Falcons Edged By Owls, 4-3

Warila, Kramer and Figi net one goal each for Falcons in conference setback 

Westfield, Mass. – The Fitchburg State University ice hockey team dropped a tough 4-3 decision to the Owls of Westfield State University in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action this evening at the Amelia Park Ice Arena.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 3, Westfield State 4
Records: Fitchburg State (6-3-1, 2-2-1 MASCAC)| Westfield State (3-5-0, 1-4-0 MASCAC

How It Happened

Fitchburg State took the lead at the 5:02 mark of the first period as junior forward Ricky Kramer (Barnstead, N.H.) struck for his third tally on the season for the 1-0 margin before Westfield State knotted the score (1-1) seconds later when sophomore Jordan Mardirossian (Monroeville, Penn.) connected on his second tally of the season.

In the second frame, the Owls grabbed the lead roughly seven minutes into the frame as freshman Danny Ferri (Chelmsford, Mass.) gathered a feed from sophomore Samuel Gagnon (Ile-Bizard, Que.) and wristed a shot into the right side of the net for his second marker on the year for the 2-1 edge.

The Falcons retied the contest at the 7:13 mark when sophomore Tyler Warila (Shirley, Mass.) received a pass from freshman Sascha Figi (Kloten, Switzerland) and deposited a shot inside the near post for his team-leading eighth score of the 2017-18 campaign to make the score 2-2 after 40 minutes of play.

The two teams traded goals to start the third period as newcomer David Chavis (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.) registered his first collegiate tally for Westfield State before Figi netted his seventh goal of the season for the Fitchburg State (3-3).

The Owls broke the 3-3 stalemate with just under five minutes remaining in regulation as  sophomore Francois-Xavier Girard (St. Lazare, Que.) blasted a shot into the net for his second tally on the season for the eventually game-winner, resulting in the 4-3 final.

Inside the Numbers

29th meeting between two schools on the ice with the Falcons 16-11-2 all-time when taking on the Owls.

Two teams had split the previous six matchups (3-3-0).

Owls held a 37-33 margin in shots.

Fitchburg State finished 1-for-7 on the power-play, while Westfield State went 2-for-6 with the man advantage.

Freshman goaltender Brian McGrath (Worcester, Mass.) stopped 33 shots for the Falcons in setback

Westfield State sophomore Kameron Limburg (Howell, Mich.) finished with 40 saves in the winning effort.

Warila led the Falcons with five shots on goal.

Up Next

Falcons will travel to Worcester State on Saturday to take on the Lancers for a contest starting at 7:00 P.M. Owls will host the Panthers of Plymouth State same day for a 6:00 P.M. start time.