Fitchburg State Draws With Plymouth State, 4-4

Falcons claim fourth seed in MASCAC playoffs; host first round action on Saturday at 4 p.m.

FITCHBURG, Mass. (February 21, 2012) – The Fitchburg State ice hockey team battled to a 4-4 MASCAC tie this evening as the Falcons hosted Plymouth State in the Wallace Civic Center at Fitchburg State University.

Plymouth State found the back of the net early into the first period when freshman Mike Freitag (Westmont, Ill./ Valley Jr. Warriors) converted a pass from JC Richardson (Fort Collins, Col./Bay State Breakers) and junior Kyle Greco (Hillside, Ill./ St. Louis Bandits) just 3:41 into the frame. The Panthers increased their lead to 2-0 on a Chris Mohar (Broomfield Col./ Portland Junior Pirates) tally with just two minutes remaining in the period, with Greco adding his second helper of the game.

In the second period, Plymouth State padded its lead (3-0) as Freitag added his second score of the game at the 2:14 mark, but Fitchburg State would break its scoring silence later in the period as junior Joseph Caveney (Fitchburg, Mass./ New England Junior Huskies) and senior Kris Threlkeld (Centerville, Ohio/ CD Selects) netted back-to-back markers to cut the deficit only to one (3-2).

The scoring battle continued into the third with Tim Visich (Mount Pleasant, Mich./Philadelphia Jr. Flyers) putting the Panthers back up by two early in the frame. The Falcons responded again with a pair of markers just 0:43 apart to knot the score a force a five minute overtime period. Junior Cory Callen (Annadale, N.J./Oswego State) and freshman Derek Giansanti (Newington, Conn./ Connecticut Jr. Wolfpack) found the back of the net for the Falcons as Giansanti collected his first goal in a Falcon uniform.

Though the scoring remained silent in the five minute overtime period, the Panthers held a 33-25 advantage in shots. Fitchburg State's senior goaltender Bobby Leiser (Monroe, N.Y./ New York Applecore) turned in a complete game effort stopping 29 of 33 shots, while Tyler Ingerson (Concord, N.H./ Hampshire Junior Monarchs) posted 21 saves between the pipes for the Panthers.

Fitchburg State (9-12-4, 8-7-3 MASCAC) will be back in action this Saturday as it plays host to Worcester State in the MASCAC Quarterfinals starting at 4 p.m. Plymouth State (15-6-3, 12-3-3 MASCAC) earned a first round bye of the tournament and will host a semifinal round match up on Tuesday at 6 p.m.