BOSTON, Mass. – Four different Panthers posted multi-point games, but the University of Massachusetts Boston outlasted Plymouth State University, 8-5, in a high-octane Little East Conference (LEC) men's ice hockey contest at Edward T. Barry Ice Rink on Friday evening.
The Beacons scored just 10 seconds into the game and built a 4-1 lead through the first 16-plus minutes of action. Junior
Patrick O'Connell (West Chester, Pa.) kept the Panthers within striking distance with a pair of first-period goals as PSU trailed 4-2 after one.
Plymouth State rallied repeatedly in the second period, but the hosts responded each time. Junior
Will Pray (Prague, Czechia) and senior
Brendan Doyle (Stratham, N.H.) scored 15 seconds apart early in the frame to tie the game at 4-4, but the Beacons answered with consecutive tallies to take a 6-4 lead with just over six minutes remaining in the period.
Senior
Byron Hartley (Philadelphia, Pa.) potted a short-handed goal late in the middle stanza to cut the deficit to one, but once again UMass Boston had the answer, scoring a pair of power-play goals in the final 90 seconds of the period.
Things settled down in the third, as neither team found the back of the net over the final 20 minutes.
Plymouth State slips to 11-9-1 (8-5-1 LEC), while the Beacons improve to 12-7-1 (7-5-1 LEC).
The Basics:
- Plymouth State 5, UMass Boston 8
- Plymouth State (11-9-1, 8-5-1 LEC)
- UMass Boston (12-7-1, 7-5-1 LEC)
How it Happened:
- The UMass Boston forecheck forced a turnover behind the goal, and the Beacons converted just 10 seconds into the contest.
- The hosts doubled the margin during a 2-on-1 break eight minutes later.
- O'Connell cut the deficit in half at 8:51 of the period when he sniped a shot from the high slot to the top-right corner to make it 2-1.
- The Beacons answered with a shot through traffic at 13:22, then pushed the lead to 4-1 on a 3-on-2 rush with 3:27 left in the period.
- Plymouth State pulled within 4-2 late in the period as O'Connell played the puck off the boards near center ice, where it ricocheted past the goaltender.
- Pray beat the goalie stick-side 5:36 into the second to make it 4-3, and Doyle went top-shelf following an offensive-zone faceoff win just 15 seconds later to tie the game.
- UMass Boston regained the lead two minutes later with a rebound goal and extended the margin to 6-4 with 6:28 remaining in the frame.
- Hartley forced a turnover during a penalty kill and skated in on a breakaway late in the period. His initial attempt was stopped, but he buried the rebound to pull within 6-5 with 2:25 left before intermission.
- The Beacons closed the frame with back-to-back power-play goals to take an 8-5 lead into the third.
- Neither team scored in the final period as UMass Boston held on for the victory.
By the Numbers:
- O'Connell scored twice for his first multi-goal game in two years.
- Senior Rider McCallum (Langley, British Columbia) posted three assists, while freshman Kim Hilmersson (Uppsala, Sweden) and sophomore Matt Hale (Center Harbor, N.H.) added two assists apiece.
- Plymouth State held a 46-38 edge in shots on goal.
- UMass Boston went 2-for-3 on the power play, while PSU finished 0-for-2.
- The all-time series is tied, 2-2.
Up Next:
- Plymouth State travels to UMass Dartmouth on Saturday (Feb. 7) for a 3:30 p.m. puck drop.
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