Flyers Cup Class AAA Championship
Malvern Prep Friars vs William Tennent Panthers Apr 9, 1990
Played at the Skatium, Havertown, PA.
IN THE NEWS:
April 11, 1990
The Philadelphia Inquirer – Tennent falls in bid to retain Flyers Cup title
William Tennent coach Joe Paul witnessed “Nightmare on Darby Road” Monday night as his Panthers were slashed, 11-2, by Malvern Prep in the Flyers Cup title game played at the Havertown Skatium. “It was horrifying at times watching,” Paul said. “We just weren’t ready to play, and Malvern killed us. There was no doubt that on this night that Malvern was the better team. “I feel we had three premier players in Lance LaTare, Paul Gregg and Mike Lang. But Malvern, it seemed, had at least six premier players. We were beaten in every aspect of the game.” One of the best players the Friars had on the ice was one of four seniors, Scott Haig, who blasted his way to a 8-point night with 4 goals and 4 assists, and along with his brother, junior defenseman Keith, played an almost flawless game. Scott Haig was named the Most Valuable Player for the Flyers Cup tournament, while Keith was named the top defensive player. “I scouted that team 4 times and those kids never quite looked that good,” Paul said. “But believe me, to shut us down the way they did, they were damn good.” Keith Haig got the Friars on the scoreboard first with a power-play goal in the first period, but Lang got the goal right back for Tennent 2 minutes, 21 seconds later to tie the score at 1-1.
“We wanted to take it to their goaltender early,” said Paul. “The game plan was to play a very offensive minded game. Playing them a second time, I don’t think I would do that. Malvern is a very good offensive hockey team, and they kept coming and coming at our defense.” Malvern broke the game open late in the first period by scoring 2 goals to take a 3-1 lead. Scott Haig scored an even-strength goal, and Josh Ritti scored on a breakaway just 19 seconds later. The Friars (22-3-1) routed the Panthers (22-3-1) in the second period, 4- 0, to push their advantage to 7-1 after 2 periods. Goal scorers for Malvern were Keith Grimley, Keith Haig, Ben Coia and Mark Sakers. The pressure only increased in the final period as Malvern sent a barrage of shots on Tennent goaltender Tim Caum. The Friars received a 3-goal effort in the final period from Scott Haig, while Coia managed his second goal of the contest. The only goal scorer for Tennent was Jack Reilly, who poked in a re- bound off a shot by Lang.
Malvern had advanced to the title game with Flyers Cup wins over West Chester East (11-0), Central Bucks (9-3), and Monsignor Bonner (3-2). The Friars lost a 1-0 game to Bonner in the double elimination part of the tournament. Tennent had been unbeaten up until the title game with victories over Father Judge (7-1), Central Bucks (3-2), and Monsignor Bonner (5-4). “I can’t be too disappointed with the season,” Paul said. “We were 45 minutes away from going back to the state championship game, but we didn’t get it done. “The seniors on this team have a lot to be proud of. They played on a Flyers Cup championship team, and they had a chance to repeat by getting to the finals. I’m very proud of them.” The seniors who laced on the skates for the last time included Tennent’s version of Lethal Weapon 3 Lang, LaTare and Gregg. Other seniors include starting goaltender Caum, backup goaltender Keith Glushek, defenseman Jeff Grable, defenseman Peter Pietrangelo, defenseman Mark Hewitt, defenseman Paul Bernstein, defenseman Jack Reilly, defenseman Jim Kessler, forward Dana Christ, and forward Robert Freed. “There were 37 high school ice hockey teams that wanted to win the Flyers Cup at the beginning of the season,” Paul said. “And it came down to us and Malvern Prep. “It hurts both me and the players that we weren’t the ones to skate off with the Flyers Cup, but a few weeks from now we’ll be proud of what we accomplished this season.”
THE ROAD TO THE FLYERS CUP
PRELIMINARY [DOUBLE ELIMINATION]
Monsignor Bonner 1 vs Malvern Prep 0
Malvern Prep 11 vs West Chester East 0
Malvern Prep 3 vs Monsignor Bonner 2
SEMI-FINALS
Malvern Prep 9 vs Central Bucks East 3
FINALS
Malvern Prep 11 vs William Tennent 2
SCORING SUMMARY
MALVERN PREP………………3 4 4–11
WILLIAM TENNENT………….1 0 1–2
FIRST PERIOD: (MP) Keith Haig PP, (WT) Mike Lang, (MP) Scott Haig, (MP) Josh Ritti
SECOND PERIOD: (MP) Keith Grimley, (MP) Keith Haig, (MP) Ben Coia, (MP) Mark Sakers
THIRD PERIOD: (MP) Scott Haig, (MP) Scott Haig, (WT) Jack Reilly (Mike Lang), (MP) Scott Haig, (MP) Ben Coia
GOALIES: (MP) Chris Dempsey, (WT) Tim Caum
REFEREES: Steve Miller, Wayne Sands
ATTENDANCE: 1,200 + standing room only
ROSTER:
Head Coach: Bob Martin
Assistant Coach: Monty Lewis
Assistant Coach: Mike Longo
Manager: Mark Frecerro
Trainer: Bill Mills
Chris Dempsey
John Brietnale
Mark Sakers
Scott Haig – Highest Scorer (shared)
Jim Jacobs
Joe Carr
Keith Haig ( C) – MVP
Terry McCabe
Ben Coia (A)
Mike Opdenaker
Brian Conner
Mike Donovan
John Thompson
Josh Ritti
Keith Grimley – Highest scorer (shared)
Joe Washco (A)
Joe Delacompagna
Rob Mannacari
