Ice Hockey Skates to 2-2 Draw with Westfield State
Framingham, Mass. – The Framingham State University ice hockey team skated to a 2-2 overtime draw with Westfield State University this evening in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action at Framingham's Loring Arena.
With the draw the Rams are now 7-8-4 on the year and 5-5-3 in the MASCAC, while the Owls move to 8-11-1 overall and 7-5-1 in the conference.
Westfield State took a 1-0 lead with just over six minutes remaining in the first period. Freshman Jackson Leef (Fort Wayne, IN) took a pass from behind the net and wristed a shot inside the post for his first of the game and eighth of the year.
The game would remain 1-0 in favor of the Owls until the closing minutes of the second period. Junior forward Ryan McDonald (Anchorage, AK) took a pass on the wing and found the back of the net for his ninth of the season. Senior Daniel Miressi (Monroe, Conn.) and junior Dylan Cosford (Windsor, ON) assisted on the play.
The Rams took their first lead of the game midway through the third on senior Tom Tracy's (Wakefield, Mass.) fifth goal of the season. Freshmen Tom Fahey (Hudson, Mass.) and Mark Essery (Rockfall, Conn.) assisted on the play digging the puck out of the corner and finding Tracy in front of the net.
Westfield State would tie the game with 1:32 remaining in regulation on Leef's second of the night. The Owls fired a series of shots on the net that were either saved or deflected away by the defense before Leef was able to slip one over the goal line for the game tying marker.
Both teams had their chances in overtime to break the deadlock, but neither could find the back of the net. The Owls opened the frame with a pair of chances as sophomore Kyllian Kirkwood's (Copper Cliff, ON) shot from the point deflected off Rams goalie Nick Cafrelli's (San Jose, CA) glove. Freshman Maxime Richard (Troic-Rivieres, QC) followed with a wraparound from behind the net, but Cafrelli once again came up with the save. The Rams went on the power play late in overtime and McDonald had a pair of chances, but the first was saved and his bid from the wing with 39 seconds remaining sailed wide of the cage.
The Rams struggled on the power play converting on just 1-of-11 with the man advantage, while the Owls converted on 1-of-5. Framingham State held a 48-41 edge in shots including a 10-7 advantage in the extra session. Senior goalie Nick Cafrelli (San Jose, CA) recorded 39 saves for the Rams, while junior Ian Perrier (Whitehorse, YT) made 46 stops for the Owls.
Both teams are back to MASCAC action on Saturday with the Rams traveling to UMass Dartmouth at 4:30 p.m. and the Owls traveling to Salem State at 2 p.m.