FRAMINGHAM, Mass. – Freshmen
Patrick O'Connell (West Chester, Pa.) and
Will Pray (Wheaton, Illl.) each scored twice, and Plymouth State used a four-goal third period to overtake Framingham State University, 7-2, in a Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) men's ice hockey game at Loring Arena on Thursday night.
After a scoreless first period, the Panthers scored twice in the first 5:36 of the second to jump ahead on goals from junior
Cam Patton (Truro, Nova Scotia) and classmate
Connor Tait (Boyds, Md.). Pray followed with his first of the night with 6:46 left in the period, but the Rams battled back with consecutive goals to pull within 3-2 heading to the final period.
Plymouth State overpowered the Rams throughout the final frame, with freshman
David Matousek (West Chester, Pa.) restoring the two-goal lead just three minutes in, and O'Connell notching back-to-back goals to extend the margin to 6-2. Pray capped the scoring with 3:10 left to play when he stole the puck behind the Rams' goal, skated around and sniped a perfect shot to the corner to account for the final score.
Plymouth State jumps to 13-1-2 (10-0-2 MASCAC), while Framingham State slides to 6-9-0 (6-6-0 MASCAC).
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 7, Framingham State 2
- Plymouth State (13-1-2, 10-0-2 MASCAC)
- Framingham State (6-9-0, 6-6-0 MASCAC)
How it Happened:
- Plymouth State had an early chance just over two minutes into the game when junior Ethan Stuckless (Conception Bay South, Newfoundland) found senior Carson Lanceleve (Stewiacke, Nova Scotia) with a cross-ice pass, but Lanceleve's shot was blocked by Rams' defender.
- Tait had a bid in the final minute when he made a move around the goalie, but he was unable to get the puck past the left pad.
- Though the Panthers controlled the zone for much of the first period, both goaltenders were on top of their games as the score remained deadlocked at 0-0 into the first intermission.
- Plymouth State broke the ice 2:07 into the second. Matousek skated down the left side and dropped the puck to the trailer, classmate Josh Steele (Tampa, Fla.). Steele ripped a shot wide of the net and the puck deflected off the end boards to Patton, who deposited it into the open net.
- The Panthers doubled the margin just over three minutes later. Sophomore Will Redick (Collingwood, Ontario) flipped a pass behind the goal to Pray. Pray skated around and found Tait alone in the slot, who tapped it past the goalie.
- PSU extended the lead to 3-0 with 6:46 left in the middle frame. Redick won an offensive zone faceoff and freshman Eddie Mulligan (Lincoln, R.I.) flipped a pass to Pray, who backhanded the bouncing puck into the net.
- The Rams got on the board less than 40 seconds later when the puck took a weird bounce on a centering pass along the goal line and squirted past senior Kalle Andersson (Taby, Sweden).
- Framingham State pulled to within 3-2 with a power play goal in the final two minutes of the stanza and it remained a one-goal game into the third period.
- Matousek potted his first career goal 3:07 into the final period. Patton sent a perfect feed to Matousek on the near side and his quick wrist shot lit the lamp before the Rams' goalie could cover the post to make it 4-2.
- PSU pushed the advantage to 5-2 less than three minutes later when O'Connell took a pass from Matousek in the low slot and went top shelf.
- Plymouth State continued to pour it on as O'Connell buried his second of the night when senior Matt Tartaglio (Houston, Texas) hit him in stride through the neutral zone. O'Connell skated to the right side before firing a shot past the screened goalie with 8:13 remaining.
- Pray stole a pass behind the Framingham State goal, got around a defender and whipped a turnaround shot into the top left corner with 3:10 to account for the 7-2 final score.
By the Numbers:
- Pray has recorded a point in each of his last six games. His three points (two goals, one assist) were one shy of his season high.
- O'Connell's two goals marked a career best. He has six points in the last three games.
- Redick finished the night with three assists, giving him an NCAA-best 35 points on the season.
- Mulligan added a pair of assists, while Matousek tallied his first career goal to go with two helpers.
- Steele (two assists) and Patton (one goal, one assist) also posted multi-point games.
- Andersson finished with 32 saves to pick up the win.
- The Panthers went 46-27 in the faceoff circle, with Stuckless winning 12-of-15 draws.
- PSU held a 51-34 advantage in shots for the game.
- Plymouth State has won 22 straight games against the Rams. The Panthers are 28-0-1 in the last 29 meetings.
Up Next:
- Plymouth State hosts UMass Dartmouth on Saturday (Jan. 20). Puck drop is set for 6:00 p.m.
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