Amherst Midget 16U wins Labor Day Tournament

The Amherst Midget AA won the Buffalo Hornets Labor Day Shootout Tournament. Members of the team, pictured from left, are: first row - Brian D'Angelo and Matt Bradley; second row - Michael Austin, Evan Pizzuto, Dan Tyx, Collin Schreiner, Peter Bouris, Mark Capenhurst, Austin Heusner; third row - head coach Steve Schreiner, assistant coach Fred D'Angelo, Steve Pizzuto, Daric Will, Sean Durfee, Max Georger, Steve Fenush, Eric Johnston, Matt Austin, Kyle Donhauser, and assistant coach Paul Nowak; missing from photo - Sean Nowak, Austin Benshadle, Anthony Filipi, and assistant coaches Rob Eimer and Pete Bullock.

The Amherst Midget AA won the Buffalo Hornets Labor Day Shootout Tournament.

Amherst had an impressive 3-1-1 record throughout the tournament. They advanced to the finals by beating the Tonawanda Lightning and Buffalo Hornets, both tournaments bound teams. Amherst's only loss was a 5-4 defeat to Cleveland which would set up a rematch in the finals.

Amherst and Cleveland were tied for first place with 9.5 points each. In the finals, both teams played end to end action before Evan Pizzuto scored at 8:59 of the first period from a perfect pass from Steve Pizzuto. Pizzuto and Pizzuto were great throughout the series on the power play and penalty kill.

Cleveland, which had several of the top prep players in the state, put constant pressure on the Amherst defensemen. Matt Austin, Mark Capenhurst, Peter Bouris, Kyle Donhauser, Max Georger, and Sean Durfee continuously made great plays to clear the zone.

Matt Bradley was stellar in goal, turning away 32 shots to earn the shut out for Amherst. Bradley was 1-1-1 in the tournament and Brian D'Angelo of Williamsville South was 2-0.

The special teams play of Eric Johnston, Collin Schreiner, Dan Tyx and Steve Fenus were excellent as they adapted to the new NHL rules. The constant forechecking of Daric Will, Sean Nowak, Austin Benshadle, and Mike Austin created numerous scoring chances throughout the games. Austin Heusner led all Amherst scorers in the tournament with an outstanding four-goal game against the Tonawanda Lightning. Amherst starts its regular season on Friday.