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Falcons Fall To Owls, 5-1
January 25, 2020

Falcons Fall To Owls, 5-1

Westfield, Mass. – The Fitchburg State ice hockey team dropped a tough 5-1 decision to the Owls of Westfield State University this evening in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action from the Amelia Ice Park Arena.

Box Score

Shanley notches lone tally for Fitchburg State in MASCAC setback

Westfield, Mass. – The Fitchburg State ice hockey team dropped a tough 5-1 decision to the Owls of Westfield State University this evening in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) action from the Amelia Ice Park Arena.

The Basics

Score: Fitchburg State 1, Westfield State 5
Records: Fitchburg State (9-6-2, 6-2-2 MASCAC) | Westfield State (8-4-5, 6-2-2 MASCAC)

How It Happened

Westfield State grabbed the lead 4:26 into the first period as sophomore Jake Ratcliffe (Canterbury, New Zealand) collected a feed from senior Daniel Backstrom (Helsinki, Finland) and found the back of the net for his ninth tally on the season.

Fitchburg State knotted the score (1-1) four minutes later when freshman Trent Shanley (Hillsdale, N.J.) netted his third marker of the season off an assist from junior Kevin Perry (Hull, Mass.). The Owls would regain the lead with 2:25 remaining in the opening period with Backstrom firing a shot inside the near post for his sixth goal of the 2019-20 campaign as junior Davis Chavis (Grosse Point Woods, Mich.) and freshman Tanner Derby (Seabrook, N.H.) assisted on the play for the 2-1 edge.

In the second stanza, Westfield State upped its margin (3-1) 4:52 into the frame as Backstrom notched his second score of the contest with an assist from Ratcliffe after forty minutes of play.

The Owls tacked on an insurance marker late in the third period when sophomore Justin Alves (Woburn, Mass.) registered his seventh tally on the season with an empty netter to make the score 4-1 before freshman John-Michael DiGregorio (Montreal, Que.) capped the scoring for the hosts, resulting in the 5-1 final.

By the Numbers

  • 37th matchup between the two teams with the Falcons 21-13-3 all-time vs. the Owls
  • Fitchburg State finished with a 46-30 margin in shots
  • Westfield State went 0-for-3 with the man advantage
  • Junior Brian McGrath (Worcester, Mass.) stopped 25 shots for the Falcons
  • Senior Thierry Messervier (Montreal, Que.) made 35 saves for the Owls

Up Next

Falcons will travel to UMass Dartmouth on Thursday to take on the Corsairs for a MASCAC clash, starting at 7:20 PM. Owls will visit Framingham State on the same date for a conference matchup at 7:30 PM