MARLBOROUGH, Mass.- Morrisville State defeated Becker College 6-4 in non-conference men's ice hockey action Sunday afternoon at the New England Sports Center. The win lifts the Mustangs record to 4-9-1, while the Ice Hawks fall to 1-11-2.
The Mustangs got the scoring started 9:51 into the first period when sophomore Zach Baker (Denver, Colo.) rebounded a Marc-Antonie Chaput (Mascouche, Que.) shot, beating Becker goalie Shaun Millerick (Hampton, N.H.) top shelf. Morrisville increased their lead to 2-0 when Joe Santino (Woodbridge, Ont.)netted a power play goal with 4:54 remaining in the first period.
The Ice Hawks cut the Morrisville lead in half with 3:30 left in the first stanza when Edward Osowski (Montclair, N.J.) redirected a David Kann (Lafayette, Calif.) slap shot past goalie Chris Azzano (Oshawa, Ont.), making the score 2-1.
The Ice Hawks tied the game 1:52 into the second period when Brian Osieja (West Seneca, N.Y.) deflected a Justin Erhart (St. Paul, Minn.) wrist shot, tipping through Azzano's five hole for a power play goal. The Mustangs broke the 2-2 tie when Jordan Carvalho (Brampton, Ont.)blasted a power play goal, putting Morrisville in front 3-2.
With time expiring in the second period, senior Daniel Morello (Vaughan, Ont.) centered the puck from the corner to Rob Molinaro (Yonkers, N.Y.). Molinaro promptly flicked it into the Becker net, giving the Mustangs a 4-2 advantage after two periods.
Morrisville scored their third power play goal of the game 1:17 into the third period when Darren Young beat Millerick with a wrist shot from the bottom of the circle, making the score 5-2. The Mustangs added to their lead when Eric Fletcher (Adrian, Mich.) scored from the top of the right point to make the score 6-2.
With 7:22 remaining in regulation, Fred Hein (North Reading, Mass.) blasted a slap shot past Azzano, cutting the Mustang lead to 6-3. Becker got a late goal from Brain Osieja to make the final 6-4.
Shaun Millerick and Tyler Stepke (Mars, Pa.) turned away 25 shots for Becker, while Chris Azzano made 25 stops for Morrisville.
Becker returns to action on Wednesday, January 15 when they host Stonehill College at 7:30 p.m. Morrisville will host SUNY Canton on Friday, January 17 at 7:00 p.m.
