Colby Bartos scored twice, and Brody Gribbin stopped all 15 shots he faced as Plum recorded its first playoff victory in nine years with a 3-0 shutout of Blackhawk in the PIHL Penguins Cup Class A first round Monday night at the Ice Castle.
Gribbin stopped several point-blank attempts by Blackhawk, which entered as the fourth seed out of the Class A Blue division.
“The anchor of the team,” coach Jon Gratton said of Gribbin.
Bartos opened the scoring at 10:09 of the first period off an assist from Alex LeDonne.
The Mustangs, the fifth seed from the Class A Gold division, made it hold up, but not without some tense moments.
Plum (15-6) was forced to kill four penalties, including one to start the third period.
After the kill, the Mustangs struck again. Bartos raced down the right wing and, fighting off Blackhawk players, buried an insurance goal at 12:13 on an incredible individual effort. Liam McMahon netted the assist.
Tyler Bartos added an empty-net goal with 20 seconds remaining. Colby Bartos recorded the assist.
Plum entered the game short-handed, with key contributors Josh Lewis and Cole Tomain sidelined with injuries. But behind a solid effort from players across the lineup, the Mustangs advanced to the quarterfinals to face Mars (17-1-2), the top seed out of the Gold division, at a time and date to be determined.
The teams split the season series, with Mars winning the first game 4-1 and Plum taking the second 5-4 in a shootout.
“They have bought into playing unselfishly,” Gratton said of his team, noting forward A.J. Leah’s play, in particular. “He’s dominant.
“Their job is to score goals,” he added of the first line. “But they bring so much more to the team.”
Quaker Valley 8, Greensburg Salem 0 – Jase Vasbinder collected three goals and two assists, , Max Modrovich scored twice and Matthias Lezama had a goal and three assists to lead Quaker Valley (19-1-1) past Greensburg Salem (8-11-2) in the Class A first round. Quaker Valley, the second seed out of the Blue division, will meet the winner of Tuesday’s game between Chartiers Valley and Hampton in the quarterfinals.
Regular season
Baldwin 4, Shaler 1 – Timothy Bush scored twice, Ian Leuch added a goal and an assist and Austin Klein also scored for Baldwin (5-14-1) in a Class 2A win. Thomas Sommer scored for Shaler (10-9-1).
Cathedral Prep 5, Penn-Trafford 0 – Garrett Schwartz had two goals and an assist, Michael Corritore added a goal and an assist and Matei Moga made 18 saves to lead Cathedral Prep (5-13-2) past Penn-Trafford (15-5) in Class 2A.
Central Valley 4, Knoch 1 – Connor Svaranowic and Caleb McQuaid each had a goal and an assist and Cayden Freshkorn and Treyton Palocsik also scored for Central Valley (8-10-2) in Division 2. Brady Linamen scored for Knoch (13-7).
Elizabeth Forward 7, Wilmington 5 – Cam Thompson had a hat trick with two assists, Luke Forbes added two goals and an assist and Cam Napoli had a goal and an assist for Elizabeth Forward (6-13) in Division 2. Anthony Popovich scored twice and Finn McGreal added a goal and two assists for Wilmington (7-12).
Neshannock 11, Sewickley Academy 1 – Jacob Gruber scored four goals, Grant Hennon had two goals and three assists and Marko Relic finished with a goal and four assists for Neshannock (15-4-1) in a Division 2 win. Arjun Kathju scored for Sewickley Academy (2-17-1).
Pine-Richland 6, Franklin Regional 1 – Michael Desjardins scored twice, Carson Verszyla had a goal and two assists and Colten Andrighetti had a goal and an assist to lead Pine-Richland (10-5-4) to a Class 3A win. Ryan Crouse scored for Franklin Regional (5-13-2).
Thomas Jefferson 4, North Allegheny 1 – Emery Molnar had a goal and an assist and Carter Artman, Jake Pritchard and Owen Michael also scored for Thomas Jefferson (12-7-1) in a Class 3A win. Joey Mitchell scored for North Allegheny (11-6-3).