Christian Nickerson took a hooking penalty when he pulled down sophomore Matt Pekins.  Senior Bill Waldschmidt came the closest to scoring when Sivero robbed him with a diving save at the 5:19 mark.  NA pulled Daly with a little over a minute left but could not score.

The victory increased Meadville’s lead in the West Division as they improved their PIHL record to 17-2-3.  The Tigers fell to 9-12-1 but are still in the running for a playoff spot.  For his efforts in goal, the North Allegheny Sports Network named junior Bobby Daly as the Player of the Game.  NA will travel to Allderdice on Monday night for a 9:00 pm contest before returning home to take on the Shaler Titans in the finale of the regular season.  The North Allegheny Sports Network will be there to broadcast the game LIVE on the internet beginning with the pre-game show at 7:10 and the opening face-off at 7:20 pm at Bladerunners in Warrendale.

GAME SUMMARY
MEADVILLE – 1                        NORTH ALLEGHENY - 0

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

PENALTIES

GOALTENDER STATS

SHOTS ON GOAL

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TIGERS CRUSH NORTH HILLS, 9-2, BEHIND WALDSCHMIDT’S HAT TRICK

Senior Bill Waldschmidt scored three times to lead the Tigers to a 9-2 victory over archrival North Hills on Friday night at the Airport Ice Arena.  Sophomore Matt Pekins added a pair of tallies as NA jumped off to a 5-0 lead and controlled the game from start to finish.  Junior goalie Mike Logoyda stopped 15 of 17 shots to earn the victory.

Senior defenseman Joe Rosenberg started the Tiger rout with an unassisted goal at the 6:41 mark of the first period.  Waldschmidt scored his first two goals in the last 1:04 of the period to give NA a 3-0 advantage after one period.  NA outshot the Indians, 13-1, in the period.

In a wild second period, the Tigers continued to push the advantage.  NA scored two power play goals early in the period to increase the lead to 5-0.  Senior Tim Ward scored just 30 seconds into the period, while Waldschmidt tallied his third goal of the game at the 7:23 mark.  North Hills came back with goals by Matt Rombach and Devin Malone to cut the lead to 5-2 at the 4:12 mark.  Sophomore Matt Pekins and senior Marc Clermont scored before the end of the period to give NA a commanding 7-2 lead after two periods.  Once again, the Tigers outshot the Indians, 23-11, giving them a 36-12 advantage in shots on goal in the first two periods.

The Tigers added two more goals in the third period.  Sophomore forward Derek Rusbarsky scored on an assist by Bill Waldschmidt at the 11:06 mark, and Pekins knocked in his second goal, a power-play goal, on another Bill Waldschmidt assist with 3:25 left. In the final period, the Tigers outshot the Indians, 10-5, and held a 46-17 advantage in shots on goal for the game.

It was a dominating effort by the Tigers over their neighborhood rivals.  NA improved their record to 9-11-1 in the West Division, improving their position for the playoffs.  North Hills dropped to 11-11-0 with the loss.  

The Tigers will be at home again on Friday night when they will meet the tough Meadville Bulldogs at Bladerunners in Warrendale.  Game time is set for 7:20 pm.     The North Allegheny Sports Network will broadcast the final two Friday night games from Bladerunners in Warrendale.  On Friday, February 21, NA hosts Meadville and on Friday, February 28, Shaler will be the opponent.  Both broadcasts will begin at 7:10 pm with the pre-game show. 

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY – 9              NORTH HILLS – 2

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

GOALTENDER STATS

Stats courtesy of Dave Rosenberg

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SOUTHWEST CONFERENCE – WEST DIVISION FINAL STANDINGS