Junior Angelo Todesca shares the team lead with 11 goals and has been hot of late with six points in three games last week. |
Stonehill Set to Battle Top-seeded Saint Anselm in Semifinal
5th-seeded Skyhawks seek second-straight NE-10 championship appearance
EASTON, Mass. (March 2, 2010) - Fifth-seeded Stonehill College continues its postseason run on Wednesday night when it visits top-seeded Saint Anselm College in semifinal round action of the 2010 Northeast-10 Conference Ice Hockey Championships at Thomas F. Sullivan Arena at 7 p.m. Admission is $5.00 for adults, $3.00 for senior citizens and children, with college students with valid ID admitted for just $1.00.
The winner will advance to Saturday's Northeast-10 Championship where it will face the winner of tomorrow's other semifinal matchup between second-seeded Assumption College (14-10-1, 8-2-1 NE-10) and third-seeded and defending tournament champions Saint Michael's College (7-16-3, 3-1-1 NE-10) being played in Worcester, Mass., at 7:30 p.m. Saturday's start time will be announced on Thursday.
While six-time defending NE-10 regular season champion Saint Anselm (13-11-1, 4-0-1 NE-10) earned a first round bye, Stonehill (10-15-1, 2-9-0 NE-10) reached the semis in dramatic fashion at fourth-seeded Franklin Pierce University on Saturday night. The Skyhawks climbed out of a 4-0 hole with nine minutes to play, forcing overtime with a goal from senior Zachary Cantin (Saugus, Mass./Xaverian Brothers) with 49-seconds left in regulation before junior Angelo Todesca (Westwood, Mass./Catholic Memorial) claimed the 5-4 overtime triumph with a shorthanded goal 16:38 into overtime. Todesca finished with three points on the night with two goals and an assist.
Stonehill will be looking draw momentum from that win after skating to a 2-9-0 clip to close out the regular season since its mid-year break, including a 1-7-0 mark in NE-10 play, after finishing above .500 for the first time in the first half of its slate (7-6-1) by winning five-straight heading into a 43-day holiday hiatus. The Skyhawks rank third in the Northeast-10 in scoring offense (3.31 goals/gm) and scoring defense (4.15). They are sixth in combined special teams (44.6%), ranking third on the power-play (19.8-percent) but fifth on the penalty kill (76.6%).
Senior captain Peter Roundy leads the team in points, assists and power-play points. |
Senior captain Peter Roundy (Simsbury, Conn./Kimball Union) leads Stonehill with 28 points (7th NE-10) and 19 assists (4th) to go with ten goals (13th) in 26 games played this season, ranking third in the NE-10 with 15 power-play points (4-11-15) to go with a team-high three game-winning goals. He enters tomorrow night's game ranked fifth in program history with 63 career assists, totaling 91 career points.
Todesca and freshman Christopher Gorovitz (Framingham, Mass./Framingham) share the team lead with 11 goals and both enter tomorrow night on a hot streak. Gorovitz has earned two-straight NE-10 Freshman of the Week awards and has also posted six assists for 17 points this season, adding three power-play goals and two game-winning markers. Todesca collected six points over three games last week, including his three-point game at Franklin Pierce, and has also totaled eight assists for 19 points this season, chipping in a team-high five power-play goals (7th), a team-high two shorthanded markers (3rd) and two game-winners. Sophomore Patrick Greene (Weymouth, Mass./Catholic Memorial) has chipped in six goals and 14 assists for 20 points.
Junior Michael Manna (Framingham, Mass./Xaverian Brothers) and sophomore Tyler Jackson (Little Silver, N.Y./Christian Brothers Academy) have seen the bulk of work in goal for Stonehill this season. Manna, the Northeast-10 Goaltender of the Week, has played 706:11 in 13 games (11 starts) and posted a 4.08 GAA (7th) and .877 save percentage (6th) this season. Jackson has played 785:03 over 14 games (12 starts) and ranks third in the NE-10 with a 3.59 goals against average (3rd) to go with a .889 save percentage (4th) and two shutouts.
Saint Anselm has been idle since clinching its sixth-straight NE-10 regular season championship with a 7-2 victory at Stonehill last Thursday. The Hawks lead the NE-10 in scoring (3.92 goals/gm), scoring defense (3.48) and penalty killing (81.7-percent), while ranking second on the power play (24%).
Junior Michael Manna earned Goaltender of the Week honors from the NE-10 for the third time on Monday. |
Junior Coleman Noonan (Norfolk, Mass.) leads the Northeast-10 in scoring, recording 19 goals and 21 assists for 40 points in the regular season. He has also posted three shorthand goals. With the help of Paul Snell (Groton, Mass.), Tucker Mullin (Andover, Mass.), and Ryan Butler (Arlington, Mass.), who each scored two, the Hawks have tallied a dangerous ten shorthanded goals on the season. Mullin has added 16 goals and 14 assists for 30 points, while Snell has dished 18 assists.
Junior goaltender Alex Wyse (Amherst, N.Y.) has seen the majority of minutes in goal, posting a 3.00 goals against average and .904 save percentage with two shutouts in 1,058:49 over 20 appearance (17 starts).
Saint Anselm won the lone regular season meeting between the two just seven days ago at the Foxborough Sports Center. The Hawks netted seven unanswered goals after Stonehill carried a 2-0 lead into the first intermission to take the 7-2 victory going away. Noonan led the Hawks with three points, collecting two goals and an assist on the night, while freshman Dana Borges (Taunton, Mass./Coyle & Cassidy) led Stonehill with a goal and assist.
Saint Anselm holds a 14-2-1 advantage in the all-time series, but both Stonehill wins in the series have come in their last two postseason encounters. The Skyhawks knocked Saint Anselm out of the tournament in the semifinal round last season and also defeated the Hawks in double overtime in the 2007 three-game championship series to claim their first and only NE-10 title in school history.
2010 Northeast-10
Conference
Ice Hockey Championships
Saturday, February 27
First Round
#3 Saint Michael's 7, #6 Southern New Hampshire 5
#5 Stonehill 5, #4 Franklin Pierce 4 (OT)
Wednesday, March 3
Semifinals
(Bracket re-seeded)
#5 Stonehill (10-15-1, 2-9-0 NE-10) at #1 Saint Anselm
(13-11-1, 4-0-1 NE-10), 7 p.m.
#3 Saint Michael's (7-16-3, 3-1-1 NE-10) at #2 Assumption
(14-10-1, 8-2-1 NE-10), 7:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 6
Championship
Semifinal Winners at highest remaining seed, TBA
