Fitchburg State Draws With Westfield State, 3-3 (OT)

McAleer and Quinn notch four combined points in Falcons first tie of the season

FITCHBURG, Mass. (January 22, 2011) –  The Fitchburg State ice hockey team battled to a 3-3 draw with Westfield State University in MASCAC action this evening.

Trailing 3-2 with less than a minute on the clock, Westfield State pulled starting goaltender Ian Wilson (Tulsa, Ok./North Bay Skyhawks) to skate with a man advantage and the risk paid off. After nearly giving up the game’s insurance marker to Falcon Chris Riggs (Sewell, N.J./Fort Vancouver Pioneers), who’s empty net attempt from center ice sailed wide, the Owls bolted down the other end of the ice to the net the game’s equalizer with only 25 seconds remaining in regulation.

Freshman Stephen Tellier (Chicopee, Mass./Springfield Pics) connected for the game-tying marker for his third goal of the season, taking a feed from the far right side of the ice and slipping it past Falcon keeper, Bobby Vorse (Leominster, Mass./Bay State Breakers). Tellier teamed up with junior Pat Nelson (Cary, N.C./Queen City Steam) and Vince Perreault (Braeside, ON/Kemptville 73s) for the tally, sending the game into a five minute overtime period.

In the extra frame, neither team could capitalize on its opportunities, with Fitchburg State winning the overtime shots battle, 5-1. The Falcons drew and 35-33 advantage throughout the contest, while converting 1-of-3 power-play opportunities.

Fitchburg State opened the contest with an early 1-0 lead as sophomore Jack Vets (Hamden, Conn./Hartford Jr. Wolfpack) connected for his third goal of the season at the 8:09 mark, but Westfield State rallied right back, knotting the score 1-1 on a Dennis Zak (Dover, N.J./Cobourg Cougars) goal at 10:44.

In the second, the Falcons grabbed another one goal advantage as junior Thomas McAleer (East Islip, N.Y./New York Bobcats) hit home for his seventh score of the season, but the lead was short-lived again as Westfield State answered just 1:11 later with sophomore Rory Wilkowich’s (Okotos, Alberta/San Diego Gulls) first goal of the year.

After 15 minutes of deadlock action throughout the third period, Fitchburg State finally broke free, using a Riggs maker at the 15:11 mark for a 3-2 advantage. Westfield State continued to battle down the stretch, setting up Tellier’s heroics in the winding seconds. McAleer and sophomore Justin Quinn (Braintree, Mass./Braintree) led the Falcons with two points apiece, while freshman Josh McCully (North Bay, On/Blind River Beavers) sparked the Owls with two helpers.

In net, Vorse turned in a complete game effort for Fitchburg State, totaling 30 saves in 65 minutes of work, while Wilson collected 32 stops in the draw for Westfield.

Fitchburg State (11-4-1, 5-3-1 MASCAC) will hit the ice again on Thursday as it hosts Worcester State at 7 p.m. Westfield State (2-12-2, 1-7-1 MASCAC) will host Salem State University on Thursday at 7:35 p.m.

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Fitchburg State 3, Westfield State 3 

Scoring:
1st Period: FIT: Jack Vets (Andrew Jones, Cory Callen), 8:09; WES: Dennis Zak (Jeff Callahan, Josh McCully), 10:44;  
2nd Period: FIT: Thomas McAleer (Justin Quinn), 8:25; WES: Rory Wilkowich (Matt Frydrysek, McCully), 9:36;
3rd Period: FIT: Chris Riggs (McAleer, Quinn), 15:11; WES: Stephen Tellier (Pat Nelson, Vince Perreault), 19:35;
OT: none
Goaltending: FIT: Bobby Vorse (60:00), 30 saves; WES: Ian Wilson (64:05), 32 saves;
Shots On Goal: FIT: 35; WES: 32