Of Southeastern Pennsylvania
By: CR South News
STAFF WRITER
BRISTOL, PA - In the SHSHL’s AA division this year one thing is for sure, anyone can beat anyone on any given night, with one exception, nobody has beaten Council Rock South. We’ve seen teams that were supposed to be favorites going into the season, fall to supposedly lesser opponents, as was the case last week when Neshaminy beat the favored Pennsbury Falcons in the pre-Thanksgiving Gannon Cup. Suddenly, Neshaminy was to be taken seriously, and last night's game against the Golden Hawks would be their ultimate test as the Hawks have been cruising through their schedule so far, having not lost a game to date.
The first period started with each team feeling out their opponent with some "one and done" rushes, but not really any sustained pressure by either team. It was Council Rock who would get on the board first when the line led by Jake Weiner outworked the ‘Skins defense in the corner and would bring the puck to the crease. After an initial shot, a scramble ensued, and it was Weiner, who has really become a force for the Golden Hawks with his work ethic and productivity, who would open the scoring. Each team would fail to score on power play opportunities to end the first period as the play, again, was a bit tenuous.
Council Rock got on the board early to start the second as, less than two minutes in, Sam Reiter would make a nice deflection of an Evan Mostoller shot for a 2-0 lead. At this point the Hawks seemed to get complacent or over-confident, something that Hawks coach Joe Houk will surely have to keep in check, and they were no longer showing the hunger and work ethic that made them the team to beat so far this season. As a result, Neshaminy would take advantage. Nolan Geria entered the Golden Hawks zone with the puck as part of a 2 on 1. He would shoot from the left circle and score a goal that Hawks goaltender Carson Lopez admittedly wanted back. “My defenseman tried to block the shot and so it came off of the stick funny and I just lost it. I heard it hit the padding in the back of the net and said ‘aw, crap’”. Luckily for Carson, Council Rock would answer before the end of the period on a goal that was credited to Chase Tovsky, but could’ve also been from Weiner. Either way it was a big goal and took the life out of the ‘Skins, who were starting to look like they were going to make a game out of it.
Whether it was a short bench, apparently Neshaminy had several players out with injury or illness, or just a feeling of insurmountable odds, the ‘Skins just didn’t have it in the third period. The Golden Hawks outshot Neshaminy 16-3 and, if not for a great performance by ‘Skins goalie Cory Hemberger, the game could’ve been a blowout. The Golden Hawks would tack on just one more goal, Weiner again with his second (or third?), to finish out the scoring and make it a 4-1 final, Council Rock remaining unbeaten in regular season contests. Final shot totals were Neshaminy 26, and CR South 39.
The Golden Hawks look like a complete team thus far, with stars like Kevin Koles and Blaize Pepe continuing their great play, but also production from young players like Weiner, as well as continued solid goaltending from senior Carson Lopez. If they can avoid the pitfalls of overconfidence and arrogance, and keep their work ethic intact, they will indeed be a tough team to beat the rest of the season, starting next week with a rubber match against Council Rock North.
GAME RECAP
TEAM |
1ST |
2ND |
3RD |
END |
---|---|---|---|---|
NESHAMINY |
0 |
1 |
0 |
1 |
CR SOUTH |
1 |
2 |
1 |
4 |
1ST PERIOD
8:26 CR SOUTH #18 Jake Weiner (even strength) (#10 Jeremy Rayher, #72 Ilya Kudzinau)
2ND PERIOD
1:37 CR SOUTH #94 Sam Reiter (even strength) (#66 Evan Mostoller, #76 Blaize Pepe)
5:45 NESHAMINY #27 Nolan Geria (even strength) (#22 David McColgan, #45 Michael Rago)
13:25 CR SOUTH #28 Chase Tovsky (even strength) (#24 Bobby Gilbert)
3RD PERIOD
4:28 CR SOUTH #18 Jake Weiner (even strength) (unassisted)