NEWARK, Del. — The Delaware Jr. Blue Hens U18AA squad extended their season-starting winning streak to six by way of two wins against Delaware Valley Hockey League (DVHL) rivals on Saturday (Sept. 17): a 5-3 decision over the Central Penn Panthers and a come-from-behind 6-3 win over the Exton Kings at Fred Rust Arena.
The Hens’ top line — Nick DelPizzo, Matt Bellopede and Nate Crossan — combined for six of the team’s 11 goals, while goalie Justin Mackley stopped 38 of 44 shots between the two games.
JBH 5, Central Penn 3
The Jr. Blue Hens and Panthers traded goals through the first two periods before the Hens asserted with a three-goal run in the third. Thirty-one seconds after Central Penn’s Brady Kilheffer lifted the Panthers into a 2-2 tie early in the third, Christian Kinsler potted the go-ahead goal for the Hens, followed by tallies from Bellopede and Logan Maradie. Central Penn goalie CJ Ulmer saved 39 of the 44 shots he faced in defeat.
JBH 6 (ENG), Exton 3
After falling behind 2-0 early in the second period, the Jr. Blue Hens mounted a sustained rally to outpace the Kings in their first of three meetings this season. The floodgates opened in the second as DelPizzo scored two more goals, while linemates Bellopede and Crossan both contributed one goal and multiple assists — Bellopede’s goal being an empty-net tally with 45 seconds remaining to seal the Hens’ victory. Michael Masci and Nick Fiore were the other Delaware goal scorers. In all, the Hens outshot Exton, 37-14.
A Sunday rematch between Delaware and Exton was postponed due to a scheduling discrepancy. The two teams will meet again on Friday (Sept. 23) at Gold Arena.
In other action:
U10 earns five of six possible points
Following a 2-2 tie at Genesis on Saturday, the Blue Hens’ U10 team reeled off a pair of wins on home ice, defeating the Philadelphia Little Flyers 5-0 on Saturday night and edging the Quakers 7-4 on Sunday.
Cash Scarborough and Ryan McCoury both scored in the Hens’ draw against Genesis; Aarav Parmar and Jordyn Long potted two goals apiece in support of goalie Noah LeCompte’s shutout of the Little Flyers, and seven different Blue Hen skaters scored in a 60-shot tour de force against the Quakers.
U12AA Hens fall to Central Penn, 7-5
Despite a pair of concerted rallies, the Jr. Blue Hens’ U12AA team lost 7-5 to Central Penn in a back-and-forth contest Saturday at Fred Rust Arena.
David Lavieri, who led the Hens with a hat trick, twice brought his team to within a goal of Central Penn in the third period, but the Panthers’ Landon Livingston potted the game-winning goal (his second) with 3:55 remaining and Landon Bradnick added an insurance goal with 1:09 to go.
Chance Scarborough, in a relief goaltending appearance, saved 21 of the 28 shots he faced.
U18A shut out twice by NY Stars, fall to Genesis
The Hens’ U18A team lost both halves of a two-game EJEPL set with the New York Stars, falling 7-0 and 5-0 on Saturday at Gold Arena. Tristan O’Connor saved 43 of 50 shots faced in the Hens’ morning defeat while Luke Bordley registered 52 saves on 57 shots in the afternoon meeting.
On Sunday, the Hens were outpaced by Genesis in DVHL action, falling 5-2 at Hatfield Ice World. Joey Scarborough accounted for both Blue Hens goals while Bordley saved 26 of 31 shots faced in defeat.
U14AA overpowered in weekend set
Led by two goals from Ethan Luo, the Tri-City Eagles proved dominant in a 5-0 rout of the Jr. Blue Hens on Saturday, building on a 1-0 win earlier in the season. Delaware was limited to five shots in the game while Tri-City peppered Hens goalie Dylan Morrison with 48 shots.
Isaac Kerr and Caleb Carlance scored two goals apiece to lift the Panthers to a 5-1 win over the Hens in DVHL competition on Sunday. Brennan Austin scored the lone goal for the Hens while Garrett Cushman recorded 46 saves in defeat.
U14A swept by Flyers Youth in home-and-home
The Flyers Youth swept the Hens’ U14A team, 9-0 on Saturday in Delaware and 5-0 in Pennsauken, N.J., on Sunday, in EJEPL action. On Saturday, the Flyers Youth outshot the Hens, 60-3, with Cushman saving 51 total attempts; Morrison saved 33 of 38 total shots faced on Sunday.
