WORCESTER, Mass. – The Worcester State University men's ice hockey opened up the 2017-18 campaign with a 3-1 non-conference win over the visiting Johnson & Wales Wildcats Friday evening at the Lancers' opening night at the Fidelity Bank Worcester Ice Center.

THE BASICS

October 27, 2017

Fidelity Bank Worcester Ice Center

Score: Worcester State 3, Johnson & Wales 1

Records: Worcester State (1-0) | Johnson & Wales (0-1)

1^ST PERIOD

Worcester State's Michael Moran (Milford, Mass.) scored the Lancers' first goal of the season 3:10 into the game. Following a faceoff won by Worcester's Matthew Manning (Novi, Mich.), Alex Pommerville (Macedon, N.Y.) took a shot that went wide. Moran found the puck moments later on the right side of the goal and tucked it past Johnson & Wales' goaltender, Mike Rockwell (Poughquag, N.Y.) for the lead.

2^ND PERIOD

The Lancers had a strong second period as they scored two goals to gain a 3-0 lead. Worcester State's Nick Patullo (Doylestown, Pa.) scored his first goal of the season on a power play opportunity. Patullo received a pass from sophomore Andy DeAngelis (Poughquag, N.Y.) from the right side for the 2-0 gain. Rookie Ryan James (Katy, Texas) tallied the Lancers' third and final goal of the night just four minutes later. In the second stanza, Worcester State outshot the Wildcats by an 18-9 margin.

3^RD PERIOD

Johnson & Wales reached the scoreboard halfway through the third period when Craig Hessenius (Brookfield, Conn.) scored on assists from Connor Bechtel (Doylestown, Pa.) and Tristan Goodwin (East Haven, Conn.). Betchel and Goodwin skated up the left side and passed the puck to the center, from where Hessenius finished the play, sliding the puck just left of Worcester State's Josh Reinstein (Woodland Hills, Calif.) for the 3-1 score.

BY THE BOOK

• Worcester State saw three goals from three different players, while Moran notched a game-high six shots on net.
• The Wildcats' offense was ignited by Goodwin who recorded a team-best four shots on net.
• The Lancers' sophomore goalie, Reinstein earned the win in net as he made 21 saves in the 60-minute performance.
• The Wildcasts' Rockwell suffered the loss in 57:30 minutes played. He made 25-saves on the evening.
• Worcester State outshot Johnson & Wales by a 28-22 margin.
• The Wildcats won 32-of-57 (.561) faceoffs.
• Johnson & Wales received 29 penalty minutes on nine infractions, while Worcester State saw 12 minutes in the penalty box on six infractions.

UP NEXT

The Lancers are home again on Tuesday (Oct. 31) when they host Plymouth State in their first MASCAC matchup of the season. The Wildcats hit the road again next Friday (Nov. 3) as they travel to University of New England for a 7 p.m. matchup.

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