Owls Defeat Harvard 2-1 on Senior Night

Westfield, MA --- The Westfield State University Owls defeated the Harvard Crimson 2-1 on Saturday night. The Owls finished their 2011-2012 home schedule with a record of 7-0-0-1. The Owls finish the season playing their next three games on the road before heading to Nashua, NH to compete in the NECHA playoffs.

After skating a scoreless first period, Harvard would get on the board first when they connected on a three on one rush. Chase Thornton played great in net and kept it a one goal game going into the final period.

In the third, senior Brett Salamon would score both goals for the Owls to complete the comeback. With the win, the Owls now have 17 points in the American Conference. The Owls can now clinch the first seed in the playoffs by a combination of gaining 4 points or by having MIT lose 4 points AND Westfield gaining 2 points and Bates losing 2 points.

The Owls travel up to Bates College on Friday night to take on the Bears and will look to secure at least the second seed in the playoffs with a regulation win. You can get game updates by following the team's twitter @wsuclub.

KEY STATS
Goals: Salamon (2)
Assists: Bruso (1), Leonard (1), Nixon (1)
Saves: Thornton (35)
Power Play: 0 for 3 (0%)
Penalty Kill: 1 for 1 (100%)

2012 Senior Night

Westfield, MA --- The Owls will have their last home game of the 2011-12 season this afternoon when they host Harvard University at 5pm. It will be the last game in Westfield for eight Seniors and will be the last home game for coach Dr. Scott White. We encourage all students, friends and family to come down to Amelia Park this afternoon to cheer on the Owls as they look to stay atop the American Conference.

2011-2012 Seniors
#4 Brett Salamon
#5 Tommmy Bruso
#6 Will Keating
#8 Nico Gilbert
#11 Peter Richardson
#12 Chris Hess
#18 Corey Tobin
#23 Ryan Laughlin

Westfield State Beats Sacred Heart 6-2

Westfield, MA --- The Westfield State Owls defeated Sacred Heart University on Saturday afternoon 6-2 to improve their season record to 10-3-0-1. The Owls outscored the Pioneers 14-5 in the season series. After being delayed, the Owls got off to another slow start when Sacred Heart scored only 31 seconds into the game. The Owls would dominate most of the first period and out shot the Pioneers 27-15 but would head into the locker room trailing 1-0.

The Owls came out strong in the second period and would tie the game on a power play goal by Joey Green. Bobby Hayhurst's blast from the point went wide of the net and Green shot the puck past Sacred Heart's goaltender Andrew Calamari. The teams exchanged scoring chances in a chippy period as the teams combined for 10 penalties in the second period. The Owls would take a 2-1 lead into the intermission when Pete Richardson poked in a loose puck with 1.2 seconds remaining in the period. Anthony Hardy fired the puck towards the net and Richardson was there to poke it into the empty net.

The goal was a huge momentum booster for the Owls as they would go on to score 4 goals in the final 20 minutes. Tommy Bruso opened the period with a goal at 17:28 when Nico Gilbert found him in the slot. Ryan Leonard would give the Owls a 4-1 lead with a short-handed goal at 11:50. David Russo would pick up an assist on the 2 on 1 goal. However, Sacred Heart would score 35 seconds later on the power play to make it a 4-2 game midway through the third period. Tommy Bruso would score his second goal of the night at 10:03 to regain the three goal lead for the Owls. Anthony Hardy would close out the scoring with 1:17 remaining with a power play goal. The Owls would finish 2 for 8 with the man advantage.

The Owls host Harvard University on Saturday afternoon at 5pm. The Owls beat the Crimson 4-2 on December 3rd. The Owls will be celebrating "Senior Night" and it will be the last home game for coach Dr. Scott White. You can get game updates by following the club's twitter account at @wsuclub.

Key Stats
Goals: Green (1), Richardson (1), Bruso (2), Hardy (1)
Saves: Franco (35)
Power Play: 2 for 8 (25%)
Penalty Kills: 4 for 5 (80%)

Owls Clinch Playoff Spot

Westfield, MA --- On Sunday night, the Westfield State Owls lost 6-5 in overtime against MIT. With the point, the Owls clinched a playoff spot and will be heading to Nashua, NH on February 18th. The Owls last qualified for the playoffs in 2008 when they lost to MIT in the semi-finals.

The Owls fell behind early when MIT scored 6 minutes into the game when Allen Lai was alone in the slot and beat Owls' netminder Chase Thornton. The Owls would tie the game midway through the period when Rob Collins rushed the puck up the left wing boards and passed the puck to Anthony Hardy who fired the puck past Jenna Klein. With 2:30 remaining in the first period, Corey Tobin would put the Owls on top 2-1 with a shot from the point. The lead did not last for long and the Engineers would score 3 goals in the second period to take a 4-2 lead going into the final period. Chase Thornton would finish the night making 26 save on 30 shots.

In the third, MIT would make it a 5-2 game with a power play goal from Dustin Kendrick. The Owls would start their comeback when Anthony Hardy picked up a loose rebound and put it into the back of the net. The Owls would score again when Greg Rice scored with 1:30 left giving the Owls hope. With the goalie pulled for an extra attacker, the Owls tied the game up with 28 seconds remaining in the game to earn a point to clinch a playoff spot. It was Hardy's third goal of the night to record the hat trick for the freshman. MIT would grab the extra point when Larry Was scored just 40 seconds into overtime. Nick Franco played strong in relief and ended up making 12 saves.

The Owls host Sacred Heart on Saturday afternoon at 5pm. The Owls beat the Pioneers 8-3 in Shelton, Connecticut back on December 4th. You can get game updates by following the team on twitter @wsuclub.

KEY STATS:
Goals: Hardy (3), Tobin (1), Rice (1)
Saves: Thornton (26), Franco (12)
Power Play: 1 for 1 (100%)
Penalty Kill: 4 for 5 (80%)
http://achahockey.org/game_details.php?game_id=1218394&schedule_id=94216&league_id=1061&date=20120115

Owls Look For Revenge vs MIT

Westfield, MA --- The Westfield State Owls will resume their 2011-12 schedule on Sunday night when they host MIT at 7 PM. This game was originally slated for October 30th but was rescheduled because of the snow storm.

This is the second and final regular season match up with the Engineers. MIT beat Westfield 3-2 in the final game of the Fall semester. The Owls can clinch a playoff spot with a victory. You can get game updates by following the team's twitter account @wsuclub.