BOSTON, Mass. – Facing off against the top-ranked team nationally in the DCU/USCHO Division III Men's Ice Hockey Poll in Hobart College on Saturday afternoon at home, UMass Boston Men's Ice Hockey was handed their first shutout of the season in a 3-0 loss to the Statesmen.
THE BASICS
UMass Boston 0, Hobart College 3
UMass Boston (2-6-0, 2-4-0 NEHC)
Hobart College (8-0-0, 4-0-0 NEHC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
Less than two minutes into the contest, sophomore forward Luke Aquaro netted the first goal of the game after a turnover near the offensive blue line saw the Statesmen rush the other way. Junior forward Jonah Alexander found sophomore forward Shane Shell on the right side of the goal before firing over to Aquaro on the left who rifled the puck by the diving graduate goalie Liam Murray in net for the Beacons.
UMass Boston would have a couple of opportunities against freshman goalie Damon Beaver, who got the start for Hobart College, with a few loose pucks in front of the cage that were pushed out by the Statesmen defense. Nearing the end of the first, Aquaro would check sophomore forward Patrick McCoy forcing a turnover in the defensive zone which was picked up by a streaking Alexander who scored the second goal of the period for Hobart College.
Offensive opportunities would come aplenty for the Beacons in the second period to the tune of 16 shots on goal in part due to four power play chances. Still trailing by two goals, UMass Boston would embark on a 5-on-3 power play but were unable to score against Beaver while a trio of Beacon turnovers led to three breakaway attempts by the Statesmen which were quelled by Murray.
On the third breakaway opportunity, a takedown by sophomore defender Pat Keegan would result in a penalty shot for Aquaro who snapped the puck into the back right side of the net, making it 3-0 in favor of Hobart heading into the third period which would be the eventual final score as both teams went scoreless in the final 20 minutes of play.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Making his first start in net this season, Liam Murray stopped 31 of the 34 shots he faced against Hobart College
- Damon Beaver earned the win in net for Hobart College, stopping all 26 of the UMass Boston shots for his second shutout of the season
- The Beacon penalty kill capped off a strong weekend, going a perfect 4-for-4 against the Statesmen (8-for-8 this weekend)
- This was the first home shutout loss for the Beacons since the 2019-20 season versus Norwich University on January 31st, 2020, which was a 5-0 contest
WHO'S NEXT
UMass Boston will embark on a two-game road trip next weekend with their first stop coming at Colby College on Saturday afternoon at 4:00 PM. The Beacons are 4-0-1 in their last five matchups against the Mules, taking their last game, 6-3, on the road in November 2019.
