Erie Cathedral Prep Wins Third PA Cup With 3-1 Win Over Downingtown East

By: HSSN Staff
Saturday, March 21, 2015 | 4:22 PM

“Come early, cheer loud” was the motto for the Erie Cathedral Prep Ramblers and, on Saturday at Penn State’s Pegula Ice Arena, their fans proved it and their players thanked them for it. 

Penguins Cup Champion Cathedral Prep (21-2-0), fueled by a large, orange clad student cheering section, edged out a 3-1 win over Flyers Cup Champion Downingtown East in the Pennsylvania Cup Class AA Championship Game.

Early in the first period, a scrum and cross-checking penalty to Joe Kelly set the tone for an opening frame riddled with many big hits and four power play chances, two for each team. Both teams, however, were unable to score on their chances with the man advantage.  After Kelly’s penalty expired and he exited the box, he was able to receive a long pass, walk in and be hauled down, crashing hard into the boards at the 4:10 mark. Kelly, however, was eventually able to skate off with the aid of a teammate.

Kelly’s injury seemed to spark the Ramblers, who skated harder and hit harder through their checks. After both teams exchanged power play opportunities, Downingtown East would register the game’s first goal at the 11:5 1 mark. Cougars’ Ben Robertson would take a pass from Jack MaGee and sneak a shot by Ramblers goalie Jacob Kucharski, giving Downingtown East a 1-0 lead after one period.

But the Ramblers would answer with a strong second period in which they scored all three of their goals. Their first was at the 2:07 mark, when Dillon Elliot took a centering pass from behind the net from Joe Kelly and beat Cougars’ goalie Jeff Cummings on his glove side, tying the game at 1-1.

That goal energized the Ramblers cheering section, which had fallen silent after after the first Cougars’ goal. The momentum would flow to Kucharski as well, who would rob MaGee on a breakaway opportunity preserving the 1-1 tie.

Kelly, who returned from the early injury, would then score what would prove to be the game-winning goal, taking a pass from Tanner White and wristing a shot from the middle of the circles at the 9:22 mark, giving the Ramblers their first lead at 2-1.

With momentum fully on the side of Cathedral Prep, Downingtown East would only muster a series of icing calls, hoping to break the forechecking pressure of the Ramblers. But Hunter Emerson, who was injured in the Penguins Cup semifinals, would take a pass from Jack Kelly and score an insurance goal, beating Cummings glove side on a 3-on-1 break at the 12:11 mark of the second period, giving the Ramblers a 3-1 lead.

Downingtown East would continually kill any chances of a comeback in the third period, taking four penalties in the final 17 minutes, allowing Cathedral Prep to hold on.

This win for Cathedral Prep is the third in program history and first since 1997 for the Ramblers, who defeated Armstrong in the Penguins Cup Championship Game a week ago.

Joe Kelly finished with a goal and two assists, while Elliot scored a goal and assisted another. Kucharski stopped 16 of the 17 shots he faced, while his counterpart, Cummings, stopped 29 of 30 shots for Downingtown East.

Score by Period:
Erie Cathedral Prep Ramblers  :  0 – 3 – 0 = 3
Downingtown East Cougars  :  1 – 0 – 0 = 1

Shots:
Erie Cathedral Prep: 32
Downingtown East: 17

Scoring Summary:
1st Period:
Downingtown East – Ben Robertson (Jack MaGee), 11:51

2nd Period:
Erie Cathedral Prep – Dillon Elliot (Joe Kelly), 2:07
Erie Cathedral Prep – Joe Kelly (Tanner White, William Kelly), 9:22
Erie Cathedral Prep – Hunter Emerson (William Kelly, Joe Kelly), 12:11

3rd Period:
None

Goaltenders:
Erie Cathedral Prep: Jacob Kucharski(17 shots, 16 saves)
Downingtown East: Jeff Cummings (32 shots, 29 saves)

Power Plays:
Erie Cathedral Prep: 0 of 6
Downingtown East: 0 of 3

Tags: Downingtown, Erie Cathedral Prep