HATFIELD >> La Salle quickly and in groups scored against Malvern Prep in the Flyers Cup AAA title game on Wednesday night.
The top-seeded Explorers scored four goals in the first 7:04 of the initial period and that was enough for the defending champions to win 6-3 against the second-seeded Friars at Hatfield Ice Arena.
La Salle's Cameron Ross, who was named MVP, expressed, “It feels incredible. Honestly, I wish we could’ve won it in OT again to feel that experience, but it’s amazing to go back-to-back and we aim to win (the state championship) on Saturday against Pine Richland.
“We started slow (in the semifinals against Holy Ghost Prep). We practiced on Monday and our goal was to come out strong today and that’s what we did. We scored four goals right away.”
La Salle (23-3) established its lead with two sets of two goals. The initial two goals were scored 11 seconds apart while the third and fourth goals were within 23 seconds of each other.
Ryan Wiley and Benjamin Falicki scored the first two goals, both scoring from rebounds. Wiley’s goal, with an assist from Charles Kennedy, came 3:42 into the game while Falicki’s, assisted by James Carpenter, came at 3:53.
Less than three minutes later, the Explorers were at it again. Ross’s wrist shot from the point knuckled into the back of the net at 6:41 before Grant Lagreca made it 4-0 at 9:56.
“As soon as you put those pucks in the back of the net,” Ross said, “it’s momentum and we don’t let off the gas as soon as that happens.”
“It’s just momentum,” Kennedy echoed. “We capitalized on the opportunities we had and we did what we had to do working the puck low, getting in front of the net, causing traffic. It was a great start that helped us the entire game obviously.”
The Atlantic Prep Athletic Conference rivals exchanged goals for the remainder of the game. Jeremy Jacobs, Pax Hioshik and Jonathan Holt scored for the Friars (11-9) while Ross and Kennedy added goals in the second and third periods, respectively, for the Explorers.
Holt filled up the stat sheet for Malvern Prep, totaling a goal and two assists in the championship game.
Ross led La Salle with two goals after scoring one in the team’s first 25 games of the season. His second goal of the game was shorthanded. He carried the puck the length of the ice and, from the right side, beat the goalie to the near-post to give the Explorers a 5-1 lead early in the second period.
Kennedy finished with a goal and two assists. He scored with a wraparound to make it 6-2 with 6:34 left in the third period.
“I saw a teammate, Pat Brace, crashing low,” Kennedy remembered. “The goalie was saying, ‘Oh pick him up, he’s low’ and he was hugging the post. I just got around with it.”
La Salle’s goalie Jacob Rossi stopped 31 of the 34 shots he faced while Malvern Prep’s Matthew Crawford stopped 36 of the 42 shots he saw. Riley Doyle played the final minutes for the Friars and stopped four shots.
La Salle will attempt to secure its second consecutive state championship on Saturday against Penguins Cup champion Pine Richland. The game starts at 5 p.m. at the Haverford Skatium.
La Salle 6, Malvern Prep 3
Malvern Prep 1 1 1 – 3
La Salle 4 1 1 – 6
First Period
Ryan Wiley (La Salle) got help from Charles Kennedy to score at 3:42
Benjamin Falicki (La Salle) got an assist from James Carpenter at 3:53
Cameron Ross (La Salle) received assistance from Ryan Wiley and Charles Kennedy and scored at 6:41
Grant Lagreca (La Salle) scored at 7:04
Jeremy Jacobs (Malvern Prep) took advantage of assists from Brady Doyle and Jonathan Holt to score on a powerplay at 16:08
Second Period
Cameron Ross (La Salle) scored while shorthanded at 2:06
Pax Hoishik (Malvern Prep) scored with help from Jonathan Holt and Henry Tesoriero at 5:34
Third Period
Charles Kennedy (La Salle) scored on a powerplay at 10:53
Jonathan Holt (Malvern Prep) got assists from Brady Doyle and Jeremy Jacobs to score at 16:13
Saves
MP: Matthew Crawford 36, Riley Doyle 4.
LS: Jacob Rossi: 31.
