Box Score NEW BEDFORD, Mass. – Salem State University utilized a five-goal second period to earn a, 7-2, win over the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth men's ice hockey team in Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference competition on Saturday evening at Hetland Arena.
UMass Dartmouth slipped to 6-5-2 on the season and 9-6-1 in the conference, while the Vikings improved to 12-9-2 and 9-6-1.
Freshman Michael Casale (Stoney Creek, Ontario) led the way for Salem State with two scores and a helper on the day. Classmate Casey Miller (Billerica, Mass.) contributed three assists, while Derek Makimaa (Swartz Creek, Mich.) added a pair of his own.
For the Corsairs, junior Garret Allen (Dartmouth, Mass.) notched his second strike of the year and classmate Brandon Gilmore (Quincy, Mass.) scored his ninth mark for the home team.
In the opening period, the Vikings put the first score on the board when Casale redirected a shot from teammate Ryan Doherty (Tewksbury, Mass.) into the back of the net. 22 seconds later, John Sartell's (Wakefield, Mass.) shot caromed off the net-minder's far pad, right to Allen, who flipped the equalizer over the goalie.
Both teams nearly missed tacking on a few scores in the first period. Casey Shea (Woburn, mass.) and Billy Boudreau (Newburyport, Mass.) each had a shot attempt hit the post during the first stanza. On the visitor's side, Casale had an open-net opportunity during a scrum in front of the Corsair net, but was denied by Shea, who laid out horizontally out to keep the puck out of the net.
After a one-all tie in the first, Salem State exploded for five consecutive scores in the second. The Vikings bookended the period with power-play goals from Casale and Alex Minter (Peabody, Mass.), and received goals from Ian Canty (South Windsor, Conn.), Cam Moniz (Seekonk, Mass.) and Gabriel Cromp (Montreal, Quebec) to give the visitors a five score advantage (6-1).
Following Gilmores goal at the five minute, 21 second mark in the third, senior Chad Goodwin (Whitinsville, Mass.) sealed the game with the Salem State's seventh mark of the contest.
In net, sophomore Marcus Zelzer (Green Bay, Wisc.) stopped 29 shots in 58 minutes of action en route to his fifth win of the year. Sophomore JJ Solloway (Derry, N.H.) played the first two periods in net for the Corsairs and recorded 35 saves, while Nic Wackerly (Altadena, Calif.) blocked 12 attempts in the final 20 minutes.
The Viking's offense was the aggressor all game, holding a significant advantage in shots, 54-31. Neither team could stay out of the penalty box, as the two squads accumulated 36 minutes between them.
UMass Dartmouth returns to action at 7:30 pm on Thursday, Feb. 19, when the Corsairs host Westfield State. The Vikings return home on Saturday to take on Fitchburg State at 2 pm.
