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Freshman Mike Manna finished with 31 saves in defeat. |
Skyhawks Shut Out in Conference Show Down
Bridgewater, Mass. - The Skyhawks (11-10-2, 3-2
NE-10) were shut out for only the second time in their 4-0 loss to
Saint Anselm, Thursday night at the Bridgewater Ice Arena. A
win would have secured the top seed and a first round bye in the
Northeast-10 Conference Championship tournament. Instead,
Stonehill slips to fourth in the standings and await a return
engagement with Franklin Pierce on Saturday.
Saint Anselm pulled a victory out of the air, literally, when
senior Colin Fitzpatrick fielded an airborne puck and blasted it
past Mike Manna (Framingham, Mass./Xaverian) for
the game's opening score. The first period marker would prove
to be the game winner as the Saint Anselm Hawks (11-11-3, 4-1
NE-10) held the Skyhawks' offense scoreless through three
periods.
A second period goal from Joe Fernald was matched by teammate Paul
Snell to put the visiting team up 3-0. Fitzpatrick struck
again with a short handed score, 1:24 into the final frame to seal
the win for the Hawks.
Saint Anselm's junior goaltender Pat Gallagher finished with 27
saves in a masterful performance, holding the Conference's highest
scoring offense in check. Manna registered 31 saves in
defeat. The Skyhawks' rookie goaltender finishes the regular
season with an 8-6-1 personal record.
Six Stonehill athletes finished the regular season in the Top-10 for Points Scored in the Northeast-10 Conference. Brendan O'Brien (Braintree, Mass./Deerfield) led the way for the Skyhawks. His 1.22 points-per game average ranked fourth. In seventh is senior Matt Curran (Scarborough, Maine/Xaverian) with 1.00 ppg, followed by classmates Brian Davis (Foxboro, Mass./Foxboro) and Anthony Zanetti (Ludlow, Mass./Springfield Cathedral) tied for ninth with 0.83 ppg.
In addition to leading the Skyhawks in goals scored, Curran finished sixth overall with 11 goals scored. O'Brien's 20 assists in 23 games ranks him second behind Saint Michael's John Burns for the league lead.
Bill Ninteau (Litchfield, N.H./ Bishop Guertin) finished third in Defenseman Scoring behind Burns from Saint Michael's and Franklin Pierce's Peter Wilson. Anthony Zanetti's two short handed goals lead the Conference, as well.
Freshman goaltender Mike Manna finished second in Goals Against Average (2.85), Save Percentage (.916), and Winning Percentage (.567) to Saint Anselm's Pat Gallagher.
As a team the Skyhawks finished second in scoring offense with 82 goals in 23 games (3.57 gpg). They lost the Conference's top spot after the 4-0 loss Thursday. The Purple and White also held opponents to 3.65 gpg, second in the NE-10 behind Saint Anselm (3.08).
The Skyhawks will host Franklin Pierce in the first round of the Northeast-10 Conference Championship Tournament. The game is scheduled for 1:40 p.m. at the Bridgewater Ice Arena.