Hockey Battles #6 Elmira to a 4-4 Overtime Tie
MILTON, Mass.- Curry College tied sixth-ranked Elmira College 4-4 in overtime in men's ice hockey action on Saturday night in Milton, Mass. The Soaring Eagles improve to 3-3-1 overall, while the Colonels improve to 0-1-1.
The first period saw both teams having ample scoring opportunities. Solid play by both goaltenders kept the game tied at zero until the 16:10 minute mark when junior Brendan Sanders (Mississiauga, ONT) found sophomore Kevin Willer (Toronto, ONT) skating to the net, who then beat Curry’s goaltender Robert Dawson (Woodbury,MN) top shelf. Curry answered back with their own goal at the 18:21 mark when juniors Christopher Atkinson (Sparta, NJ) and Ryan Barlock (Chicago, IL) connected with junior Steven Mohler (Anaheim, CA).
The Colonels wasted no time in the second period to take the lead. Just 50 seconds in, junior John Williams (Flourtown, PA) scored his first goal of the game off assists from juniors Josh Kamrass(Norcross, GA) and Payden Benning (Estevan, Saskatchewan). 1:18 seconds later the Eagles tied the game on a short-handed goal when Willer got his second of the night. Elmira regained the lead at 11:08 when junior Wes Consorti (Brantford, ONT) took advantage of a loose puck in front of the net. Freshman Dylan Herold (Delta, BC) was credited with the assist. After an Elmira team bench minor penalty, Curry scored their third of the game when junior Michael Guzzo (Pickney, MI) took a slap shot right past Elmira’s goaltender sophomore Darren MacDonald (Stittsville, ONT). Senior Ryan Warsofsky(Marshfield, MA) and Kamrass each got an assist.
Elmira capitalized on a Curry penalty early in the final period to regain their lead for the third time in the game. Junior Darcy Vaillancourt (Bonfield, ONT) shot the puck past Dawson from the blue line off assists from senior Karl Linden (Stockholm, Sweeden) and freshman Casey Fratkin (Burnaby, BC). The Colonels would not go away quietly though as they would once again tie the game. Curry took advantage of a man-up situation at the 13:22 mark when Mohler scored his second goal of the night from assists by sophomore Brett Kaneshiro (Laguna Niguel, CA) and Williams. Both teams battled the rest of the period for the game-winner but neither would score again in regulation.
In overtime Curry outshot the Eagles 5-1 but could not come away with the win as they would settle for the 4-4 tie.
The Colonels finished with a total of 40 shots while Elmira finished with 33. Elmira had 44 face-off wins and Curry 42. The Colonels were 2 for 9 on power plays and Elmira 1 for 5.
Elmira’s MacDonald made 36 total saves in net and Curry’s Dawson made 29 saves in net for the tie.
Curry's next game is on Thursday, November 18 at 7:05 p.m. at Western New England College. Elmira College travels to Hobart on Friday, November 19 for a 7:00 p.m. game start.