Men’s Ice Hockey Opens up the 2015-16 Season at ICFCU Shootout

FITCHBURG, Mass. – The Worcester State University Men's Ice Hockey team opened up play this weekend with the ICFCU Shootout hosted by Fitchburg State University. Worcester State split on the shootout, dropping their first game against Wentworth 6-0 on Friday, and then coming back and taking the 4-0 victory over Southern Maine on Saturday.

GAME ONE: Worcester State 0, Wentworth 6

Wentworth tallied five goals in the first period as the Leopards defeated the Lancers of Worcester State University, 6-0 in first round action of the ICFCU Shootout hosted by Fitchburg State University on Friday evening.

Wentworth opened the scoring at the 8:38 mark as sophomore forward Jake McDonogh collected a feed from classmate Ryan Sullivan and deposited the puck into the right side for net for the 1-0 lead.

The Leopards doubled their advantage (2-0) one minute later when freshman Sean Brennan struck for his first collegiate tally, firing a shot inside the far post off assist from Sullivan and sophomore Chris Sattier.

The visitors upped its margin at the 13:22 mark as senior forward Stephen McManus broke in on a one-on-one and slipped the puck into the upper left corner as freshmen Adam Lane and Jake Flynn assisted on the play for the 3-0 lead.

Following a goal by McDonough, Wentworth capped the scoring in the first frame with just over four minutes remaining in the stanza when newcomer Byron Carlisle netted his first collegiate marker on assists by Lane and Sullivan for the 5-0 advantage after 20 minutes of play.

Following a scoreless second period, concluded the scoring in the contest at the 13:09 mark as sophomore forward Erik Andersson found the back of the net for his first tally on the season, resulting in the 6-0 final.

Throughout the contest Wentworth held a 38-19 advantage in shots, while the Lancers finished 0-for-6 on the power-play. In goal, senior Salvatore Tecci (Franklin, Mass.) made 32 saves in the complete game effort for Worcester State, while counterpart Joel Miller stopped 19 shots for the Leopards

GAME TWO: Worcester State 4, Southern Maine 0

Four different players registered a goal as the Lancers of Worcester State defeated Southern Maine University, 4-0 in second round action of the ICFCU shootout this afternoon at the Wallace Civic Center.

Worcester State opened the scoring with 43 seconds remaining in the first period as freshman forward Patrick Germain (Auburn, Mass.) fired a shot inside the near post for his first collegiate tally on assists from classmate Mitchell Purdie (Cavan, Ontario) and sophomore Ryan Menard (Ashland, Mass.) for the 1-0 margin going into the first intermission.

Following a scoreless second frame, the Lancers doubled their lead (2-0) just 36 seconds into the third period when senior Nick Drill (Madison, W.I.) buried a shot into the back into the net. Freshman Cody Slocum (Temecula, Calif.) and sophomore Sean Haltram (Medina, Ohio) assisted on the play.

The hosts upped its advantage at the 16:06 mark when freshman Mike Moran (Milford, Mass.) collected a pass from sophomore Joe White (Wonder Lake, I.L.) and fired a shot into the lower left corner of the net for his first collegiate tally for the 3-0 lead.

Worcester State added an insurance score with just over one minute left in the contest as sophomore Alex Pommerville (Macedon, N.Y.) slid the puck into an empty off an assist from Germain, resulting in the 4-0 final.

Throughout the contest, Southern Maine held a slim 32-28 advantage in shots, while the Lancers finished 0-for-5 on the man advantage. In goal, freshman Max Kirkwood (Brunswick, Ohio) stopped 32 shots for Worcester State, while sophomore Matt Michals finished with 24 saves for the Huskies

Worcester State (1-1-0, 0-0-0 MASCAC) returns to action on Tuesday as it hosts the Corsairs of UMass Dartmouth at 8:45 p.m. Southern Maine (1-1-0, 0-0-0 ECAC E) will host the Cadets of Norwich University on Friday at 7 p.m.

2015-16 IC Federal Credit Union Final Standings

1. Fitchburg State (1-1-0)                        4 points (Wins ICFCU Shootout via goal differential)
2. Wentworth (1-1-0)                   4 points

Worcester State (1-1-0)           4 points

Southern Maine (1-1-0)           4 points

2015-16 IC Federal Credit Union All-Tournament Team

FIT       freshman         F          Michael Fretz 

USM    senior              F          Zach Dymock

WIT      sophomore      F          Jake McDounough

FIT       freshman         F          Nikc DiNicola

WIT      sophomore      D          Ryan Sullivan

WOR    sophomore      D          Alex Pommerville

FIT       freshman         G         Kirby Saari  MVP

Release Courtesy of Fitchburg Sports Information