Pennsylvania State High School AA Ice Hockey Finals
Archbishop Carroll Patriots vs Thomas Jefferson Jaguars April 1, 2000
Played at Mellon Bank Arena, Pittsburgh, PA
April 2, 2000
Archbishop Carroll Falls to Thomas Jefferson in AA State Final
The Philadelphia Inquirer
Division AA. Archbishop Carroll lost to Thomas Jefferson, 6-1, in the Division AA state championship game at Mellon Arena, but the game might come under review by the Pennsylvania State Ice Hockey Games Commission. There was a bench-clearing brawl at the end of the game. Carroll and Jefferson players were involved in a fight after the final buzzer sounded. According to Bill Hammond, coach of Flyers Cup champion Carroll, the trophy was withheld from Jefferson pending a review. Brian Saylor scored Carroll’s goal in the first period to tie the score, 1-1. The Patriots outshot Jefferson, 33-23, but the Penguins Cup champions scored two quick goals late in the game. “We were just trying to play hockey,” Hammond said. “It was a chippy game on their side. Hopefully, we’ll find out the outcome of this thing within a week.”
TJ Wins slugfest to claim title, 6-1
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Thomas Jefferson defeated Archbishop Carroll, 6-1, to win its third consecutive Class AA state championship last night at Mellon Arena in a game marred by violence on the ice and in the stands. Eight players and several fans were ejected from the game and the arena during the third period, which ended with a bench-clearing brawl as the Jaguars began to celebrate their Penguins Cup victory. Both benches emptied, and players squared off and threw punches for several minutes. The fighting carried over to the stands, where fans got into the act. It was horrible the way the game ended, a disgrace,” Thomas Jefferson Coach Don Powell said. “A couple checks were thrown, and as our kids came out to celebrate, they see a couple guys squared off, and the next thing you have what we had.” Archbishop Carroll Coach Bill Hammond saw things differently. “We were just trying to play the game of hockey, and our guys were, I think, getting a lot of cheap stuff that you shouldn’t get from a team that was winning like Thomas Jefferson was,” he said. “[The fighting] is kind of surprising. If [the referees] send the message earlier…” The win was Thomas Jefferson’s 65th in 66 games, and it had much to do with its defense and goaltending. The Jaguars staved off eight of nine Archbishop Carroll power plays and got 37 saves from senior goaltender Joe Essey. Included in Essey’s 37 saves were 13 during a 5-minute disadvantage late in the first period and early in the second period. “[Essey] has gotten better and better each game to the point where he even looks good making saves now,” Powell said. “Our defense is underrated. We took some dumb penalties, but we were able to build a lot of momentum from our penalty killing.” The Jaguars scored first on a one-timer from the slot by John Zeiler early in the first period, but the Patriots answered on a power play three minutes later on a goal by Brian Saylor. Thomas Jefferson took the lead for good with 8:41 left in the period on a slap shot from the point by John Kirk. E.J. Greco made it 3-1 late in the period, slipping a wrist slot between goaltender Sean Austermehle’s legs. Patrick Kenney and Zeiler scored nine seconds apart early in the third period to give the Jaguars breathing room, and Don Holtz finished the scoring with 1:18 to play. Powell said he was proud that his team was able to win its third title, but he was upset that they weren’t honored on the ice. “I think we’re one of the best teams in state high school history, just look at the records,” he said. “These kids have beaten everyone at every level the past three years. The PIHL ought to be ashamed of themselves not allowing our team to be honored in front of their parents and friends.”
SCORING SUMMARY:
Archbishop Carroll……..1 0 0–1
Thomas Jefferson……..3 0 3–6
FIRST PERIOD: Thomas Jefferson, John Zeiler (D.J. Morgele); Archbishop Carroll Brian Saylor (Chris Perry); Thomas Jefferson, Morgele (John Kirk, Don Holtz)
SECOND PERIOD: No scoring
THIRD PERIOD: Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Kenney (E.J. Greco); Thomas Jefferson, Zeiler (Holtz, Morgele); Holtz (Eyrolles, Kirk)
SHOTS: Archbishop Carroll 38, Thomas Jefferson 29
GOALIES: Archbishop Carroll, Sean Austermehle, Thomas Jefferson, Joe Essey, Nick Richter.
ROSTER:
Head Coach: Don Powell
Assistant Coach: Gary Bash
Assistant Coach: Deron Stock
Peter Arnoldt
Ryan McCann
Anthony Attanucci
Joe Essey
Dale Morgele
Jason Eyrolles
Tony Perry
Chuck Fink
Nick Richter
E.J. Greco
Joe Stark
Brian Hartman
John Zeiler
Dave Housley
Donny Holtz
John Kirk
Pat Kenney
Max Langfitt
Tony Mayotte
