Fitchburg State Stopped By NEC, 3-2 (OT)
| Final | 1 | 2 | 3 | OT | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Fitchburg St. (9-4-0) | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
|
New England Col. (5-6-1) | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
Falcons snap five game-winning streak with overtime, non-conference setback
HENNIKER, N.H. (January 11, 2011) – The Fitchburg State ice hockey team saw its five game winning streak come to an end as New England College topped the Falcons, 3-2 in overtime action this evening.
ROBERT VORSE |
The Falcons jumped out to an early 2-0 lead after just 41 minutes of play using scores from seniors Billy Pescosolido (Framingham, Mass./Walpole Express) and Kevin McCready (Poughkeepsie, N.Y./Mohawk CC) but Fitchburg State saw its two goal advantage quickly diminish as the Pilgrims netted back-to-back markers to close out the third period.
Pescosolido opened the Falcons scoring in the second period, using feeds from sophomore Curtis Nikitas (Fitchburg, Mass./Saint Bernards) and freshman Tim Larkin (Williamstown, N.J./Philadelphia Little Flyers) while McCready opened the third period with a marker just 24 seconds into the frame. Sophomore Trevor Lawler (Fitchburg, Mass./New England Jr. Huskies) and senior Chris Riggs (Sewell, N.J./Fort Vancouver Pioneers) set up McCready, giving the senior forward his team-leading eight score of the year.
New England College rallied back just one minute later as Kyle Kozlowski (Buffalo, N.Y./) put the Pilgrims on the board with his first goal of the season at the 1:24 mark. Peter Uola (Turku, Finland) completed the Pilgrims comeback later in the period, netting his team-high 15th goal of the season with just over five minutes remaining in regulation to force the game into a five minute overtime period. .
Play continued in the extra frame where both teams battled down to the wire. Senior Jared Mullen (Roanoke, Va./) lifted the Pilgrims to their fifth victory of the season with only three seconds remaining in the contest as the veteran forward connected for the game-winning goal at the 4:57 mark.
New England College dominated the offensive side of the ice, holding a 53-22 advantage in targets, including 19 attempts in the second period. Senior Robert Vorse (Leominster, Mass./Bay State Breakers) led the Falcons with 37 saves in net, while junior Bobby Leiser (Monroe, N.Y./New York Bobcats) totaled 13 saves in 21 minutes of relief.
Fitchburg State (9-4-0, 3-3-0 MASCAC) will hit the ice again on Saturday as it travels to Framingham State at 2:30 p.m. New England College (5-6-1, 3-4-0 ECAC East) will host Norwich University on Friday at 7 p.m.
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New England Col. 3, Fitchburg State 2 (OT)
|
Team |
1 |
2 |
3 |
OT |
F |
|
New England (5-6-1, 3-4-0 ECAC East) |
0 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
3 |
|
Fitchburg State (9-4-0, 3-3-0 MASCAC) |
0 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
Scoring:
1st Period: none;
2nd Period: FIT: Billy Pescosolido (Curtis Nikitas, Tim Larkin), 3:11;
3rd Period: FIT: Trevor Lawler (Kevin McCready, Chris Riggs), 0:24; NEC: Kyle Kozlowski (Matt Abbott, Phil Moore), 1:27; NEC: Niko Uola (Jared Mullen, Greg Girtatos), 14:57;
OT: NEC: Mullen (Moore, Jarkko Leppanen), 4:57;
Goaltending: FIT: Robert Vorse (43:36), 37 saves; Bobby Leiser (21:21), 13 saves; NEC: Aaron Harvey (64:57), 20 saves;
Shots On Goal: FIT: 22; NEC: 53