BOSTON, Mass. – With New England Hockey Conference Tournament seeding implications on the line, UMass Boston Men's Ice Hockey fell in overtime against Skidmore College at the Edward T. Barry Ice Rink on Friday night, 2-1, in overtime.
The loss drops the Beacons to 8-9-0 in the conference and are tied at 26 points with the Thoroughbreds for fifth place. Elmira College currently sits ahead of the Beacons with 31 points and Babson College has 29 points with one game left in the regular season. UMass Boston is now guaranteed to play on the road next weekend in the NEHC Quarterfinals.
THE BASICS
UMass Boston 1, Skidmore College 2
UMass Boston (11-13-0, 8-9-0 NEHC)
Skidmore College (14-8-2, 8-7-2 NEHC)
HOW IT HAPPENED
A first period that was dominated by UMass Boston on both ends of the ice saw the Beacons outshoot Skidmore College 15-10 overall and 9-6 on goal. Eventually it would be UMass Boston who struck first in the final minute of the frame. Sophomore defender
Michael Krupinski fired a loose puck from the boards in front of the net that found the stick of sophomore forward
Kolye Bankauskas. Surrounded by three Thoroughbred defenders, Bankauskas managed to get the loose puck by the left side of sophomore goalie Blaine Moore, giving the Beacons a 1-0 lead after one period.
Facing heavy pressure from the Skidmore College offense in the second period, the UMass Boston penalty kill unit was up to the task when faced with a 5-on-3 situation early on in the frame. The Beacons would defend a third penalty kill in the second while the Thoroughbreds held UMass Boston off the scoreboard on their two power plays, keeping the score at 1-0 heading into the final 20 minutes of regulation. Despite the constant pressure, the Beacons held a 12-11 edge in shots on goal in the period.
The persistent pressure from the Thoroughbreds would eventually pay off as their speed would lead to a right side rush from junior forward Everett Wardle fed a wide open player in senior defender Matthew Monk between the two circles. Flying into the zone, Monk rifled a shot by senior goalie
Sam Best, bringing Skidmore College even with UMass Boston at one all with 14:42 remaining in regulation.
Forced to kill off another three penalties throughout the entirety of the third and being outshot by a hefty margin of 16-7 by Skidmore, Best would stand tall in net down the stretch, including a diving save with the end of his stick in the final five minutes of regulation to keep the game even and send it to overtime.
A two-on-one rush by UMass Boston led by junior forward
Evan Googins nearly ended the game but a split saves by Moore against Bankauskas kept the game tied with 4:24 left in the overtime. With 2:59 left in the sudden death period off the faceoff senior defender Devon Mussio fed junior forward Thomas Finck before junior forward Nick Cozzi ripped a wrist shot by Best for the game-winning goal and the 2-1 victory for Skidmore College.
BY THE NUMBERS
- Sam Best finished the game with 34 saves on 36 shots by Skidmore College
- Blaine Moore made 28 saves on 29 attempts from UMass Boston
- The UMass Boston penalty kill went a perfect 5-for-5 on the defensive end
- UMass Boston is now 0-3-1 in their last four games against Skidmore College after winning five consecutive games in the head-to-head matchup
WHO'S NEXT
UMass Boston closes the regular season with a matchup against Castleton University tomorrow afternoon at 4:00 PM for Senior Day. In their road matchup this year, the Beacons won in dominant fashion, 7-2, over the Spartans, making them 15-0-3 in their last 18 games against them.
