Bryn Athyn, Pa.- The Bryn Athyn College men's ice hockey team defeated Delaware 9-3 in Sunday afternoon action.
Scott Witmyer led the Lions with a hat-trick and four assists. Jayson Marbach tallied two goals and two assists. Terrence Johnson and Travis McCurdy each notched a goal and one assist, while Andrew Dexter and Danny Triesler each recorded two assists.
The Lions scored the lone goal of the first period when Marbach passed to Witmyer on the right wing and Witmyer dropped the puck to connect with Johnson at the 1:36 mark.
During the second period, Dustin Synnestvedt sent the puck down the ice on a defensive zone clear and scored five hole at the 11:14 mark. At 10:08 Sean Feyler found McCurdy on the right post for the goal, giving the Lions a 3-0 lead. 12 seconds later, Delaware scored to chip away at Bryn Athyn's lead. At 4:56, the Blue Hens scored to bring the game within one. At 3:02 Dexter connected with McCurdy who took a shot on goal and Witmyer picked up the rebound, giving the Lions a 4-2 lead going into the third period.
In the final period, Marbach scored top shelf at 16:33, assisted by Johnson and Witmyer. At 13:12, Graham Lermitte robbed the Blue Hens of a breakaway goal. With a Bryn Athyn player in the box for boarding, Delaware scored a power play goal at 12:57. A minute later, the Lions answered with a one timer power play goal from Witmyer, assisted by Triesler. At 10:21, Dexter and Witmyer connected with Marbach who deked the goalie to give the Lions a 7-3 lead. Triesler and Marbach connected with Witmyer at 8:25 to take a commanding 8-3 lead. With 2:26 left in the game, Ray Norfo scored, assisted by Witmyer.
Graham Lermitte recorded 22 saves between the pipes for Bryn Athyn.
Witmyer expressed, "Today was a great way to start off the new year. It was a good team win, and I'm proud of the boys. Hopefully this confidence will carry into next weekend, when we face two nationally ranked teams."
Head Coach Andrew Burke added, "Great win coming off the long break. The boys understand that we must get better throughout this week in order to prepare for a huge game against Pitt-Johnstown next Saturday. Overall, it was a great team win and a great way to start the playoff push."
The Lions return to the ice Saturday, January 18th to face Pitt-Johnstown in the second game of the Bryn Athyn Invitational. The puck is set to drop at 7:30pm.