Chighisola leads way with two goals, assist

Box Score

WINCHENDON, Mass. (November 21, 2009) – Sophomore forward Anthony Chighisola (Whitman, Mass.) scored two goals and added an assist on Saturday night, while sophomore defenseman Michael King (Center Conway, N.H.) and freshman defenseman Wesley Russell (Marlboro, Mass.) each added a pair of points of their own to lead the Franklin Pierce University ice hockey team to a 6-2 victory over Stonehill in Northeast-10 Conference play at The Winchendon School Ice Arena. Sophomore forward Andrew Diozzi had a pair of assists for Stonehill in the losing effort.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 2-4-2 (1-0-1 Northeast-10), while Stonehill falls to 2-4-1 (0-2-0 Northeast-10) with the loss.

Franklin Pierce picked up the lone goal of the first period with a power play goal 8:25 into the stanza. Sophomore forward Justin Adams (Homer, Alaska) fed the puck from the right half-boards to King at the point. King’s shot found its way through traffic and behind Stonehill sophomore goaltender Tyler Jackson to give the Ravens the lead and King his first career goal.

Franklin Pierce then broke the game open with a trio of goals in the middle frame. First, freshman forward Michael Carr (South Boston, Mass.) struck for his second of the season just 41 seconds into the period, when he stuffed home the rebound of a shot by freshman forward Roscoe Sweeney (Falmouth, Mass.), while Chighisola picked up an assist as well.

A pair of power-play goals in the second half of the second period would push the Franklin Pierce lead to 4-0 and effectively put the game away. First, senior forward Phil LaBreck (Thornton, N.H.) collected a loose puck in the left-wing circle and snapped it home for his second goal of the season at the 11:15 mark. Senior defenseman Steve Della-Calce (East Stroudsburg, Pa.), who’s original shot was blocked by the defense and bounced to LaBreck, picked up an assist on the play, along with Russell. The second came via a slick passing play at the 15:35 mark. Russell fed the puck from the right point to King on the left point. King started down the left side and sent a pass across the slot. The pass found the stick of Chighisola, who one-timed it into the waiting net for his team-leading sixth goal of the season.

Franklin Pierce pushed the lead to 5-0 only 14 seconds into the third period. With the teams playing 4-on-4, freshman defenseman Tyler Cornele (Cape Coral, Fla.) forced a turnover in the offensive end and snapped a shot past Jackson from the top of the right circle.

Stonehill got on the board to close the gap to 5-2 with a pair of goals early in the third. First, sophomore forward Bill Harris struck on the power play at the 2:59 mark. His shot from the bottom of the right-wing circle gave him his second goal of the season, with assists going to Diozzi and freshman defenseman Tyler Gordon. Less than three minutes later, at the 5:28 mark, sophomore defenseman Matthew Doherty buried his own rebound from the middle of the slot for his first goal of the season, while Diozzi and freshman defenseman Tyler Beauregard picked up the assists.

Franklin Pierce tacked on an insurance marker at the 14:16 mark to create the 6-2 final. Chighisola potted his second of the night, poking the puck in amidst a scramble out front, while junior defenseman Sean Carroll (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) picked up the assist.

Senior goaltender Jon Tuttle (Concord, N.H.) made 30 saves on the evening to earn the win (1-0-0) in front of the net for Franklin Pierce. Jackson made 30 saves and took the loss (0-2-0) between the pipes for Stonehill.

Franklin Pierce held a 36-32 edge in shots on goal in the game, and went 3-for-9 on the power play. Stonehill finished 1-for-7 with the man-advantage.

The Ravens return to the ice on Tuesday, Nov. 24, when they travel to Western New England for a non-conference contest. Faceoff is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. at Smead Arena in Springfield, Mass. Franklin Pierce next plays at home on Wednesday, Dec. 9 against Nichols at 7 p.m.