Wellington Roller Hockey League Opens New Season

Wellington officials helped kick off the official start of the Wellington Roller Hockey Association’s 28th fall/winter season with a ceremonial puck drop on Sunday, Oct. 16. Pictured above are Rimon Ghawali (left) and Emilia Ruderer (right) facing off with Vice Mayor Michael Drahos dropping the puck, joined by Councilwoman Tanya Siskind.

The Wellington Roller Hockey Association opened its new season at Village Park on Sunday, Oct. 16. Below are capsule summaries of Week 1 games.

Prep Rangers 6, Prep Panthers 2 — In the league’s season opener, the Prep Rangers broke open a 1-1 game with five goals in the second period to defeat the Prep Panthers 6-2. Jameson Quintus of the Rangers led all scorers with a Hat Trick (three goals). The Rangers’ Andres Suarez Paz also added a tally. For the Panthers, Arianna Mueller scored her first career goal, and Blake Cohen got the team’s first goal. Goalie Justin Spina made 12 saves in the victory for the Rangers, while the combination of Hayden Mathwig and Jace Stephan were solid in a platoon effort at the net for the Panthers.

Prep Panthers 8, Prep Stars 4 — The Prep Panthers scored early and often to build a 4-1 lead after the first period. The Panthers added another four goals and led 8-3 after two. The Stars chipped away with a goal in the third period, but the Panthers prevailed 8-4. The Panthers’ Ryan Youngelson and A.J. Orlando each scored a pair of goals. For the Prep Stars, Amanda Warszycki (two goals), Cooper Mathwig (one goal, one assist) and Jordan Candela (one goal) all had points. Justin Spina made 16 saves to lead the Panthers to victory.

Junior Bruins 7, Junior Panthers 3 — In the late game, the Junior Bruins used a five-goal second period to break open a 1-1 game and jump out to a 6-3 lead. An early goal in the third concluded the scoring, with the Bruins topping the Panthers 7-3. The Bruins were led by Luc Hanchuk (two goals/one assist) and Matthew Taylor (two goals). The Panthers got a pair of goals from Timothy Holmes, and Gelo Gonzalez added a tally. Between the pipes, Ava Taylor made 21 saves in victory.

Learn more about the league at www.wellingtonrollerhockey.com.