#1 Nichols Ousts #5 Fitchburg State, 4-2
#1 Nichols Ousts #5 Fitchburg State, 4-2
Bison snap Falcons five-game winning streak in ECAC NE semifinals
HARRISVILLE, R.I. (March 4 2009) - The fifth-seeded Fitchburg State Falcons suffered a tough 4-2 setback to the top-seeded Nichols College Bison in ECAC Northeast semifinal action this evening.
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With the victory, Nichols (24-3) advances to the ECAC Northeast Tournament finals on Saturday as it hosts third-seeded Wentworth at a time to be determined. Fitchburg State concludes its 2008-09 campaign with an overall record of 13-9-5.
Seniors Bob Kaloustian (Marlborough, Mass./Suffolk) and Matt Arsenault (Gardner, Mass./Gardner) led the Fitchburg State attack with one goal apiece, while junior Andrew Hutton (Brewster, Mass./Boston Harbor Wolves) chipped in with one assist.
Senior Glenn Cacaro (Sioux Falls, S.D./Cincinnati Cobras) and junior Eric Creamer (Chelsea, Mich./Chelsea) each posted scores for the Nichols attack, while sophomore Matt Roberts (Merrimac, Mass./New England Huskies) and senior Ryan Gervais (Chicago, Ill./Chicago Force) paced the Bison with two assists each.
After a silent first period, both teams combined for five goals in the second frame, with Nichols taking a 3-2 advantage at intermission. The Bison opened the scoring with back-to-back goals at the 3:49 mark as Creamer and freshman Andrew Ella (Schomberg, Ontario/Georgetown Raiders) found the back of the net. Fitchburg State continued to scrap, posting consecutive scores by Kaloustian and Arsenault, but Cacaro added a score for the Bison to give Nichols the one goal advantage heading into the final period.
In the third period, Nichols added a late insurance goal, securing its 24th victory of the season. Freshman Zach Hendrickson (Farmingdale, N.Y./New York Bobcats) gave the Bison the two goal cushion with his tenth marker of the season at the 16:07 mark.
The Bison out-shot the Falcons, 33-22 in the contest, including a 13-6 advantage in the opening period. Freshman goaltender Jacob Rinn (Warwick, R.I./Toll Gate) led the Nichols defense with 21 saves in the contest, while sophomore Robert Vorse (Leominster, Mass./Bay State Breakers) registered 29 stops for the Falcons.
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Nichols 4, Fitchburg State 2
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Teams |
1 |
2 |
3 |
T |
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Nichols (24-3) |
0 |
3 |
1 |
4 |
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Fitchburg State (13-9-5) |
0 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
Scoring:
1st Period: none
2nd Period: NIC: Andrew Ella (Jeff Bieber, Matt
Roberts), 3:49; NIC: Eric Creamer (Will Munson, Robert Gervais),
4:50; FIT: Bob Kaloustian (Andrew Hutton), 11:57; FIT: Matt
Arsenault (Travis Bertolotti), 15:22; NIC: Glenn Cacaro (Gervais),
16:20;
3rd Period: NIC: Zach Hendrickson (Roberts),
16:07
Goaltending: FIT: Robert Vorse (59:16), 29 saves;
NIC: Jacob Rinn (60:00), 21 saves;
Shots-On-Goal: FIT: 23; NIC: 33