WINCHENDON, Mass. (December 14, 2019) -- All good things must come to an end, and for the Franklin Pierce University men's ice hockey team, that was the case with its nine-game unbeaten streak on Saturday afternoon. The Ravens found themselves down 3-0 to the visiting Nichols College Bison after the first period and could not recover en route to a 4-0, non-conference loss at the Jason Ritchie Ice Arena.

For the Bison, the win marked their first of the season (1-9-0) and snapped a 10-game losing streak that dated back to last season. The Ravens suffered their first loss since Nov. 8 and saw their nine-game unbeaten streak of 8-0-1 halted, as well as a seven-game win streak. The loss bumped the Ravens to 8-3-1 on the season as both teams head into the semester break.

The Bison did not look like a winless team, as right off the opening faceoff they made their presence felt. It took the Bison 33 seconds to generate their first shot on goal, immediately testing sophomore goaltender Kyle Martin (Westford, Mass.). The Bison's early pressure would pay off as sophomore Justin Perron set up captain Vincent Crivello for his third of the season, at the 4:24 mark. Along the left-wing boards, Perron slid a perfect feed to Crivello who was camped on top of the Ravens' crease, the senior made no mistake, as he redirected the puck past the blocker of Martin for the 1-0 lead.

The Bison wasted no time in doubling their lead. Junior forward Filip Virgili received a pass from junior defenseman Evan Nyhus, drove down the left wing and just barely wrapped the puck into the goal, beating Martin to the far post. The Ravens' netminder almost swiped the puck off the line but it trickled over for the goal. Virgili's third of the campaign came 14 seconds after Crivello's.

A cross-checking penalty against senior defenseman Mark Indelicato (Pembroke, Mass.) would see the Ravens go shorthanded at 11:59. The Bison power play, which came into the game 4-for-55 (7.3%) on the season, managed to find the back of the net at 12:29. Virgili worked a pass down low on the left side to senior forward Hogan Davidson, Davidson then beautifully set up Crivello out high for his second goal of the game. Crivello made no mistake for his fourth of the season, roofing a shot on Martin to extend Nichols' lead to 3-0.

The Ravens were outshot 15-6 and outscored 3-0 in the first period, but came to life in the second.  Facing senior goalie Jay Knurowski, making his first career NCAA appearance, the Ravens tested him through the middle stanza, when they held an 11-9 edge in shots.

Sophomore forward Anthony Nikolopoulos (Burlington, Mass.) had the best chance for Franklin Pierce. Streaking in all alone on a breakaway, Nikolopoulos was stopped point-blank by the blocker of Knurowski. Later in the second, still trailing by three, senior forward Alex Lester (Methuen, Mass.) feathered a pass across to senior line-mate James Morrissey (West Haven, Conn.) on a 2-on-1 rush. Moving from left to right, Knurowski got across and made another blocker stop to shut down Morrissey. Both goaltenders were strong in the scoreless second period, with Knurowski stopping all 11 shots and Martin turning aside nine.

Perron snuffed out any idea of a third-period comeback, as he struck just a 1:57 into the period to stake the lead out to 4-0. Coming down the left side, Perron unleashed a wrist shot to beat Martin over the right shoulder. Franklin Pierce was able to throw 11 more shots on Knurowski in the third, but the Bison netminder turned aside each of them.

Knurowski (1-0-0) picked up the win, and a 28-save shutout, in his first career start for Nichols. After allowing three goals on 15 shots in the first period, Martin (4-1-0) settled in and stopped 20 of 21 the rest of the way. The Ravens' netminder stopped 32 of 36 for the game in the losing effort.

Following the semester break, the Ravens return to action on Saturday, Jan. 4, when they travel to Curry College for a non-conference matchup. Puck drop at Canton Ice House in Canton, Mass. is set for 2:50 p.m.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (https://www.fpuravens.com). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce ice hockey apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' brand new online store (https://www.shopfpuravens.com).