Westmoreland PIHL playoff capsules for March 4, 2019

By: Bill Beckner Jr.
Sunday, March 3, 2019 | 8:13 PM

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Monday’s games

PIHL Penguins Cup

Class AA

First round

Hempfield (12-7) vs. Pine-Richland (18-0-1)

7:30 p.m. Monday at Baierl Ice Complex, Warrendale

Winner plays: Latrobe (14-4-1) or Hampton (10-7-2), March 13 at RMU Island Sports Center, Neville Island

Goals for/against: Hempfield, 121/78; Pine-Richland, 112/32

About Hempfield: The Spartans advanced to the quarterfinals with an 8-5 win over Quaker Valley in a play-in game Wednesday. Aiden Edwards and Daniel Pronin had two goals apiece in the win. Jared Gerger finished second in Class AA in the regular season with 28 goals. Hempfield lost to Pine-Richland, 7-3, on Jan. 10. The Spartans were the highest-scoring team in the regular season with 113 goals.

About Pine-Richland: The Rams won the North/West Division by seven points, and their only setback was a 4-3 overtime loss to Hampton on Jan. 28. Pine-Richland scored the second-most goals in the regular season and allowed the fewest by eight goals. Rams goalie Daniel Stauffer has a 1.68 goals-against average and .909 save percentage. Jared Eggert leads the Rams with 32 points, and William Studt is tops in goals with 19.

Latrobe (14-4-1) vs. Hampton (10-7-2)

7:15 p.m. Monday at Kirk S. Nevin Arena, Greensburg

Winner plays: Hempfield (12-7) or Pine-Richland (18-0-1), 7 p.m. March 13 at RMU Island Sports Center, Neville Island

Goals for/against: Latrobe, 88/40; Hampton, 76/50

About Latrobe: The Wildcats, who finished second in the South/East Division, had one of the best defensive teams in the regular season, finishing second in goals against. They lost to Hampton, 6-4, on Nov. 26. It was the most goals they allowed all season. Alexander Walker finished fifth in the Class AA scoring race with 41 points. Cole Novak has 18 goals. Latrobe has outscored opponents 34-9 in the first period.

About Hampton: The Talbots boast one of the top lines in the PIHL in Michael Orban, Matthew Commendatore and Justin Adamski. Orban’s 48 points ranked third in Class AA in the regular season. Commendatore has 37 points, and Adamski has 35. Hampton was outscored 27-15 in the first period but has a plus-26 goal differential in the other two periods. The Talbots are 7-3 in their last 10 games.

Franklin Regional (11-6-2) vs. Mars (15-4)

9:30 p.m. Monday at Baierl Ice Complex in Warrendale

Winner plays: Upper St. Clair (14-3-2) or Baldwin (9-9-1), 9 p.m. March 13 at RMU Island Sports Center, Neville Island

Goals for/against: Franklin Regional, 72/78; Upper St. Clair, 105/78

About Franklin Regional: The Panthers won four straight to end the season to move from fifth to third in the South/East Division standings. Led by forwards Olda Virag and Mathew Sliva and goalie Danny Soltesz, the Panthers have plenty of playoff experience, winning back-to-back Class A Penguins Cup titles in 2016 and ’17. Virag leads the Panthers with 32 points, and Trent Lunden has 15 goals. Franklin Regional is the lone Class AA team remaining in the playoffs that has allowed more goals than it has scored.

About Mars: The Fightin’ Planets defeated Franklin Regional, 3-2, on Nov. 26. Mars is 4-1 over its last five games, with the only loss to Pine-Richland, 4-3. Mars goalie Daniel Mitchell is one of the top goalies in Class AA, with a 12-3 record and a .913 save percentage. Jackson Krock leads Mars with 19 goals and 36 points.

Bill Beckner Jr. is a TribLive reporter covering local sports in Westmoreland County. He can be reached at bbeckner@triblive.com.

Tags: Franklin Regional, Hampton, Hempfield, Latrobe, Mars, Pine-Richland