Alfred Wins 10-6, Advances to ECAC Finals
Brandon Harrison
ALFRED, NY—Freshman
Jake Lynch (Whitney Point, NY/Whitney Point) and sophomore
Derek Bishopp (Livonia, NY/Livonia) netted three goals each to spearhead the Saxon attack and guided Alfred University to the ECAC Finals Saturday afternoon at Yunevich Stadium in Alfred, NY.
Also scoring for the Saxons were sophomore
John Winchell (Vestal, NY/Vestal) with two goals, senior
Nicolas Wood (Canandaigua, NY/Canandaigua) and sophomore
Nick Skibitsky (Buffalo, NY/Williamsville East) scored one goal each. Nick Bologno was the leading scorer for the Ospreys with two goals.
Lynch and Winchell set the standard in assists for AU with two each. Junior
Tanner Morse (Corning, NY/Corning East) and Skibitsky added an assist each.
In the first quarter the Saxons jumped out to a quick lead when Bishopp stormed down the middle of the offensive box and fired a rocket to the back of the net 1:02 into the game. Skibitsky followed him with a goal of his own eight minutes later.
Bishopp opened the scoring early in the second quarter as well, finding the back of the net only 28 seconds in. Lynch got on the board with his first goal of the night at the eight minute mark to increase the Saxon advantage 4-0. However, 2:34 later Stockton finally jumped onto the board when Vincent Manasia received a pass from James O'Donnell and took advantage for the goal. Lynch would score a man-up goal that would be answered by the Ospreys right before half. At the intermission the Saxons were on top, 5-2.
Stockton's Bologno was the first to break the silence in the second half when Alex DiClemete found him in front of the net. However, Winchell and Bishopp answered with a one-two punch to increase the lead, 7-3. Stockton closed the quarter with a man-up goal and an additional goal with only nine seconds left on the clock. With only 15 minutes left to play, AU still hung onto a 7-5 advantage.
Right out the gates in the final stanza Lynch jumped in with a man-up goal and was soon followed by a goal from Wood. Stockton's, Guy Loggi, scored the final goal for the Ospreys with 10:40 to go in the game. Winchell ended the game with his second goal of the afternoon with 4:48 left. The Saxons held the Ospreys scoreless down the stretch and carried on to victory, 10-6.
AU held the advantage in shots on goal 24-14, groundballs 44-27, and face-off wins 14-6. Sophomore
Jimmy Pratti (Minisink, NY/Minisink Valley) won 14-of-19 face-offs and collected eight groundballs. Freshman goalie
Drew Gardner (Whitney Point, NY/Whitney Point) had seven groundballs on the afternoon. Skibitsky paced AU with two caused turnovers in the contest.
Between the pipes, Gardner had eight saves and earned the win. He was relieved in the game by senior goalie,
Tyler Beyor (Carthage, NY/Carthage).
AU (13-3, 5-3 E8) heads to the ECAC Final Sun. May 10, at 2PM where they take on Western New England University who topped #4 seeded Marywood University 14-12 in the ECAC semifinal game.