WORCESTER, Mass. – The Worcester State University men's ice hockey team dropped their home opener to the visiting Franklin Pierce Ravens Saturday evening in cross-divisional play inside the Hart Recreation Center on the campus of Holy Cross.
Franklin Pierce came out with two unanswered power play goals, from where Worcester State found one goal late in the second period. The Ravens had a commanding third period and came away with the 4-1 win over the Lancers for their second win of the season.
Franklin Pierce started the scoring just one minute into the game when Jonathan Haun (Buffalo, N.Y.) scored on a power play breakaway shot off the right pipe for the 1-0 advantage. The score would remain at 1-0 throughout the remainder of the period, and Worcester State would hold the shot advantage 7-5.
The Ravens doubled their lead in the 7th minute of the second period, once again on a power play, when Alex Lester (Methuen, Mass.) scored in the slot on assists from Matthew Toombs (Pleasanton, Calif.) and Alex Schelper (Sutton, Mass.). However, Worcester State cut the deficit in the 16th minute of the second period when Alex DeWitz (Oronco, Minn.) dashed up the ice and shot the puck into the top right corner of the net.
Franklin Pierce had a big third period as they scored two goals and their netminder, Tom McGuckin (Clayton, N.J.) stopped all 13 Worcester State shots on goal for the Ravens to notch the 4-1 win. The Ravens' third goal of the game was from Evan Marek (Enfield, Conn.) on a breakaway in the 6th minute of the third period. The Ravens' fourth and final goal was scored with two minutes remaining on the clock on an open net. Franklin Pierce's Taylor Fletcher (Leominster, Mass.) struck the puck from their defensive zone towards their offensive zone, and the puck landed in the net for the 4-1 score.
Franklin Pierce's McGuckin registered his second win of the season in a 28-save performance. For the Lancers, Cory Lignelli (Glastonbury, Conn.) got the start in goal and made 18 saves in his first loss of the season.
Next up, the Lancers (0-3) host Framingham State in a conference game on Thursday (Nov. 10) at 8:30 p.m. The Ravens (2-2) return to Worcester next Saturday as they take on Northeast-10 opponent, Assumption in a 7:00 p.m. matchup.