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STRONG THIRD PERIOD GIVES SHALER 5-1 VICTORY OVER TIGERS

by Dom Gliozzi

The Tigers saw a tight game broken open midway through the third period as Shaler scored three late goals on their way to a 5-1 victory over NA on Sunday night at Blade Runners in Harmarville.  Controlling the early part of the first period, the Titans scored two even strength goals at 3:01 and 4:33 to take a 2-0 lead.  The Tigers regained some momentum at the end of the period as senior defenseman Ben Sardon set up junior forward Lloyd Carmack for an open shot, point blank in front of the Shaler goalie who responded with the save at the 12:06 mark.   Additional scoring opportunities by senior forward Dan Leibhart and Carmack were thwarted as the period expired.  Shaler out shot NA 9-4 in the first period.

The Tigers opened the second period with a power play at the 31 second mark but couldn’t find the net on two shots during the man advantage. At even strength, the Tigers broke through at 4:29 as senior forward Corey Lamagna slid a perfect pass through the left face-off circle to sophomore forward Anthony Guntrum, waiting at the right post to bury the shot, closing the gap to 2-1.  Shaler could not score on a power play commencing at 9:31 of the period, and the Tigers saw the period end trailing by a 2-1 margin.  The Tigers controlled the flow of the second period and out shot Shaler 7-5. 

The third period saw the Tigers dominate the early play with crisp passing and end-to-end rushes but to no avail.  At the 29 second mark, the 2:21 mark and the 3:38 mark, excellent scoring possibilities did not translate into goals with shots coming from Leibhart, Guntrum and Carmack respectively. Senior goalie Austin Naylor made a fine save on a wraparound at 6:11 to keep the deficit at 2-1.   Shaler then tallied three consecutive even strength goals (6:58, 12:30 and 13:20) to put the contest out of reach. The Titans out shot NA 8-7 in the third period, and 22-18 for the entire contest. 

With the loss, the NA record in league play dropped to 0-7 on the season.  The Tigers will be idle during the Thanksgiving break and await word from the PIRHL official schedule for the resumption of league play the weekend of December 5-6.  

Photo Gallery 

GAME SUMMARY
SHALER - 5  NORTH ALLEGHENY - 1

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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LATE GOAL BY SENECA VALLEY STOPS
TIGERS IN 4-3 LOSS

Seneca Valley scored a power play goal with 25 seconds remaining to give the Raiders a 4-3 victory over NA at the RMU-Island Sports Center on Saturday night.  Senior forward Dan Leibhart scored twice for NA with senior defenseman Ben Sardon adding the third Tiger goal that tied the game in the third period.

The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the first period on a goal by Leibhart before Seneca tied the game 1-1.  In the second period, Leibhart struck again to give NA a 2-1 advantage, but the Raiders came back to tie the game once more at 2-2 after two periods.  After taking a 3-2 lead early in the final stanza, Sardon tied the game at 3-3 midway through the period.  The late goal by Seneca Valley spoiled the Tigers' hopes for an overtime contest.

With the loss, the NA record dropped to 0-6-0 in PIRHL play.  The Tigers will host Shaler Area on Sunday at Bladerunners in Harmarville with game time scheduled for 5:00 pm.

(Thanks to Dom Gliozzi for the information in this report!)

GAME SUMMARY
SENECA VALLEY - 4  NORTH ALLEGHENY - 3

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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TIGERS FALL TO PINE-RICHLAND, 5-1

by Dom Gliozzi

In a penalty marred game, Pine-Richland scored three third period goals to pull away from the Tigers for a 5-1 victory Sunday afternoon at the Island Sports Center.  Pine-Richland opened the scoring right away, at the 38 second mark, with an even strength tally.  Junior forward Lloyd Carmack tied the game in quick order at the 4:58 mark, an even strength goal, with an assist by junior forward Corey Lamagna.  Both teams went on power plays in the period (Pine-Richland at 7:05 and North Allegheny at 13:13) but neither team could find the net again.

North Allegheny killed an early 2^nd period Pine-Richland power play (2:36) as strong goaltending by senior goalie Austin Naylor and strong defensive play kept the Rams off the board.  During that penalty kill, Carmack zipped down the rink on a one-on-none breakaway that he created through a deft poke check, but he could not get the shorthanded equalizer past the Pine-Richland goalie.  Bolstered by another power play, Pine-Richland broke through for the lead at the 6:56 mark with a bouncing shot from the left point that just trickled over the goal line past Naylor.  This power play goal moved Pine-Richland ahead 2-1, a score that remained through the end of the period despite a flurry of penalties that saw both teams sending players to the box in quick succession.

The third period started with the Rams taking another penalty (1:08) to even the manpower at 3 on 3, yet Pine-Richland scored at even strength (2:48) to stretch the lead to 3-1.  An NA power play at mid-period saw Pine-Richland tally shorthanded at 7:37, moving the lead to 4-1.  Another Pine Richland power play (10:52) was killed by the Tigers, but Pine-Richland iced the game for a 5-1 lead at 13:56.  The penalty fest saw Head Coach Dave Gordon removed from the bench in the final period (under Pennsylvania Interscholastic Roller Hockey League rules) for having had 8 penalties called against the Tigers.  Junior Andrew Gordon was also removed for a 3^rd penalty infraction in the contest, also a PIRHL mandate.  Solid efforts were turned in by the whole team, but the constant man-power situations hampered the Tigers at critical moments in the chippy contest. 

The Tigers dropped to 0-4-1 (1 overtime loss) on the season and will host the Seneca Valley Raiders next Saturday, November 14, at 8:30 PM, at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center on Neville Island.  

Photo Gallery

GAME SUMMARY
PINE-RICHLAND - 5  NORTH ALLEGHENY - 1

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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STRONG THIRD PERIOD GIVES BALDWIN
 5-2 VICTORY OVER TIGERS

by Dom Gliozzi

Following the inspired play of senior goaltender Austin Naylor’s 32 save performance, the Varsity I In-Line Hockey team played even with Baldwin for two periods before succumbing in the third, 5-2, Saturday night at the Island Sports Center.  The Tigers opened the scoring only 13 seconds into the game as junior forward Lloyd Carmack, assisted by junior forward Corey Lamagna, put the Highlanders down 1-0 with a quick give and go set-up.  Baldwin went on a power play at 2:03 but could only muster one weak shot, as the Tiger penalty killers and Naylor held off the speedy opponents with superb pressure.  An outstanding save on a one-on-none by Naylor at the 8:35 mark preserved the lead, but Baldwin tied it shortly after (even strength) with an unassisted goal at the 9:05 point of the period.  Naylor’s nine saves, many acrobatic in nature, kept the game 1-1 after the first period.

The scoreless second stanza saw the pace quicken and plenty of high-quality scoring opportunities, but both teams were stymied by strong goaltending.  From the 11:12 mark though the end of the period, both the Highlanders and Tigers exchanged penalties and embarked on brief power players sandwiched around a 3 on 3 spell that neither squad could capitalize on.  The score remained 1-1 after two periods, with Naylor tallying eight more saves.

In the third, Baldwin broke through with an even strength goal at the 6:12 mark and held off a strong rally by the Tigers by putting in an unassisted (even strength) tally at the 11:07 point on a bouncer from the left face-off circle.  The Tigers responded fast, as senior forward Nick Schubel, assisted by Lamagna, brought the Tigers back to within a goal, now down 2-3, at the 13:18 mark.  With goaltender Naylor pulled, the Highlanders deposited two empty netters at 13:34 and 14:04 to preserve the hard fought victory. 

Still looking for their first win, the 0-4 Tigers take on the Pine-Richland Rams next Sunday, November 8, at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center at 1:45 PM.

GAME SUMMARY
BALDWIN - 5  NORTH ALLEGHENY - 2

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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TIGERS FALL TO PENN-TRAFFORD,
6-5, IN OVERTIME

by Dom Gliozzi

Penn-Trafford scored just 39 seconds into overtime to edge the Tigers, 6-5, at the Hot Shots Area in Mt. Pleasant on Saturday afternoon.  Seniors Dan Liebhart and Nick Schubel scored two goals each to pace the NA attack but the Tigers fell just short.

On Saturday, the Varsity I In-line Hockey Team traveled to HotShots Arena in Mt. Pleasant to take on the Penn Trafford Warriors in an early season PIRHL contest.  P-T controlled the early flow, but senior forward Dan Leibhart opened the scoring at the 3:52 mark of the first period with an unassisted, short handed goal after stripping the puck from a P-T defenseman.  Senior forward Nick Schubel added to the NA lead at 10:24 of the first period (at even strength) on an assist by senior defenseman Ben Sardon.  At 11:13 of the period, P-T cut the lead in half.  P-T threatened again at the end of the period with a power play which was effectively stymied by the NA shorthanded troops, including senior goalie Austin Naylor, who recorded 11 first period saves.

The second period turned into a see-saw affair as P-T, fresh off the power play, immediately tied the game 24 seconds into the stanza.  NA regained the lead 3-2 as Nick Schubel pumped in his second goal (even strength), unassisted, at the 2:34 mark.  P-T tied the game 3-3 (even strength) at 5:53, and both teams pressured each other but could not add further tallies the reminder of the period.

NA took control early in the third period as junior forward Corey Lamagna drove to the net on a strong rush by Dan Leibhart and banked in a shot that deflected off two P-T players before bouncing on the goalie’s pads and into the net.  This 4-3 NA lead came at exactly the 1:00 mark.  Dan Leibhart provided a two goal lead for NA at 3:05 with his second of the day, at even strength, assisted by Lamagna.  P-T returned the favor very quickly, cutting the lead to 5-4 at 3:43.  Both teams played aggressive hockey down the stretch, and it resulted in a 2 on 1 break where P-T tied the game 5-5 at the 13:05 mark.

The five-minute overtime period, which is played 3 on 3, ended abruptly in heartbreaking fashion as P-T fired a long shot on goalie Naylor who made the initial save.  The rebound went straight into the air, landed on Naylor’s back, and dropped softly over the goal line to give the Warriors their first and only lead of the game at the :39 mark of overtime.  It was the NA squad’s best showing of the early portion of the season, which has seen their record fall to 0-3.   Next up for the Tigers will be the Baldwin Highlanders on Halloween night, Saturday, at the RMU Island Sports Center on Neville Island.  Game time is scheduled for 7:30 pm.

GAME SUMMARY
PENN-TRAFFORD - 6  NORTH ALLEGHENY - 5

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

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The Tigers will compete again this year in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Roller Hockey League (PIRHL).  NA will be in a league comprised of seven other teams.

PIRHL 2009-10 VARSITY 1

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