By Nicole Belair, Staff Writer
UMass Dartmouth took a 5-2 victory at Hetland Arena last Thursday night over Worcester State, but unable to make a comeback against Plymouth State at home on Saturday with a score of 6-3.
On Thursday evening, UMass Dartmouth senior Jon Houk scored his first collegiate goal, which proved to be the game-winner.
UMass Dartmouth opened scoring early, getting three goals within the opening ten minutes. Corsair sophomore, Brendan McDonough, scored the first goal three minutes into the game, with an assist by Jeff Kirkwood. Just five minutes later, Corsairs’ Tanner Zacharewicz scored his third goal of the season, extending the UMass Dartmouth lead to two. At 9:32, the Corsairs scored their third goal – this time, it was a slap shot from Houk that deflected the puck over Worcester State’s goalkeeper, Josh Reinstein, and slid into the net.
The Lancers were able to get on the board before the end of the period, when Jim Noir scored on Worcester State’s first power play opportunity. The rest of the period remained scoreless, and UMass Dartmouth was still ahead, 3-1.
In the second period, the lone goal was collected by UMass Dartmouth’s Mike Sones, as he gathered a drop pass from Steven Leonard. Worcester State quickly scored another goal at the beginning of the third period, closing the gap in the score. However, UMass Dartmouth senior, Mike Kelly, scored an empty net goal with only twenty seconds left in the game. With this goal, Kelly has scored in six-straight games, which includes seven goals and four assists. Without time for Worcester State to respond, the Corsairs took a three-point victory over the Lancers.
On Saturday, UMass Dartmouth hosted MASCAC leader Plymouth State for a 4:00 p.m. puck drop.
The Panthers started scoring early and often, as Ryan Stevens found the back of the net for their first goal just thirty seconds after the puck drop. Their momentum never slowed, as they scored two more times before the end of the period, thanks to Baxter Strachan and Victor Bergstrom. In the first period, Plymouth State outshot UMass Dartmouth 17-6.
The Corsairs finally responded early in the second period, when Mike Sones claimed a goal with a shot above the glove of Plymouth State goaltender Thierry Messervier, making it 3-1. But two minutes later, Panthers’ Michael Economos scored again, increasing the point deficit to three. At 9:40, Jerry Laasko scored for UMass Dartmouth, closing in on the gap. However, Panthers’ Dan Dupell scored a fifth goal for his team at 12:25, and time ticked away for the Corsairs in the second period.
The third period did not start in favor of UMass Dartmouth; Plymouth State’s Quinn Carroll scored his first goal of the game fifty seconds into the period, putting the score at 6-2. It wasn’t until 19:55 when the deficit was cut to three; Mike Sones received a pass from Jerry Laasko and Casey Shea and fired a one-timer into the back of the net. But with only five seconds remaining, it would not be enough to take the lead, and the game ended with a final score of 6-3.
The Corsairs’ record now stands at 12 wins and 8 losses, and are 8-6 in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference.
Looking ahead, the Corsairs will head to Westfield State on Thursday, Februaru 9 to take on the Nestors at 7:35 p.m. They will head to Salem State the following Thursday to face the Vikings at 7:00 p.m.