by Pete Hayes - The Telegraph

 

EAST ALTON –  The Marquette Catholic High hockey team is developing quite a one-two punch. It paid off dividends Sunday night in a 3-2 Class 1A victory over Waterloo at the East Alton Ice Arena.

 

In their victory over Waterloo, the Explorers’ Danny Selby staked his team to a 2-0 lead with a pair of first-period goals. Schranck later netted the game-wining goal in the third period. Marquette held off the Bulldogs from there, despite a late goal from Waterloo’s Nick Fannon.

 

Selby has scored eight goals and added six assists, while Schrank has netted eight goals and has four assists for Marquette.

 

Sunday, Selby’s two first-period goals were unassisted. Waterloo cut the lead in half with a late second-period goal by Andrew Helfrick, setting up the third period.

 

Schranck scored on a power play off Selby’s assist with just 2:44 remaining in the game. Waterloo’s Fannon again got the Bulldogs within a goal when he scored with 1:02 remaining.

 

Waterloo was whistled for five penalties, Marquette for none. The victory raised Marquette to 4-4 in the Mississippi Valley Club Hockey Association. The Explorers already find themselves chasing Bethalto in the MVCHA West Division. The two-time defending division champ Eagles are off to a 9-0 start.

 

 

**********************************

 

Meanwhile, in another Mississippi Valley Club Hockey Association 1A game Sunday at East Alton, Freeburg knocked off Roxana 4-2.  Jacob Carlisle and Jared Hogan scored for the Shells in their loss to Freeburg.  The Shells matched Freeburg with 26 shots. Roxana fell to 1-6-2, while Freeburg is 3-5.

 

 

**********************************

 

 

Bethalto’s continues its torrid pace with a trio of goal scorers who are among the league leaders.

 

Zach Tobin (16 goals and 16 assists) is third overall in the MVCHA in scoring with his 32 points. The defending league scoring champion is just six points off the pace being set by Edwardsville’s Ben Paige, who has 18 goals and 19 assists for the Class 2A Tigers. Collinsville’s Dusty Watt is second with 17 goals and nine assists for 36 points.

 

Tobin won last year’s overall scoring race with a league-record 86 points on 40 goals and 46 assists.

 

 

The Eagles’ balanced scoring attach this season may make a repeat of such a lofty scoring total difficult for Tobin to attain. But Bethalto coach Corey Newgent isn’t complaining. That’s because his team’s Taylor Emerick and Drew Retzer are right behind Tobin so far in the league scoring totals.

 

But then, that was the case last season as well when Emerick was second overall in scoring and Retzer finished fourth.

 

Emerick is fourth overall in scoring with 11 goals and 19 assists for 30 points and Retzer is fifth with 16 goals and 11 assists for 37 points. Also, teammate Derek Madison has 11 goals and 17 assists for 18 points.

 

“This is a great group,” Newgent said earlier “They have played together a long time and they’re pretty focused.”

 

 

**********************************

 

 

Edwardsville and rival Granite City are setting up another break-neck race for the Class 2A North Division title.

 

The Tigers, who fell to Granite City in a hard-fought three-game series in last season’s division playoff finals, were 6-1-2 and trailed the 7-0-2 Warriors by a game in the league standings.

 

That one MVCHA loss for Edwardsville? A 6-1 defeat on Granite City’s home ice on Nov. 10.

 

The Tigers are 7-4-2 overall and are coming off a 1-3 road trip to the Chicago area. Edwardsville’s lone victory on the trip was a 5-0 result over West Dundee. The Tigers lost to Crystal Lake South (6-4), Palatine Fremd (8-6) and Waubonsie (8-3).