#24 Lebanon Valley 10, West Chester 1

LVC Starters
Catherman (G), Toppin, Martin, Kapp, Willey, Schultz

West Chester Starters
Rice (G), Mango, McMahon, Walsh, A. Case, C. Case

How It Happened
Lebanon Valley completed the weekend sweep of ESCHL foe West Chester in dominating fashion on Saturday afternoon. The Flying Dutchmen jumped out to an early advantage and never looked back, topping the Golden Rams 10-1 at Hersheypark Arena.

Colin Catherman was stout in his first start of the year between the pipes while PJ Hefferin and Jacob Horst turned in big efforts offensively with five and three points, respectively. Joey LaBonte added two goals as well.

Russ Armbruster, Horst, and Nate Kohlenhoefer scored a goal apiece to put Lebanon Valley (34 PTS, 15-9-0-4) ahead 3-0 after one. Horst added an assist in the period, as did Alexander Toppin, Brennan Thompson, and Hefferin.

The Dutchmen buried West Chester (13 PTS, 6-22-0-1) with seven second period goals. Hefferin and LaBonte scored both of their goals in the period and Horst added his second. Andy Thurby and Zach McKown also netted scores. Hefferin (2x), Thurby, Thompson, Catherman, Matthew Reno, Jake Thomas, and Ryan Maraldo (2x) all added assists.

The Golden Rams finally got on the board in the third period thanks to a Jimmy McKee score but it was a small consolation during an otherwise tough outing.

Senior Day
Prior to this afternoon's contest, Lebanon Valley honored its seven ice hockey seniors in Alexander Toppin, Josh Martin, Dylan Kapp, Danny Willey, Nick Schultz, Colin Catherman, and Brooks Whiting.

Notables
- All six Lebanon Valley senior players started their final game at Hersheypark Arena.
- After battling through injury for much of the season, LVC goaltender Colin Catherman made his first start and second appearance of the season against West Chester, turning away 16 Golden Ram attempts, assisting on a Dutchmen score, and earning the victory.
- Three Lebanon Valley players in Jacob Horst, PJ Hefferin, and Joey LaBonte scored two goals on the day.
- Six Dutchmen in Horst, Thompson, Hefferin, Thurby, Maraldo, and LaBonte recorded at least two points in the win over WCU.
- LVC's weekend sweep of West Chester was the team's fifth series sweep of the season. The Dutchmen have swept the Golden Rams twice, Rutgers twice, and Eastern Michigan.
- Lebanon Valley's current five-game win-streak is the team's longest of the season.
- With his second period assist, Jake Thomas extended his recent point-streak to a season-high seven games.
- LVC had quite the day in terms of special teams play. The Dutchmen scored three power play goals while the penalty kill unit converted two shorthanded scores.
- The Dutchmen outshot West Chester 42-17. LVC finished with an incredible 23.8 conversion percentage.

Quotables
LVC head coach Don Parsons on each of his seven seniors' contributions to the program:

Alexander Toppin - "Alex's strong skating style and his vision make him a threat whenever he's on the ice. His work ethic off the ice pushes his teammates to try to keep up. His bright personality and honest nature have made him a pleasure to coach the past two years."

Josh Martin - "I always knew Josh would turn out to be an incredible kid and hockey player. He leads by example, giving 100 percent, whether playing in games, in practice, or off-ice workouts. He's adapted to many different roles for us and always had a smile on his face while doing it."

Dylan Kapp - "Dylan's adaptability on the ice to different roles has made him a very important role player for us during his time at LVC. I have enjoyed watching Dylan mature into a great young man. He has a strong family bond and we're grateful to his family for hardly missing a game."

Danny Willey - "Danny has been able to play both forward and defense, an asset every coach is happy to have. It's been pretty amazing how Dan has been able to balance both ice hockey and physical therapy here at LVC. He is a very bright kid and will excel at anything he decides to do in life."

Nick Schultz - "I was walking down the hall in October and saw Nick still here working to become a physical therapist. It was then I remembered Nick had another year of eligibility. He was pretty excited to play again and has become the old man in the locker room but still plays with the passion that I wish all players had."

Colin Catherman - "A physical therapy major, Colin hardly ever missed a practice or an off-ice workout, even with his workload. He's been the type of player that has done everything we've asked of him. He is always willing to help in any way and do whatever is best for the team. His contribution hasn't gone unnoticed."

Brooks Whiting - "Brooks has been with us for three years and has a done a tremendous job, doing everything from sharpening skates, taking care of game day operations, making sure all the players' equipment is prepared, as well as a multitude of other administrative duties and odds and ends outside his job description."

Three Stars of the Game
1. Lebanon Valley's Colin Catherman (Win in goal, 16 saves, one assist)
2. Lebanon Valley's PJ Hefferin (Five total points, two goals, three assists)
3. Lebanon Valley's Jacob Horst (Three total points, two goals, one assist)

Playoff Positioning
The Dutchmen picked up two more points with the win over WCU and continue to hold down the ESCHL postseason tournament's third seed. If the season ended today, LVC would face Rutgers, the league's six-seed, in the first round of the ESCHL tourney.

Next Up
LVC travels to #5 Stony Brook (48 PTS, 24-5-0-0) for the team's regular season series finale next weekend. Friday's game is set for 8:30 p.m. and Saturday's matchup gets underway at 3:30 p.m. The Dutchmen are looking to avenge a pair of early season losses to SBU in Hershey.