Scott Huff recaps the ice hockey season to date for SOL squads.
By Scott Huff
The strange odyssey of the Council Rock South Golden Hawks may or may not continue this season.
Last year (2010-2011) Rock South won the prestigious Flyers Cup – but lost the Suburban High School Hockey League title to Central Bucks East. The year before that (2009-2010), CR South did not win the Flyers Cup but won the SHSHL trophy. And the year before that (2008-2009) the Hawks won the Flyers Cup but failed to win the SHSHL championship.
“This year we want to win both,” said Council Rock South head coach Joe Houk. “We lost only five varsity guys from last year’s team, and we have very high expectations for this group of players. We have to play some really good competition this year, and teams are going to come hard at us and try to beat us.
“We have had good contributions from everyone so far, and our first line has been outstanding,” added Houk in reference to the Steve Junod-Kyle Walter-Nick Keck line. “And so far we have answered some questions about our goaltending.”
Justin Houk – son of Coach Houk – and Nathan Dzikowski have split games so far this season. Both are unbeaten, and it doesn’t get much better than that.
CR South (5-0) will square off with CR North (3-2-1) for the Rock Cup on Thanksgiving Evening – opening face-off will be at 7 pm at the Bucks County Ice Center.
“My kids are always off the wall for this one,” said Houk. “They have played either with each other on club teams, or against each other on the high school teams, and they always want to see who is the best. It is always a great game.”
SHSHL National & Continental Division Snapshot
National Division
Council Rock South has been perfect so far this season with a 6-0 combined National & Continental record and an overall mark of 7-0. The Golden Hawks have run the table thus far with wins over Abington (8-0), Archbishop Wood (7-1), Pennridge (6-5), William Tennent (7-3), and Central Bucks West (10-0). Excluding the stats from the CB West win, Steve Junod is the leading scorer with nine goals and nine assists for 18 points. Kyle Walter has scored five goals with six assists for 11 points, while Nick Keck has scored three goals with eight assists for 11 points.
Pennsbury has the second best winning percentage as the Falcons have a combined 3-1 divisional record and an overall mark of 6-3. Pennsbury has registered division wins over Archbishop Wood (5-3), William Tennent (5-0), and Souderton (2-1). The lone divisional loss for the Falcons was versus North Penn (2-1). John Thornton leads Pennsbury in scoring with five goals and ten assists for 15 points. Nigel Honegger has six goals and eight assists for 14 points, while Luke Matthews has scored nine goals with five assists for 14 points.
Council Rock North has gotten off to a good start with a 3-2-1 combined divisional record and is 3-3-1 overall. The Indians have claimed wins over William Tennent (3-1), Neshaminy (5-2), and Archbishop Wood (5-1). Rock North tied Abington 2-2, while losing games to Central Bucks South (2-1) and North Penn (7-2). The leading scorer for the Indians has been Michael Shander with five goals and two assists for seven points, while Mike Heverly (2-2-4), Josh Gregov (2-2-4), and Mark McDonald (0-4-4) have also chipped in.
Archbishop Wood is on the heels of Rock North with a 3-3 combined divisional record and an overall mark of 4-4. The Vikings have wins over Neshaminy (4-2), Abington (6-4), and Central Bucks East (3-2). Wood has lost to Council Rock South (7-1), Pennsbury (5-3), and Council Rock North (5-1). Ryan Menke is the leading goal scorer for the Vikings with eight goals and two assists for 10 points. Matt Mandes has tallied six goals and three assists for nine points, while Joey Keenan has scored five goals with two assists for seven points.
Abington has collected a win and a tie as the Ghosts chase the division leaders. Abington is 1-2-1 in divisional action and is 2-4-1 overall. The Ghosts have beaten Central Bucks East (3-2) and tied Council Rock North (2-2). Abington has lost division games to Council Rock South (8-0) and Archbishop Wood (6-4). The Maroon and White are led in scoring by Kevin Junod with four goals and five assists for nine points. Konrad Thallner and Kenneth Mascaro have each scored four goals with three assists for seven points.
William Tennent has one combined divisional win early this season,as the Panthers own a divisional record of 1-4-0 and an overall mark of 2-4-0. The victory for Tennent came in a 6-2 victory over Central Bucks West. The Panthers have lost games to Council Rock North (3-1), Council Rock South (7-3), Pennsbury (5-0), and Central Bucks East (5-2). The leading scorer for William Tennent is Clint Aussprung with 11 goals and an assist for 12 points. Gary Matyok has scored seven points – all assists – while DJ Mulhern has scored a goal with four assists for five points.
Neshaminy is still in search of its first divisional win of the seasonas the Skins have an 0-4-0 divisional record and a 1-4-0 overall record. The divisional losses have been to Archbishop Wood (4-2), Council Rock North (5-2), Council Rock South (7-2), and Central Bucks South (10-1). The leading scorer for the Skins has been Nick Verdi with two goals and three assists for five points. Jake Kitchenman and Steven Lee have each scored four points for the Redskins.
Continental Division
Central Bucks South has been unbeaten this divisional season with a combined divisional mark of 5-0-1 and an overall record of 6-1-1. The victories for the Titans have come over Central Bucks East (4-2), Central Bucks West (7-2), Pennridge (7-3), Council Rock North (2-1), and Neshaminy (10-1). CB South played to a 3-3 tie against North Penn. The leading scorer for the Titans this season has been Connor Bechtel who has scored six goals with seven assists for 13 points. Nick DeLaurentis has added seven goals and four assists for 11 points, while Bobby Mallon has tallied two goals with seven assists for nine points.
North Penn has been unbeaten this season with a combined divisional record of 4-0-2 and an overall mark of 5-0-3. The division victories for the Knights have come against Central Bucks West (9-2), Souderton (5-2), Pennsbury (2-1), and Council Rock North (7-2). The Knights have tied both Central Bucks East (1-1) and Central Bucks South (3-3). The leading scorer for North Penn this season is Jeremy Snyder with four goals and seven assists for 11 points. Ryan Merk has scored seven goals and three assists for 10 points, while Caleb Witzaney (5-4-9) and Matt Stella (4-5-9) follow close behind.
Souderton owns a .500 combined divisional record, as the Big Red is 2-2-0 in the division and 3-2-0 overall. Souderton has beaten both Central Bucks West (10-0) and Central Bucks East (6-3). The Big Red has lost divisional games to North Penn (5-2) and Pennsbury (2-1). Brian McMullin is the leading scorer for Souderton with eight goals and three assists for 11 points. Tyler DePietro has added six goals and four assists for 10 points, while Dylan Matto has scored three goals with four assists for seven points.
Central Bucks East is rebuilding and has a 1-4-2 divisional record and an overall mark of 1-4-2. The Patriots own a divisional win over William Tennent (5-2) and has tied both Pennridge (5-5) and North Penn (1-1). Losing efforts came against Central Bucks South (4-2), Abington (3-2), Souderton (6-3), and Archbishop Wood (3-2). The leading scorer for the Patriots has been Austin Baty with three goals and four assists for seven points.
Pennridge has gotten off to a solid start, as the Rams are 1-2-1 in divisional games and 5-2-1 overall. Pennridge has beaten Central Bucks West (10-0) and tied Central Bucks East (5-5). The losses for Pennridge have come against Central Bucks South (7-3) and Council Rock South (6-5). Matt Brown is off to a terrific start with 11 goals and seven assists for a division leading 18 points. Shane Lyons had added four goals and eight assists for 12 points, while Kyle Henofer has scored eight goals with three assists for 11 points.
Central Bucks West has struggled and is winless in divisional games with an 0-6 record and an overall mark of 1-6. The Bucks have lost games to Central Bucks South (7-2), Souderton (10-0), Pennridge (10-0), North Penn (9-2), William Tennent (6-2), and Council Rock South (10-0). The leading goal scorer for CB West is Austin Siemion with eight goals and three assists for 11 points.
SHSHL American Division
Class A
Lansdale Catholic finished the 2010-2011 regular season as the third place finisher in the SHSHL American Division with a division mark of 7-5. However, the Crusaders knifed their way through the division playoffs to capture the SHSHL Class A title. LC defeated Upper Dublin (8-4) in the semi-final round and followed with a series win over regular season champion Hatboro-Horsham (8-3-1) to capture the trophy.
“Our goal at the start of the season is to repeat as league champions,” said Lansdale Catholic head coach Mark DiDonato as his Green and Gold have gotten off to a 3-1 division record. “We have gotten off to a good start, but we have had some players issues due to conflicts with club teams and injuries.”
The SHSHL American Division scoring leader at the outset of the season thus far has been senior Crusader captain Nick Sette.
“When Nick is on the ice – he is the best player on the ice,” said DiDonato. “He has size and all the tools to be a great player. Plus he has the size and the mindset to be the best player he can be.
“Nick is our captain, and we lean on him quite a bit,” added DiDonato. “He takes charge in the locker room, at practice, and during the games. He speaks up when he has to, but he does most of his leading by example.”
Another player that has gotten off to a wonderful start for the Crusaders is Anthony DiDonato – son of the coach.
“Anthony is a very solid player that is smart and knows how to play the game,” said Coach DiDonato. “He can be a very physical player when he has to be physical, but he can also be a finesse player. He has done a good job for us so far this year.”
The Crusaders will meet North Penn on Thanksgiving Evening in a big-time rivalry contest.
“There are posters all over school encouraging fans to come out,” said DiDonato. “This is a big game for the kids, and I expect that we will be able to be at full strength roster wise. It should be a great night.”
SHSHL American Division Snapshot
Lansdale Catholic is the division leader with a 3-1 division record and a 4-3 overall mark. The Crusaders have claimed division wins over Wissahickon (2-1). Upper Moreland (8-5), and Upper Dublin (5-4). The lone loss has been to Upper Moreland – 6-1. Nick Sette has scored 12 goals and added five assists for a league leading 17 points. Anthony DiDonato (5 goals-5 assists -10 points) and Anthony Valerio (4-5-9) trail Sette in scoring.
Wissahickon is second in the division standings with a 1-1 division record and a 3-5 overall mark. The Trojans have claimed a division win over Upper Moreland (4-1) and have a division loss to Lansdale Catholic (2-1). Joey Sutow leads Wissahickon in scoring with eight goals and two assists for 10 points. Luke Honorowski also has ten points (7 goals, three assists), while David Pataki has notched two goals and seven assists for nine points.
Upper Moreland is in third place in the division standings with a 1-2 division record and an overall mark of 3-3. The Golden Bears have division wins over Lansdale Catholic (6-1) and losses to both Wissahickon (4-1) and Lansdale Catholic (8-5). Sean Lloyd is the leading scorer for the Bears with 16 points on 12 goals and four assists. Matt Baumgardner has 15 points on eight goals and seven assists, while Nick Park has tallied a goal and seven assists for eight points.
Upper Dublin is in fourth place in the division standings with an 0-1 division record and an overall mark of 2-4. The lone division game was a 5-4 setback against Lansdale Catholic. Samuel Etskovitz is the leading scorer for the Flying Cardinals with 11 points on five goals and six assists. Ben Hoffman has scored three goals with six assists for nine points, while Steve Barbera has scored six goals with two assists for eight points.
Hatboro-Horsham is an impure team and cannot compete for a division title. The Hatters will play against many of the teams in the division despite not be able to win a championship. Hatboro-Horsham has opened the season with an 0-7 record. Manny Billones leads the Hatters is scoring with nine goals and three assists for 12 points, while Patrick Durkin has scored seven goals with five assists for 12 points.
Suburban One Sports.com
Fab Five
1. Council Rock South Golden Hawks (5-0)
2. Central Bucks South Titans (5-0-1)
3. North Penn Knights (4-0-2)
4. Pennsbury Falcons (3-1)
5. Council Rock North Indians (3-2-1)
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