Worcester, MA- For the final home game of the 2024 Athletic season, the Worcester State Men's Ice Hockey team (3-5-1, 1-2-1), hosts newest MASCAC addition the Anna Maria AMCATS. Worcester State is looking to even out their conference record against an anticipated top contender in the conference in their final MASCAC meeting before the holiday break.
Final
Worcester State: 3
Anna Maria: 1
How it Happened:
The first period came underway with an intense energy, both teams looked prime to have an early start, and an early one it would be. The start of the game got right off to a bang with the Lancers on the offensive sending a number of pucks to the net but none would find their mark until senior Martin Dlugolinsky (Stara Lubovna, Slovakia (Poprad)) of a slip from fellow senior Brigham Neuhold (Edmond, OK) for the first score of the contest. The Lancers would lead by one, and looked to run up the score but Anna Marie had other plans. They responded to the opening goal with ferocity and their efforts were rewarded with a score of their own to tie up the game. They would dominate the flow of the game as time began to dwindle down in the first to carry a 1-1 game into intermission
The start of the second period brought a much different energy than the prior as both teams played slower as they looked for the other team to make a mistake. The game moved from finesse to physicality as Anna Marie, having touched the net last, still had some juice, and attempted to use it to get ahead. They had multiple attacks that led deep into Lancers territory but none would hit its mark as senior Wyatt Friedlander (Lake Placid, NY) would knock away each of their attempts. The Lancers matched the intensity of Anna Marie but played a more cerebral brand of hockey, as they looked for Anna Marie to slip up. And slip up they did, the second looked like a largely back and forth period where no real action would happen until junior Anders Grongstad (Royal Oak, MI) would send one through with less than two minutes to go.
The third and final period of regulation was underway, and with it came the same energy as each team looked to put the game away and claim the conference points. Anna Marie would come out fast and the Lancers had to survive this onslaught, and they did by matching their physicality and stamina. Worcester wanted to play keep away, to ensure there'd be no easy goals for Anna Marie forcing them into playing sloppy. Their sloppy offensive play would lead to some deep runs in Lancer territory but no shot would find its destination. As the AMCATS went full focus on offense this allowed for the Lancers to launch a counter attack that would lead to the second goal for Dlugolinsky, this time from sophomore Matt Lombardi (Hudson, MA) as they streaked down the ice on a 2 on 1. Anna Marie would continue to play hard, pulling their goalie with a minute left for the extra skater, but the deficit was too much to overcome as Worcester would claim the 3-1 victory.
Friedlander would end the night with 47 saves for the win.
What's Next:
Worcester State (4-5-1, 2-2-1) will also close out the 2024 season for the Athletics department as they journey to Southern New Hampshire next Saturday for a 1:10pm puck drop.