Penguins Tournament Champions

Pittsburgh Winter Classic 2012 Champions

MURRYSVILLE TEAM CHAMPS AT BEACH BASH TOURNAMENT

Last May, Beat-It captured their first National Championship, and coming off of 2 straight tournament championships, Beat-It set their sights on the annual Beach Bash in Ocean City. Beat-It made a few roster adjustments for the trip away from home, but kept the core of the team intact. Beat-It veterans Dave Hopper and Kris Kraly welcomed Lanny Noll to help solidify the team down the middle, while the wings were comprised of snipers Mike Alton and Brandon Gazzo, and playmakers Mike King, AJ Llanza, Beau Gryzbek, and Anthony Perriello. The blue line was patrolled by a solid set of defensemen that included team captain Mike Jackson, Dave Roberts, Anthony Segreti, Danny Dac, Gary Bac, and Eric Yeasted. The net was minded by Anthony Livecchi as he filled in for Beat-It goalies Mike McClure and Bryan Alton.

Beat-It's first opponent was Mid-Atlantic Forgotten, a team ranked #16 in the country. In contrast to the normal routine, Beat-It got off to a fast start and heated things up quickly. Mid-way through the 1st period, Mike Alton was able to find Kris Kraly streaking into the zone for a rink-wide pass. Kraly pulled up and placed a hard pass on the blade of Dave Hopper for a redirect that rang off of the post. Hopper was able to bury his rebound attempt and gave Beat-It the early lead. Soon after, Gary Bac found himself in front of the net and was able to stuff home a loose ball for the 2 goal lead. The Forgotten never quit, but Beat-It was able to hold on and capture the 2-1 victory.
 
Up next for Beat-It were the South Jersey Gamblers, a team ranked #9 in the country. The Gamblers displayed speed and precision passing and had the Beat-It crew hanging their heads. After 3 periods of play and the final buzzer, the Gamblers strolled away with a 5-1 victory. The lone Beat-It goal was notched by Dave Hopper, his second of the afternoon.
 
After the preliminary round was over, Beat-It found itself as the 2nd seed in the Bronze division with 11 points. The impressive seeding gave Beat-It a bye to the semi-final round where they were matched up with the 4 seeded Beaver Chiefs.  Beat-It came out sluggish in this contest and was having trouble controlling their opponent's attack. Down 2-0 to start the 3rd period, things looked bleak. But, early-on in the period, Brandon Gazzo rifled a missile into the upper corner that quickly got the team rolling. Not long after, Gary Bac slapped a low riser that found its way off of the goalie stick and into the net. Then on the very next shift, Mike King netted his first career Beat-It goal to take the lead. Anthony Perriello and AJ Llanza each added an empty netter to seal the deal and Beat-It was moonwalking its way into the finals with a 5-2 victory.
 
The finals brought an interesting match-up for Beat-It, as they were forced to square off once again with the Mid-Atlantic Forgotten. The Forgotten had earned the #1 seed in the Bronze division with 15 points, and were hungry for revenge. This contest was scoreless until late in the 1st when Beat-It found itself up a guy and took advantage. Anthony Perriello was in the right position and banged home a rebound off of the lively back-boards. The score remained at 1-0 until Dave Hopper scored off of a nice feed from Beau Gryzbek early in the second.  Up by 2 goals, Beat-It smelled victory and went for the kill.  Late in the that period Mike Alton blasted a slapshot that ricocheted off of Gary Bac's leg and into the net. Up by 3 goals with 1 period to go, the championship was well within reach.  Anthony Livecchi just missed out on the shutout as the Forgotten managed to get on the scoreboard with just under 3 minutes remaining.  Having pulled their goalie, they overwhelmed the front of the net and tallied a garbage goal.

Beat-It now has 3 consecutive tournament championships in a row! In their 3 wins this tournament, Beat-It outscored their opponents 10-4. Anthony Livecchi's GAA was a solid 2.25 for the tournament.  Previous Beat-It MVPs Chad Danka and Corey Hammack made way for Co-MVPs Gary Bac and Dave Hopper.

Congratulations Beat-It on another great tournament!!!!