Worcester State 4, Franklin Pierce 1
Wichendon, MA --- Senior forward Dan Drinkwater (Walpole, MA) scored the game-winning goal just 2:51 into the game as part of a three-goal opening period that send Worcester State on its way to a 4-1 victory over the Franklin Pierce University ice hockey team in non-conference play at The Winchendon School Ice Arena.
With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 1-4-2, while Worcester
State improves to 2-2.
Worcester State would come out of the gates firing on all
cylinders, as three goals in the opening 10 minutes put Franklin
Pierce in a hole which it would never dig out of. Senior forward
Lee Belisle opened the scoring with his first goal
of the season just 2:04 into the contest when he jammed home the
rebound of a shot by sophomore forward John
Cahalane (Tewksbury, MA).
47 seconds later, the Lancers would make it 2-0, when Drinkwater
found the net for the eventual game-winner. He corralled the puck
in the right-wing corner, got to the bottom of the right circle and
snapped a wrist shot past Franklin Pierce sophomore goaltender Ben
Siok (Holden, MA) for his first goal of the year. Sophomore forward
Cody Warila (Shirley, MA) and senior forward
Tim Stalmok (Paxton, MA) picked up assists on the
goal, which prompted a timeout by Franklin Pierce.
Worcester State then pushed the lead to 3-0 at the 9:47 mark, as
fourth-year captain Mark Rintel (Oakland Gardens,
NY) skated down the slot and roofed a backhander past Siok for his
third goal of the season. The unassisted tally chased Siok from the
Franklin Pierce cage in favor of senior Jon Tuttle (Concord,
NH).
Franklin Pierce would get its only goal of the game before the
first intermission on a nifty passing play. Freshman forward Tom
Mills (Oxford, England) dug the puck out of the left-wing corner
and sent it to sophomore forward Anthony Chighisola (Whitman, MA).
Chighisola redirected the puck into the slot to Johnathan Schanke
(Wallingford, CT), who one-timed the puck into the back of the net
for his third goal of the season.
Worcester State would add an insurance marker at the 11:43 mark of
the third period to create the 4-1 final. Junior defenseman
Dillon Wilde (Holden, MA) sent a pass forward from
his own end which sprung senior forward Andrew
Brady (Oreland, PA) through the neutral zone with a full
head of steam. Brady was joined by sophomore forward Nick
Asterito (Philadelphia, PA) as they came in 2-on-2 on the
Franklin Pierce defense. Brady went around his man on the outside
and flipped a pass from the corner back out into the slot for
Asterito, who in turn one-timed a shot into the net for his second
goal of the season.
Siok made seven saves over the opening 9:47 of the contest and
took the loss (1-4-2) in net for Franklin Pierce. Tuttle made 16
saves over the remaining 50:13 of the game. Freshman goaltender
TJ Cuneo made 29 saves to earn the win (1-0) of
his career between the pipes for Worcester State.
Franklin Pierce held a 30-27 edge in shots on goal in the game,
and went 0-for-5 on the power play. Worcester State did not score
in six attempts with the man-advantage.
The Ravens return to the ice on Saturday, Nov. 21, when they
remain home to host Stonehill in a Northeast-10 Conference contest
at 7 PM.
Worcester State entertains Framingham State as they continue MASCAC play on Saturday at 4:30 at Horgan Rink in Auburn.
Release Courtesy of Franklin Pierce Sports Information