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NORTH ALLEGHENY VARSITY ICE HOCKEY

File Photo by Ken McGlumphy

TIGERS SHUT OUT FRANKLIN REGIONAL, 4-0

Senior goalie Jeff Kristan stopped all 15 shots by Franklin Regional as the Tigers defeated the Panthers, 4-0, at the Ice Arena in Delmont on Friday night.  Sophomore forward Wes Waldschmidt had a hat trick to pace the NA scoring.  Junior forward Chris Gilson had the final NA tally.

After a scoreless first period, Wes Waldschmidt took control.  On an assist from senior Brandon Lied, the Tiger sophomore gave the Tigers a 1-0 lead.  Senior Matt Pekins set up Waldschmidt for his second goal to make it a 2-0 Tiger advantage.  Late in the period, senior forward Derek Rusbarsky and junior defenseman Paul Dittrich picked up assists as Waldschmidt tallied his third straight goal, a natural hat trick, to give the Tigers a 3-0 lead after two periods of play.

In the final period, Gilson scored on assists from junior forward Joe Camut and senior defenseman Ryan Sheran to make it a 4-0 game.  Neither team scored in the remainder of the period as the Tigers wrapped up their third win in four tries.

The Tigers outshot the Panthers, 28-15 in earning their third victory against one loss in the early PIHL season.  The Tigers will be back in action again on Tuesday night when they host the Norwin Knights.  The North Allegheny Sports Network will be there to broadcast the game LIVE on the internet beginning with the pre-game show at 8:10 pm.

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 4  FRANKLIN REGIONAL - 0

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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TIGERS TOP GATEWAY, 7-1, IN PIHL HOME OPENER

Seniors Matt Pekins and Garrett Waldschmidt scored two goals each to lead the Tigers to a 7-1 victory over the Gateway Gators on Tuesday night at Bladerunners in Warrendale.  NA broke open a close game with five goals in the third period.

Garrett Waldschmidt set up Pekins for the first goal of the game as NA took an early 1-0 lead.  Waldschmidt followed with an unassisted goal to push the lead to 2-0 after one period of play.  The Tigers dominated the game throughout the first two periods, outshooting Gateway 23-3, but the Gators scored late in the second period to cut the lead to 2-1.

The Tigers exploded for five third-period goals to secure the victory.  Senior Brandon Lied scored on assists from juniors Alan Halapin and Paul Dittrich to make it a 3-1 game.  Garrett Waldschmidt's second goal made it 4-1 with Pekins' second tally pushing the lead to 5-1.  After senior defenseman Ryan Sheran scored an unassisted goal, sophomore Wes Waldschmidt finished off the scoring on assists from Lied and Sheran.  The Tigers outshot Gateway, 32-6, in posting the victory.

With the victory, the Tigers improved their record to 2-1 in PIHL play.  NA will travel to Franklin Regional on Friday night to meet the Panthers in a 7:20 pm contest.

(Thanks again to Jim Pekins for the information in this report!)

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 7  GATEWAY - 1

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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TIGERS BLAST BUTLER, 9-2, FOR FIRST PIHL WIN

After losing to Upper St. Clair on Monday night, NA Coach Tom Pandolfo stressed the need for teamwork and good passing.  The advice paid off on Wednesday night at the Belmont Ice Complex as NA overwhelmed Butler, 9-2, to pick up their first win of the new PIHL season.  The Waldschmidt brothers scored four goals, with senior Garrett and sophomore Wes picking up two goals each to pace the Tigers.  Seniors Derek Rusbarsky, Brandon Lied, Matt Pekins and junior Alan Halapin all recorded three assists in the victory.

The Tigers jumped off to a 1-0 lead early on a power play by Garrett Waldschmidt, and Halapin made it 2-0 on assists from Pekins and Rusbarsky.  Early in the second period, Butler scored to cut the lead to 2-1, but the Tigers answered quickly with goals by Wes Waldschmidt, Garrett Waldschmidt and Pekins to take a commanding 5-1 advantage after two periods.

NA continued the assault in the third period with goals by junior defenseman Ian McGlumphy, junior forward Chris Gilson, Wes Waldschmidt, and senior defenseman Matt Zrebiec.  Senior Jeff Kristan and junior Brandon Wieldwald split the night in goal and combined to stop 11 of 13 Butler shots.  The Tigers finished the night with 38 shots.

The win evened the NA record at 1-1.  The Tigers will open the home season on Tuesday night when they entertain the Gateway Gators.  

(Thanks to Jim Pekins for the information in this report!)

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 9  BUTLER - 2

INDIVIDUAL SCORING (NA ONLY)

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UPPER ST. CLAIR EDGES NA, 2-1, IN PIHL OPENER

The Tigers lost a tough 2-1 decision to the Upper St. Clair Panthers at the Ice Castle in Castle Shannon on Monday night in the PIHL opener.  The Tigers were ranked #2 while USC was #3 coming into the new season.

After a scoreless first period, the Panthers were able to take a 1-0 lead on a power play and held the lead through two periods.  With ten minutes remaining in the game, USC increased the margin to 2-0.  Senior Derek Rusbarsky brought the Tigers back when he scored a power play goal on an assist from sophomore Wes Waldschmidt with just over five minutes left.  NA ran out of time as USC held on for a 2-1 victory.  The Tigers outshot USC, 26-13, but ended up a goal short.

The first home game will be on Tuesday, November 9, when the Tigers host the Gateway Gators.  The North Allegheny Sports Network will be there to broadcast the game LIVE on the internet beginning with the pre-game show at 8:10 pm.  Game time is scheduled for 8:20 pm at Bladerunners in Warrendale.

GAME SUMMARY
UPPER ST. CLAIR - 2  NORTH ALLEGHENY - 1

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PITTSBURGH TRIBUNE-REVIEW
CLASS AAA - PIHL PRE-SEASON RANKINGS 

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TIGERS DOWN PLUM, 4-2, TO WIN CHAMPIONSHIP OF ST. MARGARET'S TOURNAMENT

Four different Tigers scored goals to lead the Tigers to their third championship in four years at the St. Margaret's Fall Face-Off Tournament at Bladerunners in Harmarville on Thursday night.  The Tigers got goals from seniors Brandon Lied, Garrett Waldschmidt and Matt Pekins, along with sophomore Wes Waldschmidt, as NA built a 4-0 on their way to a 4-2 victory and the championship.

In the first period, the Tigers opened up strong against Plum goaltender Brandon King and it paid off.  Lied scored first on a bank shot off King to give NA a 1-0 advantage at the 8:47 mark.  Late in the period, Garrett Waldschmidt took a pass from senior Derek Rusbarsky and beat King to extend the lead to 2-0 with just 2:47 remaining in the period.  The Tigers kept coming and Wes Waldschmidt was able to drive home a Lied rebound as the Tigers took a 3-0 lead after the first period.

The Tigers continued to pressure the Plum goal early in the second period.  Pekins was able to beat King with a wrist shot over the Plum goalie's golved hand and the Tigers had a commanding 4-0 advantage just 2:41 into the period.  Plum was able to cut the lead to 4-1 on a power play goal by Phil Mains with 8:01 left.  Neither team could score for the remainder of the period and NA took a 4-1 lead into the final period.

The Tigers were content to protect the lead throughout most of the third period, but Phil Mains was able to cut the lead to 4-2 at the 5:57 mark.  The Tiger defense and senior goalie Jeff Kristan held the lead as NA killed off a power play at the end of the game to earn a 4-2 victory and the tournament championship.

Plum scored power play goals in the second and third periods to close the gap, but the Tigers were able to kill off a last-minute power play to preserve the victory.  It was the second consecutive year that NA defeated Plum in the final, winning last year, 2-1, in four overtimes.

The Tigers will begin their PIHL schedule on Monday, November 1, when they travel to Upper St. Clair for a7:00 pm.  

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 4  PLUM - 2

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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TIGERS DUMP FRANKLIN REGIONAL, 4-1, TO ADVANCE TO FINAL OF ST. MARGARET'S TOURNAMENT

The Tigers knocked off the Franklin Regional Panthers on Tuesday night at Bladerunners in Harmarville in the semifinals of the St. Margaret's Fall Face-Off Tournament to advance to the championship game.  Senior forward Matt Pekins scored a pair of power play goals and senior forward Derek Rusbarsky added two late tallies to pace the Tigers.

The Tigers took a 1-0 after one period on Pekins' first power play goal as the Waldschmidt brothers teamed up to earn assists.  In the second period, Pekins scored again with the man advantage as senior forwards Garrett Waldschmidt and Rusbarsky earned assists.  NA lead by a 2-0 score after two periods of play.

In the third period, the Panthers cut the lead to 2-1 on a power play score of their own.  With less than five minutes remaining, Rusbarsky put the game away on an assist from Pekins as the Tigers increased the lead to 3-1.  Rusbarsky added yet another power play goal in the last minute as the Tigers advanced to the final with a 4-1 victory.  Senior goalie Jeff Kristan was solid in net for the Tigers allowing just one goal.

The Tigers will meet the Plum Mustangs in a rematch of last year's memorable four-overtime game won by the Tigers, 2-1 on Joe Smarto's game winner.  Game time is scheduled for 8:30 pm at Bladerunners in Harmarville.

(Thanks again to Jim Pekins for info in this report!)

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 4  FRANKLIN REGIONAL - 1

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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THIRD PERIOD RALLY PUSHES NA OVER PINE-RICHLAND, 4-1

Trailing 1-0 entering the third period, the Tigers exploded for four goals on their way to a 4-1 victory over Pine-Richland in the first round of the St. Margaret's Fall Face-Off Tournament at Bladerunners in Harmarville.  The Rams had scored on a power play in the second period to take a 1-0 lead that they maintained into the second intermission.

Early in the third period, the Tigers came out strong with sophomore Wes Waldschmidt tying the game on assists from seniors Brandon Lied and sophomore Matt Lancaster.  A few minutes later, it was Wes Waldschmidt again, this time on assists from Lied and junior Alan Halapin.  The Rams pulled their goalie late in the game, but the Tigers netted open net goals by senior Matt Pekins and Derek Rusbarsky to put the game away.

The Tiger defense played strong in front of the net with seniors Matt Zrebiec and Ryan Sheran, along with juniors Paul Dittrich and Ian McGlumphy, keeping the area clear in front of senior goalie Jeff Kristan.  The Tigers will meet Franklin Regional tonight in the semifinals.  Game time is scheduled for 8:30 pm at Bladerunners in Harmarville.

(Thanks to Jim Pekins for info in this report!)

GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 4  PINE-RICHLAND - 1

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

ST. MARGARET'S FALL FACE-OFF TOURNAMENT
Bladerunners in Harmarville
October 11-14, 2004

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TIGERS BEAT BETHEL PARK, 5-2, IN SEASON OPENER

The Tigers defeated the Bethel Park Blackhawks, 5-2, at Bladerunners in Warrendale on Friday night in preseason action.  Junior Chris Gilson scored a pair of goals to pace the Tigers while senior Matt Pekins, junior Paul Dittrich and junior Joe Camut added goals for the winning Tigers.  

Dittrich gave the Tigers an early 1-0 lead, but Bethel came back near the end of the first period to tie the game at 1-1.  The Tigers built a two-goal with a strong second period.  Pekins scored on a power play on a pass from senior Garrett Waldschmidt to give NA a 2-1 advantage. Gilson then scored the next two goals to open the lead to 4-1 before Bethel Park countered with a shorthanded goal to cut the lead.  Camut quickly regained the three goal advantage as he scored on a pass from junior Chris Simanic.

Neither team was able to score in the third period as senior goalie Jeff Kristan slammed the door on the Blackhawks.  The win gave the Tigers some momentum going into the St. Margaret's Tournament next week.  NA will open play at Bladerunners in Harmarville with a 6:30 game on Monday night.

 GAME SUMMARY
NORTH ALLEGHENY - 5  BETHEL PARK - 2

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PIHL VARSITY AAA STANDINGS
as of 11/13/04

Any questions or comments should be directed to Athletic Director Bob Bozzuto at:  bbozzuto@northallegheny.org