Falcons Notch First Conference Win of the Season

Falcons Notch First Conference Win of the Season

Fitchburg, Mass. – In opening night of Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action the Fitchburg State University Falcons outscored the Corsairs of UMass Dartmouth 5-4 on Thursday evening at the Wallace Civic Center.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State University 5, UMass Dartmouth 4
Records: Fitchburg State (1-1, 1-0 MASCAC) | UMass Dartmouth (0-1, 0-1 MASCAC)

How it Happened

UMass Dartmouth scored their first goal of the 2018 campaign off the stick of Jimmy Pelton (Syracuse, NY). The freshman notched his first collegiate goal when he converted a pass from senior Hunter Wilhoite (Brentwood, Tenn.) at 8:01 of the first period.

The Falcons knotted the score at 1-1 just before the first intermission. Sophomore Sascha Figi (Kloten, Switzerland) potted a pass from sophomore Brian Glover (Baldwinville, Mass.) at 18:41.

The Green and Gold exploded for three goals in the second period. Fitchburg broke the tie just 2:48 into the second frame. Senior Bradon Ecklund (Fitchburg, Mass) fed a through pass, past the Corsairs defense, to an open Patrick Germain (Auburn, Mass.) who deposited the puck five hole past netminder Parker Butler (Summit, NJ) for his first goal of the season.

UMass Dartmouth tied the game with a power-play goal from Nicholas Short (Los Angeles, Calif.) at 14:08 of the second. Fitchburg finished the period with a pair of goals from Connor McPherson (Clovis, Calif.) and junior Dean Zerby (Harrisburg, Penn.) for the 4-2 advantage after two.

The visitors tied the score in the third period with goals from Connor Court (Swansea, Ill.) and senior Brendan McDonough (Wilmington, Mass.) just three minutes apart.

With 72 ticks left in the third period Falcons' senior Ricky Kramer (Barnstead, NH) tipped a pass from Nick DiNicola (Wolcott, Conn.) for the game-winning power-play goal.

By The Numbers

• Butler finished the night with 23 saves, while sophomore Brian McGrath (Worcester, Mass.) posted 26 saves for his first win of the season.
• The Falcons were led by Kyle Hilick (Byfield, Mass.) (2 assists) and Zerby (1 goal, 1 assist) each with two points.
• UMass Dartmouth had ten players with one point each on the scoresheet.
• The Corsairs held the advantage in shots (30-28) and were 1-for-6 on the power-play. The Falcons were 2-for-6 with the man-advantage.
• This evening's contest will mark the 76th meeting between the two teams on the ice with the Falcons 30-39-7 all-time when taking on the Corsairs.
• The two squads have split the previous 11 matchups (4-4-3), with the Falcons earning a 2-0 victory last season at the Wallace Civic Center in the 2017-18 MASCAC Championship Game on March 3, 2018.
• In a pre-game ceremony the Falcons unveiled the 2018 MASCAC Championship banner.

Up Next

The Falcons travel to Worcester to take on the Greyhound of Assumption College at 6pm on Saturday evening, while the Corsairs will face Assumption on Thursday at 6:35pm.