Johnstown’s version of the clash of the hockey titans is set for 7 tonight at Cambria County War Memorial Arena.
Fourth-seeded Bishop McCort (15-6-1), which had a first-round bye, will play fifth-seeded Westmont Hilltop (15-7-1) in a PIHL Class A quarterfinal with a berth in the Penguin Cup semifinals on the line.
“Truthfully, I look at it like it’s just another game,” McCort coach John Bradley said. “The two teams happen to be from Johnstown, but the winner moves on and the loser is out, so the opponent doesn’t really matter. I’m sure all 16 teams started the season wanting to win the Penguin Cup and this is just the first step in doing that.”
Added Westmont coach Art McQuillan: “There’s no question that these are two of the most well-respected programs in the region and both squads find themselves involved in big games at this time of year. It’s going to be fun. Our kids are excited to play.”
Bishop McCort has been off since
March 4 while Westmont defeated South Fayette 4-1 last week in a first-round game.
“Our last seven games were on the road so this 10-day layoff is good for us,” Bradley said. “This rest is what we needed. We worked very hard for that No. 4 seed so that we could get a first-round bye. It was one of our goals. Most of the players are on traveling teams, so they are playing hockey anyway.”
The Crushers and Hilltoppers tied 4-4 in their first meeting this season, which did not include the football players from PIAA Class A runner-up squad, and Bishop McCort won the latter encounter, 5-2, on Jan. 17.
Senior forward Dane Domonkos had a hat trick in the second game for the Crushers and finished with four points, but the McCort offense also gets scoring from most of the 15-team roster. Sophomore Jimmy Stenger is the Crushers goalkeeper.
Sophomore Corey Schafer (28 goals,
14 assists, 42 points) is the Hilltoppers leading scorer with sophomore Noah McQuillan (19-14-33), junior Andy Herbert (9-21-30) and sophomore Zak Kindya (9-11-20) also fueling the offense. Kindya, the Hilltoppers’ leading scorer among the defensemen, is out for the season with a fractured ankle, and the Hilltoppers lost another defenseman, Kenny Gibson, with a lower leg injury, so Westmont is down to four defensemen.
“It just means that we have less people in the mix,” McQuillan said.
Sophomore goaltender Adam Ayre, who has a goals against average of 3.45 and a save percentage of .859, has started all of the Hilltoppers’ games.
“When you get to the playoffs, there is much tighter checking,” McQuillan said.
“We are going to have to play all three periods. They play a real strong team game and we’re going to have to match them in intensity.
“We know we’re the underdog and we’re OK with that. We had our best week of practice and we’ll just have to come out with a solid effort and team game and let the chips fall where they may.”
Added Bradley: “We have to come out and execute for 45 minutes and hope we get the breaks and bounces.”
Tonight’s game
What: No. 4 Bishop McCort (15-6-1) vs. No. 5 Westmont Hilltop (15-7-1) in a PIHL Class A quarterfinal.
Where: Cambria County War Memorial Arena.
When: 7.
On the line: A berth in the Penguin Cup semifinals.
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