NEVILLE TWP. — Quaker Valley’s Ricardo Fernandez, Alex Ritz and Philip Gagne helped set up an easy win Sunday.
They hope that trend continues throughout the rest of the season.
The trio played a big role in Team White’s 7-4 triumph over Team Blue in the PIHL Class 2A all-star game at the RMU Island Sports Center.
“It’s great. Everyone is having fun out there; it’s not super serious. It’s nice just to unwind and have some fun,” Ritz said. “It was great. I’ve played travel hockey with a lot of these guys before and my Quaker Valley teammates. We have a lot of plays that we’ve run and we were able to use them today against some of the other guys, so it was fun.”
Fernandez, a senior forward, assisted on Team White’s first goal.
“It was cool. I was hoping for the goal, but it didn’t come out,” he said. “Overall, it was fun. It’s my first year playing in the all-star game. I didn’t know what to expect. It was a fun experience because you play against these guys in the regular season and then come together and play with them in this game.”
Gagne, a sophomore goaltender, stopped nine of the 10 shots he faced. The lone goal came on a penalty shot.
“Usually, I really like breakaways and penalty shots and things like that because it’s just me and the shooter. I was too slow. I adapted to his speed. I should have had it,” he said. “It was a fun. Playing with talented players is always fun. This jersey is something I’ll keep the rest of my life. I’ve played with a lot of these players in amateur hockey, so it was nice. Getting a big lead made it even more relaxing. It was not as stressful.”
Team White built a 3-1 edge after the first period and had a 5-1 advantage in the second.
“It was nice to build a big lead so we could just have some fun,” said Ritz, a senior defenseman.
Quaker Valley’s Ryan Quinn was named to the team, but not able to attend.
“I know we have some guys who we’re missing right now, but it’s cool to come out and represent Quaker Valley. It means a lot,” Fernandez said.
The Quakers hope to overcome an injury-depleted roster in the final stretch of the regular season. Quaker Valley (8-7-1-0) is in fourth place in the North/West Conference with 17 points. The top five teams in each conference qualify for the Penguins Cup playoffs. The Quakers play the first of their final three games Monday night against Penn-Trafford.
“It’s the most important part of the season,” Ritz said. “We kind of fell off here over the past few games. We need to make it back up and get a good seed for the playoffs.”
Quaker Valley wants to pass Hampton (7-4-1-3, 18 points) for third place and avoid the play-in games involving the fourth and fifth seeds from both conferences.
“For the seniors, these are the last three games, maybe, of their careers. We just need to find a way to work hard every shift on the ice and find a way to win,” Gagne said.