Falcons Defeat Rams, 5-3

Wilmshurst, Ceolin and Bouthiette net first collegiate tallies for Fitchburg State

Framingham, Mass. – The Fitchburg State ice hockey team defeated the Rams of Salem State University, 5-3 this evening in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action from the Loring Arena.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 5, Framingham State 3
Records: Fitchburg State (4-1-0, 2-1-0 MASCAC) | Framingham State (0-5-0, 0-4-0 MASCAC)

How It Happened

Framingham State jumped out to a 1-0 edge at the 7:36 mark of the first period as senior John Sheehan (Norwood, Mass.) collected a feed from sophomore Bryan Whelan (Rockville, Mass.) and found the back of the net for his second tally of the season.

Fitchburg State knotted the score (1-1) with four minutes remaining in the frame when freshman Trent Shanley (Hillsdale, N.J.) connected on his first collegiate tally off an assist from junior Joseph Miller (Malton, N.J.).

The Falcons regained the lead minutes later with junior Brian Glover (Baldwinville, Mass.) notching his first marker of the 2019-20 campaign as newcomer Hunter Fortin (Westerville, Ohio) assisted on the play for the 2-1 margin.

In the second period of play, the Rams tied the contest (2-2) four minutes into the stanza  when sophomore Christopher Rupp (Denville, N.J.) netted his first goal on the year before Fitchburg State took the lead back midway through the period as freshman Anthony Ceolin (Simsbury, Conn.) connected on his first career goal, assisted by Glover for the 3-1 advantage.

The lead was short lived though as Framingham State managed to tie the game up at 3-3 with just 51 seconds remaining in the stanza as Whelan notched his second marker of the season.

In the final period of play, the Green and Gold broke the 3-3 stalemate at the 8:02 mark as newcomer Gene Bouthiette (Enfield, Conn.) fired a shot into the back of the net for his first collegiate marker for the 4-3 edge.

Fitchburg State added an insurance tally with four minutes left in the game when freshman Wyatt Wilmshurst (Massena, N.Y.) gathered a pass from Ceolin and classmate Rece Bergeman (Newark, Del.) and deposited the puck into the net for his first career goal, resulting in the 5-3 final.

By the Numbers

• Wilmshurst, Ceolin and Bouthiette notch first collegiate tally for Falcons
• 63rd meeting between the two squads with the Falcons 50-8-5 all-time vs the Rams
• Fitchburg State finished with a 44-28 margin in shots
• Framingham State went 1-for-9 with the man advantage
• Junior Brian McGrath (Worcester, Mass.) stopped 25 shots for the Falcons
• Senior Greg Harney (East Haven, Conn.) made 39 saves for the Rams

Up Next

Falcons will host the Owls of Westfield State University on Saturday for a MASCAC tilt, starting at 4:00 PM. Rams will travel to Salem State on the same date for a conference matchup at 2:00 PM.