Senior captain Peter Roundy leads the Skyhawks into a first round matchup with Franklin Pierce for the third-straight year tomorrow night. |
Stonehill Looks to Start
Postseason March
at Franklin Pierce
5th-seeded Skyhawks visit 4th-seeded Ravens in NE-10 Tournament first round Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.
EASTON, Mass. (February 26, 2010) - Fifth-seeded Stonehill College opens postseason play tomorrow night when it faces off against fourth-seeded Franklin Pierce University in first round action of the 2010 Northeast-10 Conference ice hockey championship at the Winchendon School Ice Arena at 7:30 p.m.
The winner will advance to Wednesday's semifinal round where it will face either second-seeded Assumption College (14-10-1, 8-2-1 NE-10) or top-seeded and regular season NE-10 champions Saint Anselm College (13-11-1, 4-0-1 NE-10). The NE-10 tournament re-seeds after the opening round, meaning Saint Anselm will face the lowest remaining seed. Third-seeded and defending tournament champions Saint Michael's College (6-16-3, 3-1-1 NE-10) hosts sixth-seeded Southern New Hampshire University (5-14-3, 3-6-2 NE-10) in Saturday's other first round matchup.
Admission to Saturday's game will be $5.00 for adults, $3.00 for senior citizens and children, with college students with valid ID admitted for just $1.00.
Tomorrow night will mark the third-straight year Stonehill (9-15-1, 2-9-0 NE-10) and Franklin Pierce (7-14-2, 4-6-1 NE-10) will meet in the first round of the NE-10 Tournament - the second-straight in Winchendon. The Skyhawks have prevailed in each of the first two postseason meetings, claiming a 5-4 overtime triumph in 2008 before rolling to a 5-0 victory on their way to a second appearance in the NE-10 championship last winter. Stonehill has reached the NE-10 title game twice in the last two seasons, winning its first championship in 2007 before dropping a 3-2 decision to Saint Michael's in last year's final. Franklin Pierce seeks its first postseason win in program history tomorrow night.
Freshman Christopher Gorovitz, the NE-10 Player and Freshman of the Week, shares the team lead with ten goals. |
Stonehill will be looking to get on track in the postseason after skating to a 2-9-0 clip 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 (3.24 goals/gm) and scoring defense (4.16). They are sixth in combined special teams (44.3%), ranking third on the power-play (20-percent) but fifth on the penalty kill (76.1%).
Senior captain Peter Roundy (Simsbury, Conn./Kimball Union) leads Stonehill ten goals (10th NE-10) and 18 assists (5th) for 28 points (7th) this season, ranking third in the NE-10 with 14 power-play points (4-10-14) to go with a team-high three game-winning goals. He enters tomorrow night's game ranked fifth in program history with 62 career assists.
Freshman Christopher Gorovitz (Framingham, Mass./Framingham) shares the team lead with ten goals to go with four assist for 14 points. Sophomore Patrick Greene (Weymouth, Mass./Catholic Memorial) has posted six goals and 14 assists for 20 points, while junior Angelo Todesca (Westwood, Mass./Catholic Memorial) has contributed nine goals and seven assists for 16 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. Jackson has played 785:03 over 14 games (12 starts) and ranks third in the NE-10 with a 3.59 goals against average to go with a .889 save percentage (4th) and two shutouts. Manna has played 629:44 in 12 games (ten starts) and posted a 4.19 GAA and .877 save percentage this season.
Sophomore Patrick Greene is also a 20-point scorer for the Skyhawks. |
Franklin Pierce are winners of three of its last four, having set a program record for wins in a season with its win over Stonehill last Saturday. The Ravens boast a trio of 20-point scorers, led by sophomore forward Anthony Chighisola (Whitman, Mass./Williston-Northampton), who set a program record with 17 goals this season, adding 17 assists for 34 points - also a program record. Chighisola also leads the Ravens with six power-play goals. Freshman forward Roscoe Sweeney (Falmouth, Mass.) has totaled 12 goals and 18 assists for 30 points, while senior forward Phil LaBreck (Thornton, N.H.), has posted 11 goals and ten assists for 21 points.
Sophomore Ben Siok (Holden, Mass./Saint John's-Shrewsbury) and senior Jon Tuttle (Concord, N.H./Concord) have split the time n goal for Franklin Pierce. Siok heads into Saturday's contest with a 4.03 goals against average and.884 save percentage, while Tuttle has recorded a 4.23 GAA and.862 save percentage.
On special teams, Franklin Pierce is clicking at 14.9-percent on the power play and is killing 80.1% of its penalties. The Ravens are sixth in the conference on the power play and third on the penalty kill.
Franklin Pierce swept the regular season series between the two teams this year. The Ravens opened the series with a 6-2 win in Winchendon back on November 21, before picking up a 7-4 victory at the Foxborough Sports Center on January 30 and then rallying for a 4-3 overtime triumph last Saturday in Winchendon.
2010 Northeast-10
Conference
Ice Hockey Championships
Saturday, February 27
First Round
#6 Southern N.H. (5-14-3, 3-6-2 NE-10) at #3 Saint Michael's
(6-16-3, 3-1-1 NE-10), 3 p.m.
#5 Stonehill (9-15-1, 2-9-0 NE-10) at #4 Franklin Pierce (4-6-1
NE-10), 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday, March 3
Semifinals
(Bracket re-seeded)
Top-seeded first round winner at #2 Assumption (14-10-1, 8-2-1
NE-10), TBA
Lowest remaining seed at #1 Saint Anselm (13-11-1, 4-0-1 NE-10),
TBA
Saturday, March 6
Championship
Semifinal Winners at highest remaining seed, TBA