BOSTON, Mass. - Freshman Libor Nemec (Bratislava, Slovakia) netted the game-winning goal, as the No. 17/16 UMass Lowell ice hockey team (6-1-0, 2-0-0 Hockey East) outscored No. 9 Boston University (4-4-0, 1-1-0 Hockey East), 5-3, Friday night at Agganis Arena in Boston for their sixth consecutive win.
The River Hawks collected 11 different skaters with at least one point, in addition to five different goal scorers on the night. Junior Connor Eddy (Victoria, B.C.), graduate student Ian Carpentier (Worcester, Mass.), graduate student Ben Meehan (Walpole, Mass.), Nemec and Dillan Bentley (Peoria, Ill.) all scored. Freshmen Jacob MacDonald (Fort Worth, Texas) and Mirko Buttazzoni (Langley, B.C.) led the way with two assists each, while junior TJ Schweighardt (Manahawkin, N.J.), graduate student Nick Anderson (Orono, Minn.), senior Matt Crasa (South Setauket, N.Y.) and Nemec joined them with one helper apiece.
Defensively, graduate student Pierson Brandon (Irvington, N.Y.) had a whopping six blocks on the night to lead the team. Anderson tallied three, while Schweighardt and Carpentier added two each. Five different players collected one block. Graduate student Henry Welsch (Lakeville, Minn.) got the nod between the pipes for the River Hawks, getting his sixth straight win to remain unbeaten and making 26 saves.
"I am very happy to come out of here with points," said Head Coach Norm Bazin. "It's a tough building to win in, but I thought our game got a little bit better as the game wore on. I wasn't impressed with our carelessness with the puck early on, but I thought that got better and we adjusted to some of their speed, so, those were some of the ways I thought the guys improved throughout the game."
The game was back-and-forth at the start, with both teams trading possessions and playing tight defense. Through the first 10 minutes, the River Hawks tallied the only three shots on goal of the game. At the 11:55 mark, UMass Lowell got called for a hooking penalty and the Terriers capitalized with the first goal of the matchup on the power play. The River Hawks answered with four scoring opportunities that were just saved, as they continued to put the pressure on the Boston University defensive core and goaltender, Mathieu Caron, before the game went to the first intermission with a 1-0 score.
The River Hawks came out firing in the second period, lighting the lamp three times. First, it was Eddy just 2:11 into the period, who deflected a hard shot from Anderson through the five hole of Caron for the equalizer. Carpentier then gave UMass Lowell the lead at 7:37 after MacDonald picked off a Terrier pass and fed Carpentier, who backhanded it to the back of the net. Just over two minutes later, Meehan sent home a rocket of a slapshot after a MacDonald faceoff win and Schweighardt helper to make it 3-1. The Terriers went on to score on a power play at 14:45 and the game went to the third period at 3-2 in favor of the River Hawks.
Welsch and the River Hawks' defensive unit helped keep the score the same throughout the beginning of the third, fending off 12 Boston University shots in the first eight minutes. The Terriers would score at the 9:00 mark, but the River Hawks once again showed their resilience, answering with two goals while Welsch made crucial stops on the other end.
Nemec potted the game-winner at 11:28 on a power play following a Terriers cross check penalty. Buttazzoni entered the offensive zone and sent a short pass to Truman, who shot one on net that was saved and deflected by a defender to the stick of Nemec. He gathered himself at the near circle and sent a wrister past Caron to the top right corner for the goal.
Just 34 seconds later, Bentley extended the lead and secured the 5-3 victory with a goal of his own. Crasa won a stick fight for the puck to begin the sequence, creating a loose puck for Nemec, who found Bentley in the faceoff circle for the fifth goal of the night for the River Hawks.
The team will now look ahead to game two against Boston University Saturday night, beginning at 6:05 p.m at the Tsongas Center in Lowell, Mass.
"It's always nice to have a response," said Bazin. "I think the group is starting to believe in each other and support each other and that's all you can ask for as a coach. It doesn't always come easy or early, but you just have to keep pecking away and hope it comes."
