High school roundup for March 7, 2023: PIHL’s top goal scorer lifts Norwin to OT win
By:
Tuesday, March 7, 2023 | 11:02 PM
Alex Thomas’ second goal of the game was the overtime winner, leading Norwin to a 3-2 victory over McDowell in the PIHL Class A quarterfinals Tuesday night.
Thomas’ first goal gave Norwin a 1-0 lead in the second period. He led the PIHL with 38 goals in 18 games in the regular season. Dominik Costantino scored early in the second period to make it 2-0.
Braeden Martin and Wendell Natividad scored in a three-minute span in the middle of the third to force overtime.
Owen Burmeister made 31 saves for Norwin, which will meet the winner of Thursday’s game between Fox Chapel and Quaker Valley in the semifinals March 15.
Bishop McCort 2, Latrobe 1 (OT) – Ivan Safronov scored the winning goal in overtime to lead third-seeded Bishop McCort to a comeback victory in the Class 2A quarterfinals. Sixth-seeded Latrobe took a 1-0 lead on a Peyton Myers goal in the first period. Brennan Karalfa scored the tying goal for Bishop McCort with 7:33 left in regulation to set up Safronov’s heroics. Timur Nalatov had two assists and Hleb Subach made 23 saves for Bishop McCort, which will meet second-seeded South Fayette in the semifinals March 14. Jim Krajc stopped 22 shots for Latrobe.
Connellsville 8, Neshannock 1 – Ian Zerecheck, Dylan Brooks and Jesse Hodge each had two goals and an assist and Max Sokol racked up a goal and five assists as Connellsville knocked off two-time defending champion Neshannock in the Varsity D2 quarterfinals. Giovanni Valentine scored for Neshannock. Connellsville will meet Bishop Canevin in the semifinals March 16.
More High School Hockey
• Focused on playing fast, Quaker Valley hockey gets off to quick start• Behind experienced roster, Plum hockey eyes return trip to playoffs
• Franklin Regional hockey has new coach, new classification but same goals
• Gateway hockey team returns to PIHL varsity play
• New coach hopes last year’s playoff run provides spark for Penn-Trafford hockey