25-26 Hockey Recap – Back to Back Run Stops at WPIAL Championship

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Coming off of the most successful year in team history, the team posted a regular season record of 16-4, with a few tough early-season losses.

Expecting a long, dominant push into the PIHL playoffs, the mentality going into this year was the same as last year. Led by senior assistant

captain Jack Dolan and senior captain Austin Dzadovsky (both pictured below in the WPIAL Championship, from the AHS Fan Section

instagram account) the boys broke the single-

season PIHL A goals record with 160.

One of their wins this season was a forfeit, so the team was averaging over 8 goals a game. Seniors Cooper Powell and Linus Jesionowski lead the team in points with 49, and 5 separate players on the team achieved 30 points this season.

Powell also broke Conner Ralston’s all-time 100 career points counting.

Junior Andrew Hetcko, who came into this year as a first-time goalie, had a .878% save rate and was a PIHL all-star,

which is an incredible feat.

The start of their championship defense in the playoffs was a dominant 9-4 victory over Moon, carried over into their performance against

Canon-Mac in the semi-finals round of the PIHL playoffs.

On the team’s facebook page, the coaching staff left a season reflection as follows, summarizing the challenges of trying to defend the championship as well as the overall accomplishments for the team:

PENGUINS CUP FINAL: QUAKER VALLEY 6, AVONWORTH 2: One step from the mountaintop, AHC Varsity’s run to another Penguins Cup Championship was not to be, as Quaker Valley defeated Avonworth 6-2 in the Final at UPMC Lemieux Tuesday night. The Quakers wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, taking a 1-0 lead 31 seconds after puck drop, but the Lopes fought back. Goals by Austin Dzadovsky and Owen Stiers carried Avonworth to a 2-1 lead at the end of the first period, with a 10-7 advantage in shots. But Quaker Valley showed the speed and skill that brought them to the Final throughout the second period, tying the game at 2-2 with 15:32 left in the second and grabbing a 3-2 lead they would not relinquish with 1:58 left in the period. The Quakers extended the lead and stifled Avonworth’s comeback attempts through the third, skating off with a well-earned win, and the Cup.

The Lopes skated off to the cheers of one more Avonworth crowd who made themselves heard through the entire game, and they have much to be proud of. The curtain is drawn on a second consecutive season of highlights, accomplishments and memories for this team of Avonworth Hockey players – 12 seniors, many of whom have been with the program for nearly a decade, and a group of underclassmen who took no back seat to their veteran teammates, showing skill and pride that will allow them to carry forth what it means to play for Avonworth Hockey, and what you get when you play against Avonworth. Thank you to the players, the parents, and the fans near and far for your support of Avonworth Hockey. The victories of this team will live on, but the future is bright indeed.