Auburn, MA --- UMass Dartmouth sophomore Evangelos Stefanou (Tabernacle, NJ/East Coast Eagles) potted the match-clinching marker with 4:40 left in regulation to help lead the Corsairs to a 4-3 triumph over Worcester State in MASCAC men's ice hockey action this evening at Horgan Rink.
With the win UMD leapfrog over the Lancers in the conference standings with a 5-13-2 record and 5-8 mark for 10 points in league play. WSU falls to 8-9-1 and 4-8-1 in the MASCAC to remain at nine points.
As the Blue and Gold held the 3-2 advantage after the first two frames, the Corsairs evened the score just 1:18 into the final stanza when senior Dmitry Antipin (Novosibirsk, Russia/Cape Cod Cubs) found an open hole in the crease for his fourth marker of the season.
The contest continued to go back and forth in the third period until Stefeanou knocked in his own rebounded shot on the left side of the net with assists by sophomore Kyle Johnson (Charlotte, MI/Richmond Generals) and sophomore Casey Skolnick (Ashland, OR/Iron Range Ironheads) for the go-ahead margin and his third tally of the campaign.
With 1:14 left on the clock, Worcester State had a golden opportunity to tie up the contest as UMass Dartmouth was whistled for a penalty and the hosts opted to remove net minder Salvatore Tecci (Franklin, MA/Long Beach Bombers) for a six on four advantage.
But the Corsairs defense did a solid job of not allowing any quality scoring opportunities in the games waning moments and the Lancers did not capitalize on their good fortune by netting the equalizer for the final score.
UMD originally staked a 1-0 edge at the 13:29 mark of the first period when by freshman Tanner Zacharewicz (Ludlow, MA/Trinity-Pawling) lit up the siren on his fifth goal of the season.
The middle period saw Worcester State outscore the visitors, 3-1, with two quick tallies to start off the frame.
Junior Nathan Stanley (Meridian, ID/Idaho Jr Steelheads) went around the net and beat the goalie on the sick side following a pass by freshman Alex DeWitz (Oronco, MN/Helena Bighorns) to help even up the score with 2:48 on the clock. Stanley then returned the favor back to DeWitz for the 2-1 margin four minutes later.
The markers were Stanley's fourth of the campaign and DeWitz's seventh of the season.
UMass Dartmouth answered around the midway mark for a 2-2 contest on an unassisted goal by Johnson, who recorded his second of the year.
But senior Derek Serbon (Crown Point, IN/Tulsa Rampage) came through for the hosts with the go-ahead marker with 5:13 left in the second stanza when he threaded the needle on the stick side of the UMD senior net minder Ben Vandervies (Hanna, Alberta/Golden Rockets) for his fourth of the season.
Serbon, who became the 55th Lancer to register his 50th career point, received some help by sophomore Joe White (Wonder Lake, IL/Southern Oregon Spartans) and junior Andrew Bates (Marblehead, MA/Boston Jr Bulldogs). Serbon now has 22 goals and 28 helpers in his solid career for the Lancers.
With his squad-best 16th assist for UMD, Resticcia now leads the conference with 25 points.
Vandervies turned aside 31 shots between the pipes for the visitors in the victory (3-8-2). Tecci falls to 5-6-1 overall as he collected 27 saves in the cage for the Lancers.
Neither team scored a power play goal as the hosts were 0-for-4 and the Corsairs were 0-for-3. Worcester State actually led in shots, 34-31, while UMass Dartmouth held the final margin in face-offs (44-34).
The Blue and Gold will play again at Buffone Rink on Tuesday in a 7:35 PM matchup against Assumption while the Corsairs entertain Framingham State on Saturday in a MASCAC affair on Saturday at 4:30 PM.
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