John McFall has been coaching the Hamburg varsity hockey team for eight years, and what keeps him coming back every year is the quality of not just players, but people, who play hockey for Hamburg. “It’s not by accident,” McFall said. “We try hard with that, and we push that, and it’s important. I think with this group, it starts …
Kenmore East wins overtime rivalry battle
Kenmore East’s 5-0 win over Hamburg on Dec. 27 was uncharacteristic of games between the two rivals. On Sunday evening, they showed what makes their rivalry so strong with a game that went to overtime before Kenmore East came away with a 6-5 win. “Every time we play them, it’s pretty close,” Kenmore East’s AJ Marinelli said. “Last year they …
Evans’ hat trick part of high-scoring Canisius win
David Evans’ hat trick and Tim Sgroi’s two goals led the way as Canisius defeated Hamburg 7-3 Thursday night. The Crusaders expected a tough game against the Bulldogs, who have come together in their last few games, but they didn’t let Hamburg’s recent hot streak intimidate them. “I thought it was gonna be a good game, but I knew we …
‘Not going down easy’: Hamburg continues point streak with tie
After getting the first league win of the season on Sunday and losing in overtime to Frontier on Monday night, Hamburg coach John McFall was disappointed with a 2-2 tie against red-hot Williamsville North on Saturday afternoon. It’s a stark contrast to earlier in the season, when the Bulldogs looked at their schedule against Division 1 and 2 teams with …
‘David against Goliath’: Hamburg fights for win over Niagara Wheatfield
Hamburg came into the season as the underdog of underdogs. The realignment of the divisions matched the small school against large schools this season. On Sunday night, Hamburg didn’t have a league win yet when the schedule pitted the Bulldogs against Niagara Wheatfield, last year’s large school Section VI champion. The Bulldogs could have looked at Sunday’s game as another …
Diaz breaks through, Ford records first shutout as Ken East downs Hamburg
The last time Kenmore East and Hamburg faced each other, the goaltender duel carried on through four overtimes before Kenmore East broke the scoreless tie and won to advance to the small school finals for the second year in a row. Sunday afternoon’s game once again displayed strong goaltending by both Hamburg’s Griffin Coppola and Kenmore East’s Chase Ford, but …
Timon works hard to remain undefeated
Timon’s 5-2 win over Hamburg on Sunday afternoon featured five different goal scorers, including defenseman Jack Robinson, and a secret weapon — Second Team All-WNY quarterback Matt Myers. Among other attributes the sophomore brings to the ice, his six feet and four inches and 205 pounds allow him to create a screen in front of the net that can’t be …
Clarence earns first win with victory over Hamburg
Clarence came into Saturday’s game with a 1 in every category except the win column. On Saturday, the Red Devils earned the 1 they wanted most with a 3-2 win over Hamburg to improve to 1-1-1-1. The two teams hadn’t faced each other before, with Hamburg as one of three Fed teams moving up to play large schools this season. …
Pastore scores first two varsity goals as Williamsville East downs Hamburg
Williamsville East hasn’t lost a game yet this season. Saturday’s tie against Clarence was frustrating to be sure, but the Flames came back to defeat Hamburg 4-1 on Monday night as sophomore Sam Pastore scored his first two varsity goals. Although Williamsville East moved up to play large schools this season, Hamburg was a familiar opponent as the Bulldogs too …
Hamburg looking forward to tougher schedule
The way last season ended for Hamburg still haunts head coach John McFall and his players. For the third consecutive year, the Bulldogs fell to Kenmore East in the Section VI small school semifinals. But this time, Hamburg came closer to winning than ever before. “We’ve been knocking at that door for three years in a row, and we thought …