New York, NY -- After spending two consecutive weekends on the road, the NYU ice hockey team returned to SkyRink at Chelsea Piers and defeated the William Paterson University Pioneers on Saturday, 5-2.
The opening period witnessed no scoring, and physical play and disciplined hockey characterized the opening 20 minutes. The Violets asserted their defensive prowess early, foiling a potential disaster. Linsemen sent off two Violets for minor penalties, generating a five-on-three advantage for the Pioneers.
Freshman Joe Leonard served two minutes for a "too many men on the ice" infraction, and sophomore Prentiss Noyes joined him in the penalty box after being charged with a check from behind. The Violets persevered and held the Pioneers scoreless, and the momentum swung to the Violes end of the ice. In a fast-pased first period, the Violets rattled off 10 shots to the Pioneers' seven.
Sean Mahoney capitalized on the Pioneers' inability to find the back of the net, scoring his first of two goalsoff a rebound at 4:10 in the second period. The Pioneers responded 40 seconds later when Mark Namm scored off of a rebound from a Craig Hoppey shot, sliding the puck past Violet goaltender Mike McDonald on the weak side.
Mahoney again gave NYU the lead when he converted a rebound from a shot off a face-off. Senior defenseman Jon Hsia proved himself an offensive force, scoring a power-play goal with a slapshot from the blue line that traveled 60 feet and trickled past Pioneer goaltender Franklin Zahn.
Jesse Belcher-Timme beat up on the opposition and ended his scoring drought at 13:08 of the third period with a breakaway goal off of a pass from Nick Batheja, sealing the Violets' victory. Coach Stephen Hetherman acknowledged that Belcher-Timme's goal was a step in the right direction for his forward.
McDonald stood out, stopping 26 of 29 Pioneer shots. McDonald rounded out his resume by stopping a twon-on-one Pioneer attack, a breakaway and a glove save of a blistering blast from the blue line that silenced the crowd.
The physical play of Leonard, Batheja, Noyes, Sal Sparacino and Keith Younas allowed NYU to keep control of the game. The Violets also outshot William Paterson 43 to 28. The Violets built on this season's trend: they have outshot all but two of their nine opponents.
"The tournament against Penn State West and Navy last weekend seemed to be the spark to get the teamto work together and play physically," Hetherman said. "The guys continued to skate, take the body, and play defensively."
The Violets' record now stands at 5-4. They will host back-to-back home games this weekend, against Central Connecticut State University and Long Island University at C.W. Post on Saturday at the Sky Rink at Chelsea Piers at 8pm.