Box Score
LANGHORNE, PA - A week ago it took overtime before the Crimson Eagles were finally able to slip past a surprisingly resilient Valley Forge Christian College team. This Thursday? No extra session magic was needed during a convincing 5-1 PBU triumph.
Allowing the visitors to hang around for the entirety of the regulation during their initial meeting seven days ago, the Crimson Eagles put a quick halt to any upset bid the Patriots may have been concocting preceding their most recent bout.
Utilizing five different goal scorers by day's end, the host group got off to a quick start, registering three goals within the first 21 minutes of action. Gary Bruce, Wayne Peiffer, and Seth Magnum all got on the scorecard within the opening moments of play, bringing PBU's edge to 3-0 by the 21st minute.
The Patriots would counter during the 40th minute, however, when Dylan Flickinger popped home a feed from teammate Kyle Shirvani to bring the visitors within striking distance down 3-1.
But early in the second frame the Crimson Eagles erased any Valley Forge hope of another late-game comeback when brothers Joran and Justin hays notched back-to-back scores to push the margin to out of reach at 5-1.
Ranked number one heading into the tournament, PBU played like the top seed throughout the 90 minute affair, punishing the Patriots with 23 shots on goal - tying their highest mark of the season.
The five goal explosion marked the Crimson Eagles' highest scoring output of the year while also signaling the first time in three years that five different players have scored during a single game. Additionally, Thursday's triumph gives PBU 25 consecutive wins over Valley Forge, a number that dates all the way back to 1977.
But perhaps most important of all, the victory gives the Crimson Eagles an opportunity to contend for the East Region Championship, a title they turned over to Lancaster Bible College a year ago following a 1-0 loss to the Chargers.
With Lancaster rolling through Baptist Bible College 4-1 Thursday afternoon, PBU will have an opportunity to contend for the fifth title in six years. The Crimson Eagles will take on the second seeded Chargers during the championship slugfest in Langhorne at 2:00 pm.
