Fox Chapel has been one of the more enigmatic teams in PIHL Class AA this season.
There have been moments of brilliance, like a 6-5 overtime victory against Quaker Valley or a 4-0 shutout against a Moon team that has led the Western Conference throughout much of the season. Those stellar moments have been contrasted, though, with stunning setbacks such as a 9-1 loss to a Penn-Trafford team that will likely miss the playoffs or an 8-3 defeat at the hands of a North Hills squad that will also likely be on the outside looking in once the postseason begins.
“Our kids work really hard but we have a short bench and, when all of our players have shown up, we’ve only lost one game,” Fox Chapel coach Rick Villani said. “But when the [amateur] team you’re playing for calls a practice, the players have to go and it’s the most frustrating thing that I have to deal with.”
Last week in a critical Eastern Conference matchup with first-place Armstrong, Fox Chapel (7-9-0) only dressed 10 skaters as compared to 15 for the River Hawks. By being able to send out a third line against the Foxes, Armstrong was able to wear them down and cruise to a 10-4 victory behind backup goaltender Jacob Lorigan.