Stonehill head coach Garry Hebert leads the Skyhawks into Saint Michael's for the second time.

Skyhawks Head to Vermont for Postseason Showdown

Easton, Mass. - One week after defeating Saint Michael's 5-3, the Stonehill Skyhawks (12-10-2, 3-2 NE-10) are set to return to South Burlington, Vt. Wednesday night for a return engagement with the Purple Knights.  Saint Michael's College finished 4-1 in the Northeast-10 Conference en route to claiming their first NE-10 Conference regular-season championship.  

A 4-0 defeat to Saint Anselm in the season finale denied the reigning Tournament Champions the regular season crown.  Instead, Saint Michael's (10-14-1, 4-1-0 NE-10) took the honors and a first round bye in the playoffs despite falling to the Skyhawks on February 26th.  The Purple Knights' triumph snapped Saint Anselm's streak of four consecutive season titles.

Stonehill entered the Northeast-10 Conference Championship tournament as a fourth seed after falling to conference foes Southern N.H. and Saint Anselm during the regular season.  The Skyhawks survived an overtime thriller on Saturday, defeating the Franklin Pierce Ravens (6-19, 1-4 NE-10), 5-4.  The win came courtesy of Matt Curran's (Scarborough, Maine/North Yarmouth) heroics, 32 seconds into the extra period.  Last season's tournament MVP and reigning Northeast-10 Player of the Week, defenseman James Florentino (West Roxbury, Mass./Xaverian) chipped in with two goals and two assists in the victory. 

Junior captain Brendan O'Brien (Braintree, Mass./Deerfield) had a goal and two assists to defeat Saint Michael's in their last matchup.  O'Brien stands third in Conference scoring with 28 team points.  His 20 assists rank second, as well.

In net, freshman Mike Manna (Framingham, Mass./Xaverian) is second in the NE-10 with a 2.85 GAA, and a .916 save percentage.  His .567 winning percentage (8-6-1) is enough for third.

Saint Michael's Ryan Mero leads the NE-10 with 18 goals and 34 points.  Classmate John Burns lands first as well in defenseman scoring with 27 points.  In net, rookie Tyler Bilton posted a 3.97 goals against average and an .896 save percentage in more than 1,300 minutes of action.

Tomorrow's hockey game will be on broadcast on ESPN 1390 WCAT .  To listen online go to http://www.wcat1390.com, and click on the "Listen Live" button.

If Stonehill wins on Wednesday, the Skyhawks will visit the winner of the Saint Anselm-Southern N.H. game for the championship on Saturday.  If Saint Michael's wins, the Purple Knights will host the NE-10 Championship on Saturday against the winner of Wednesday's other semifinal contest between second-seeded Saint Anselm, and third-seeded Southern New Hampshire University.