Schindler, Hydutsky vault Avon Grove past West Chester Henderson, into first place

For the first time this season, the West Chester Henderson girls ice hockey team does not sit atop the Ches-Mont League American Division standings.

The Avon Grove Red Devils are now in first place, after a monster effort Wednesday night and a 4-3 win over Henderson in a first-place duel.

It was Henderson’s second loss of the season. Both have come against Avon Grove.

This wasn’t an Xs and Os game,” said Avon Grove coach Skip Crawford. “It was an effort game.”

Due to COVID-19 protocol and injuries, both teams came into the game shorthanded. But the effort on both sides made up for the lack of numbers.

Avon Grove eighth grader Lily Schindler notched a hat trick, including the final two goals of the night for the Red Devils (10-1). In 11 games this season, Schindler has 13 goals.

“She had a hat trick for us, and she was just really solid defensively all night,” Crawford said. “She logged a lot of minutes and every time we asked her if she was ready to go. She said yeah, she was ready to go.”

The game started out with a scoreless first period. At the start of the second, Cassidy Yaun put the Warriors up 1-0, but Avon Grove answered fast and loud with three goals of its own.

“We were tied 1-1, and then almost immediately, we gave up a really weak goal off the face off,” said Henderson coach Sarah Hannan.

Henderson’s attack nearly doubled the shot output of the victors, but through it all, the Red Devils restored a comfortable two goal lead entering the third.

Despite the game’s seven goals, Crawford said the game was won on the defensive end of the ice.

“Our goalie, Ella Hydutsky was phenomenal,” Crawford said. “She just played amazing, really out of her mind. They outshot us 33 to 18. So she had 30 saves. Just fantastic.”

Hannan shared a similar sentiment, but for her team, Hydustsky’s strengths were the Warriors’ chief bugaboo.

“Their goaltender is amazing, she takes up a lot of net, she plays well, and you’re not going to score on her a lot of times,” Hannan said. “It’s not going to be the first shot, it’s going to be the second or the third or the fourth.”

Hydutsky wasn’t the only impressive netminder. Henderson’s Samantha Scebelo’s first full season as a goalie has been marked with just one loss. A softball catcher by trade, Scebelo’s diamond skills have transitioned to the ice.

“She has definitely become a student of the game,” Hannan said. “She is so dedicated to her position and learning. She makes those diving catches, and she slides over, it really shows her athleticism.”

Although the Warriors have another Red Devil loss on the books, it wasn’t for a lack of effort. Their limited squad stayed competitive while many players played unfamiliar positions.

“We had a lot of kids step up tonight and play positions that they hadn’t played before,” Hannan said. “Maya Zrebreic played center tonight but she isn’t a center. Avery Chandler, Megan Wackerman, and Brenna McGusty all played D tonight.”

Henderson’s Hadley Holloway made a standout return after being on the injury list for most of the season. In just her second game back, she stepped up to keep the game close.

“She’s been a leader right off the bat, it’s only her second game back and she is already helping out other girls,” Hannan said. “She played D and she’s a forward, but she did pretty darn well back there. She’s super flexible, I put her up when we needed an extra push.”

Avon Grove 4, West Chester Henderson 3

Avon Grove 0 3 1 — 4

WC Henderson 0 1 2 — 3

Avon Grove goals: Schindler 3, K.Chowdhry.

W.C. Henderson goals: Holloway 2, Yaun.

Goalie saves: Hydutsky (AG) 30, Scebelo (WCH) 14.