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O'Brien finished his junior year with 117 career points. He ranks 7th on Stonehill's All-Time list. |
Champs Knocked Off, 5-4 OT
Boxscore
South Burlington, Vt. - In front of a packed Cairns Arena the Saint Michael's Purple Knights (11-14-1, 4-1 NE-10) scored three unanswered goals to close out Stonehill College (12-11-2, 3-2-0 NE-10) in overtime, 5-4, in the Northeast-10 Conference semi-finals on Wednesday evening. Junior Ryan Mero ended any chance of a Skyhawks' Championship appearance with two short-handed goals, including the overtime game-winner 31 seconds into extra time.
For the Purple Knights, senior Erik Caron got things started with a goal on the game's first shot. Caron also dished out the game-tying and game-winning assists. Junior Chris Healey was the recipient of Caron's first assist to knot the game at 4-4, while senior Matt Hall rounded out the scoring for Saint Michael's. Junior goaltender Tyler Bilton tallied 26 saves on the night, improving his record to 10-12-1 on the season.
For the Skyhawks, four separate players scored and junior captain Brendan O'Brien (Braintree, Mass./Deerfield) tallied two helpers on the night. Pete Roundy (Simsbury, Conn./Kimball Union) scored a third period goal to put Stonehill up 4-2, but 0-for-6 performance on power-play opportunities led to the demise of the Skyhawks. Freshman goaltender Mike Manna (Framingham, Mass./Xaverian) stopped 28 shots in his first postseason appearance, ending his season mark with an 8-7-1 personal mark.
After falling behind 1-0 in the first, Stonehill tied things up on an Anthony Zanetti (Ludlow, Mass./Springfield Cathedral) wrist-shot assisted by James Florentino (West Roxbury, Mass./Xaverian) and John Durkin (Scituate, Mass./Pomfret). With 5:46 to play in the period, the Skyhawks knocked on the Purple Knights' doorstep with a one-on-one break, but Bilton's butterfly stoned Stonehill's Paul Reissfelder's (Plymouth, Mass./ Tilton) break away opportunity. Saint Michael's dodged another bullet when back-to-back penalties left the Purple Knights at a five-on-three disadvantage.
Putting the Purple Knights back on top 7:31 into the middle frame was Hall with a wrist shot from the right side off an Alex Higgins shot. Stonehill's Frank Cavaliere (Winthrop, Mass./St. John's Prep) knotted the score for a second time after Saint Michael's failed to clear the zone with 7:51 to play in the second. Minutes later, Saint Michael's fell behind, 3-2, for the second time in as many games to the Skyhawks, committing another costly turnover in their own zone leading to an unassisted and uncontested score from Brian Davis (Foxboro, Mass./Foxboro).
In the third, Stonehill's sophomore Roundy tacked on to the Skyhawk-lead from yet another Purple Knights turnover in their own zone. Stonehill would return the favor midway through the period with a power-play turnover, leading to Mero's second short-handed goal on the year, both of which have come against the Skyhawks. Scoring their second unanswered goal of the period, Saint Michael's knotted the score on Healey's 11th goal of the year seconds into a Purple Knights' power play with 2:21 remaining in the contest.
Although Saint Michael's entered the overtime period with 33 seconds to kill on a penalty, the Purple Knights and Mero made quick work with a short-handed breakaway goal to propel Saint Michael's to the victory. The Stonehill men finish with an overall record of 12-11-2. The Skyhawks finish the season 5-4 against Northeast-10 opponents. Instead of defending their postseason title, it will be Saint Michael's hosting Saint Anselm in the Northeast-10 Conference Championship on Saturday, March 8 at 3 p.m.