March 29, 1999 The Eagles, La Salle II and Archbishop Ryan claimed Flyers Cup titles in their respective classes. Mike Delfin banged home a rebound with just under four minutes remaining in overtime as Conwell- Egan edged Malvern Prep, 6-5, in the Class AAA Flyers Cup championship game last night at the First Union Spectrum. Delfin, a 6-foot senior winger who was named the game’s most valuable player, was planted in front of the net when David Sedmak’s left- side shot caromed off the pads of Malvern goalie Nicholas Nudy and slid just outside the crease. Delfin capitalized on the opportunity, slip- ping the puck into the right corner and giving the Eagles their first Flyers Cup title. “The puck just popped out front, and I pretty much had the whole net,” Delfin said. “It’s the biggest goal of my career, and maybe the easiest goal I’ve ever scored.” The […]

March 18, 1999 WEST CHESTER – La Salle coach Wally Muehlbronner says he has a habit of nit-picking, and he had a few things to pick at after his Explorers beat Monsignor Bonner, 4-0, in the first round of the Flyers Cup Class AAA competition at Ice Line last night. The Explorers, who improved to 16-0-1 this season, advanced to the second round of the Flyers Cup. where they will play Malvern Prep, which bested Hershey High School, 8-1, in the other first-round game last night. The La Salle-Malvern game is set for Tuesday at Ice Line at a time to be determined. The loss ended Bonner’s season with an 11-13 overall record. The Friars made things tougher than La Salle expected, especially with the play of Friars freshman goalie Frank McLaughlin, who steered away a total of 36 shots. “We had flashes where we played well, but their goaltender […]

March 16, 1999 The O’Hara goalie’s conservative style has helped put him and his team into the postseason. In the high-stakes game of chicken, two cars go barreling toward each other at great speed until one driver “chickens out,” swerving out of the way of the other car. Andrew McManus likes to play chicken on ice. The Cardinal O’Hara hockey goalie will feign aggressiveness so that he can get an onrushing shooter to commit. The junior then retreats to the safety of his goal crease and makes the save. While other young goalies tend to wander out of the crease and react to opposing offensive players by trying to cut down their shooting angles, McManus is poised enough not to let instincts control him. He prefers to react to the shooter. At 5-foot- 7 and 165 pounds, he’s not a big goalie, but opponents find it hard to get shots […]

March 24, 1999 Malvern Prep had a problem with La Salle the last two years in ice hockey. The Friars had been 0-5-1 against La Salle, and 0-1-1 this season without junior center Chase Watson. Last night, Watson scored two goals and assisted on another and Malvern erased two years of frustration by exploding for five second-period goals en route to a 6-4 victory over La Salle in the Flyers Cup Class AAA quarterfinals game. The game was played in front of more than 1,000 fans who were jammed into the Ice Line rink in West Chester. The victory enabled Malvern (15-1-2) to advance to the semifinals, in which the Friars will meet Cardinal O’Hara at 8 p.m. Thursday at the Skatium in Havertown. The loss ended La Salle’s reign as Flyers Cup and Class AAA state champions with a 16-1-1 record. Watson, a 6-foot 170-pounder missed both games against […]

March 16, 1999 The team that won the Class AAA Title in 1997 could be the biggest obstacle to a LaSalle repeat. The 20th annual Flyers Cup tournament will begin tonight, and several area hockey teams are strong contenders to reach the championship games in the three classifications. The finals are slated for March 28 at the First Union Spectrum.La Salle, which will be vying for its third Flyers Cup title in the last four years, is considered the favorite to win Class AAA. But four other teams, the 1997 champion Malvern Prep, Council Rock, Germantown Academy, and Conwell-Egan have the talent to challenge the Explorers. Cheltenham, Interboro, and La Salle II will be competing for the Class AA championship. Four area teams, Pennridge, Strath Haven, Bishop Shanahan, and Springfield (Delco) will be in the running for the Class A title. Class AAA. La Salle, which went 15-0-1 en route […]