Nov. 1, 2004
Freshman Chris Garofalo got the (hat) trick and the Endicott Gulls came away with the treat on All Hallows Eve, posting a decisive 7-2 victory over the visiting East Coast Rangers on Saturday (Oct. 30). The win enabled the Gulls to remain undefeated, running their record to 5-0 before the season's first big test against MIT in Cambridge on Friday.
In a chippy affair at the Pingree School's Johnson Rink, the Gulls maintained their composure and poise despite the aggressive play of the Rangers (16 penalties called against the visitors, compared to six against Endicott). Freshmen defenseman Jeff Lallier, taking a pass from senior captain Adam Pardaledis, took advantage of a 5-on-3 Gull power play halfway through the opening period, walking in from the right point and launching a rocket that beat Ranger goalie Ryan Churin between the legs for a 1-0 Endicott lead. Three minutes later, Garofalo got the first of his three goals when he pounced on the rebound of a Mike Ripley wrist shot and slammed it past Churin. Junior goaltender Jeff Pardue, splitting time with teammates Chris Gulino and Dan Rudy, kept the Rangers off the board.
The second stanza featured tight checking and fine goaltending, as both East Coast's Churin and Endicott freshman Gulino made several big stops. Just before the 3-minute mark of the period, with the teams playing at even strength, senior Kenny Dargon threaded a slick pass to line mate Nick Turczak in the slot, and the freshman banged it home for a 3-0 Endicott lead. Gulino made a sparkling breakaway save with his right pad to preserve the shutout going into the third period.
The final period opened with a show of offensive fireworks. Garofalo notched his second goal of the game just 40 seconds in, after Pardaledis barreled in on the left wing and sent the puck off the back boards. Before Churin could adjust, Garofalo one-timed the puck into the net for a beautiful bang-bang play and a 4-0 Endicott lead. The Rangers, however, continued to claw and scrap, and broke up Endicott's shutout bid moments later when the Gulls, on the power play, coughed the puck up in front of their own goal. Ranger forward Savie Kevs jumped on the mishap, pulled goalie Rudy out of the net, and put the puck behind him before the Gull defense could recover. The Gulls quickly regained their 4-goal cushion, when senior assistant captain Joe Dudek took a pass from Pardaledis off the ensuing face-off and floated a shot from the blue line that eluded Churin for a 5-1 Endicott lead.
At the halfway mark of the final period, Garofalo notched his first assist of the game when D'arcy Wiart dug the puck out from a scrum behind the net and sent it in front. Garofalo, set up on the right side of the net, rifled a pass across the slot to a charging Mark Vaughan, who made no mistake, rapping the puck between the pipes for a comfortable 6-1 margin. Rudy kept the Rangers at bay with several top-notch saves until Guy Riappa collected a rebound at the top of the crease and popped it past the sprawling sophomore netminder. Not satisfied to rest on their 4-goal lead, the Gulls continued to press the attack, and with 10 seconds left, Garofalo completed his hat trick, collecting his third goal and fourth point of the night, with Lallier and Dudek getting assists.
The Gulls put their undefeated mark on the line when they visit the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge for an important Eastern Conference match-up on Friday. The next home game for Endicott comes Saturday, Nov. 6, as the Gulls take on the College of the Holy Cross at the Pingree School in Hamilton. Game time is 7 p.m.
