Club History

The Penn-Trafford Inline Hockey Club was formed in 2004 with one middle school team. The purpose of the club is to allow students in Penn-Trafford School District to represent their school in the exciting sport of inline hockey. The organization has grown to include teams at the elementary, middle and high school levels and is recognized as a club sport by the Penn-Trafford School District. The team participates in the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Roller Hockey League and competes against teams from 30 area school districts.

The formation of the Penn-Trafford Inline Hockey Club was a collaborative effort of Les Niehl, BJ Markilinski, Denny Corsale and John Tessaro who volunteered for years, teaching inline hockey to youth in the Penn Township Area. These men formed a team to represent St. Barbara's church in a recreational hockey league, UvMe&G. As interest in the sport increased, more teams were formed.

As the players entered middle school, the idea of forming a school team materialized. The founders approached the Penn-Trafford School Board about the endeavor and the first Penn Trafford Inline Hockey Team was formed. The team was permitted to use the "Penn-Trafford Warriors" name and were permitted to recruit in the schools, but official recognition was not received. As the organization grew to include three teams in the 2006-2007 season, the Penn-Trafford Inline Hockey Club was accepted by the Penn-Trafford School District an officially recognized club sport.

The first board included BJ Markilinski as President, Les Niehl as Vice President, Joanne Niehl as Secretary and Denny Corsale as Treasurer. Other board members were Aimee Markilinski, Marianne Rees and John Tessaro. This team of dedicated volunteers recruited, coached and organized the club into what it is today, a great way to allow students in grades 2 through 12 to represent their school in this competitive sport.