Bristol Reporter

Men's Hockey Falls To Fitchburg State in MASCAC Action

 Powered by a three-goal second period, Fitchburg State University defeated UMass Dartmouth, 3-1 in MASCAC action on Thursday evening. With the victory, the Falcons moved to 11-9-3 and 8-5-3 in conference play, while the Corsairs are now 8-13-2 overall and 6-9-1 in the MASCAC.

After a scoreless opening period of play that saw the visiting Falcons with a 27-21 advantage in shots, Fitchburg State broke open the contest in the second stanza with three straight goals over a three-and-a-half-minute span.

Sophomore winger Corey Tumenas got FSU on the board after a shot from sophomore defender Samuel Rennick was saved by Corsairs goalie Daniel Davidson. The puck rebounded out to the right post as Tumenas was there to bury it into the open net for the 1-0 lead. Rookie center Jeremy Maillet earned the other helper on the score at 9:38.

At the 11:05 mark, the Falcons dropped in another goal as senior center Gene Bouthiette sent a drop back pass out to the middle near the center red line. Sophomore winger Michael Macchioni collected the puck and raced into the zone on the breakaway for a shot past Davidson into the low right corner. Senior left wing Rece Bergeman had the second assist for the Falcons.

Sophomore winger Oliver Cookson made it a 3-0 advantage at the 13:07 mark after the Falcons crashed the net. Junior left wing Cole Archambeault passed it up on the far side to sophomore center Toivo Kramer deep in the right circle. He was able to send it across the goal mouth as Cookson buried it for his third of the season.

Heading into the final frame, the Corsairs worked to jump back into the game offensively, peppering the FSU goalie with four shots on goal in the opening 5:29. Rookie wing Billy McDevitt was the first to test Macchioni at the 2:37 mark, followed by a rifled shot from the top slot by freshman right wing Kevin Johnston a minute later.

Zdanowicz dropped in a quick save, followed by a shot by rookie Alex Newton as the Corsairs were persistent in getting on the board. UMass Dartmouth finally broke through at 9:20, stealing the puck at the blueline as he went one-on-one with the goalie. His shot went five-hole for the unassisted tally.

Despite the momentum, the Corsairs were unable to hold off the Falcons, who added a final score at 13:22 as Bouthiette tipped in a shot from the boards by Bergeman for the 4-1 final score.

For the contest, the visiting Falcons owned a 43-27 advantage in shots, going 45-21 on the faceoff. Bouthiette paced the effort, going 15-6. In goal, the Falcons saw a 26 save performance from Macchioni, while the Corsairs saw Davidson stop 39 shots.

UMass Dartmouth returns to the ice on Saturday at 5:40pm, hosting Salem State University as the Corsairs will celebrate their Seniors in a pre-game ceremony.
  

Original source can be found here