MARLBOROUGH, Mass. – Wentworth Institute of Technology scored early and often in their 9-5 victory over host Becker College in ECAC Northeast men's ice hockey action Saturday night at the New England Sports Center in Marlboro. The Leopards of Wentworth snap their two-game losing streak and are now 5-3-1 with a record 3-2 in the ECAC. The Ice Hawks of Becker fall to 3-6 and 0-5 in the conference standings.
It took just 17 seconds for the Leopards to get on the board, as sophomore forward Kevin Crowe (Galloway, N.J.) found the back of the net off a shot from the right side with an assist to sophomore forward Mike Domsodi (Kirkland, Que.). 1:50 into the game, senior forward Craig Cardone (Westford, Mass.) shot it between the goalie's legs with assists to senior forward Joel Vastl (North Salem, N.H.) and junior forward Patrick Rice (West Des Moines, Iowa). Then 3:07 into the game, Crowe scored his second goal of the day on a power play with a assists to Domsodi and freshman forward Devin Cobbold (Ottawa, Ont.) to put Wentworth up 3-0, leading to a goalie change for the Ice Hawks.
Becker got a goal back 7:42 into the first period when senior forward Branden Parkhouse (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) cut into the zone and scored with assists to senior forward David Graham (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.) and junior forward Korby Anderson (Owantonna, Minn.).
Cobbold put the Leopards up 4-1 at the 11:02 mark when took the pass from junior defenseman Lawton McCracken (Colborne, Ont.) and blasted it home as Becker again fell behind by three scores. Wentworth sophomore defenseman Beau Burgau (New Ulm, Minn.) scored at 13:18 on a power play, with an assist to senior defenseman Shaun Jameson (Long Beach, Calif.). Just over a minute later, sophomore forward Jordan Bourgonje (Spruce Grove, Alta.) scored another power play goal, with assists to Jameson and senior defender Reed Rushing (Seattle, Wash.) and the Leopards went ahead 6-1. That score would hold up going into the break.
The Ice Hawks played better for much of the second period, but with exactly seven minutes left, Rice scored on a two-on-one breakaway with assists to Cardone and Vastl, as Wentworth took a 7-1 lead. Then 14:42 into the second, Becker freshman forward Gerald Owen (Chesapeake, Va.) found the back of the net on a solo score for the Ice Hawks' second goal of the night. The final four minutes saw another scoring frenzy. With 3:10 remaining in the period, Domsodi scored off a redirected pass with an assist to Jameson, and the Leopards went up 8-2. Less than a minute later, Owen took that score back for Becker, scoring his second goal of the night with assists to junior forward Dan Kane (Staten Island, N.Y.) and sophomore forward Justin Erhart (St. Paul, Minn.). Then with the clock showing 1:01 left in the second, junior forward Fred Gervasi (Mississauga, Ont.) scored on a power play for the visitors, with assists to Burgau and sophomore defenseman Curtis Heinz (Grand Rapids, Mich.) putting the Leopards up 9-3.
In the third period, Anderson got the Ice Hawks on the board 6:58 in, blasting the puck home with assists to Parkhouse and Owen. Then with 3.8 seconds remaining in the game, Becker freshman forward P.J. Hefferin (Boynton Beach, Fla.) scored off an assist by senior defenseman Don Kane (Staten Island, N.Y.) for the final score of 9-5.
Wentworth sophomore goalie Alex Peck (Kirkland, Que.) had 14 saves in two periods of work, while sophomore Jeff Giordani (Quincy, Mass.) had ten saves in the third period.
For Becker, junior goalie Shaun Millerick (Hampton, N.H.) totaled 26 saves in relief for the first and second periods, while senior goalie Viktor Tuurala (Stockholm, SE) played a shutout third period with 12 saves.
Up next for Becker, the Ice Hawks travel to Westfield State University next Saturday for a 5:35 p.m. matchup. Wentworth hosts Wesleyan University on Thursday at 8:15 p.m.
(Recap Courtesy of Becker College Sports Information)
