Jan. 29, 2007

Upon an early arrival for a game at 1:00pm the Gulls team had plenty of time to think about the task at hand. They had lost to this same Western Connecticut team at home earlier this year 6-2, and would once again be without several players due to illness or injuries.

The Gulls struck first at the beginning of the second period when forward Greg Dorman rifled a shot at the net that found its way to the back. By the end of the second period Western Connecticut had built a convertible lead over the Gulls with three unanswered goals. The Gulls were stunned as they applied plenty of pressure over the first two periods, but still had a two goal deficit to show.

As the third period began to unfold, the Gulls popped in a goal to chop the lead to 1. In the closing half of the period, captain Adam Partaledis tied the game with a goal very similar to his goal the night before, with a nice backhand. The game was finally tied up and the Gulls had come too far and were determined to not let this one slip away. They continued to apply pressure with their offensive attack, forcing Western Connecticut into a panic.

The all out attack paid off when a botched pass by a West Conn. defenseman led to a Greg Dorman breakaway and goal for the game winner. Although West Conn. put on a very heavy peppering of shots on freshman goalie Matt Murray, he was able to reject them of the tying goal and sealed the victory for the Gulls. Murray played an outstanding game, making a breakaway save as well as many close range saves which were critical to the Gulls victory. The Gulls will have a two game home stand against the Universities of Connecticut and Vermont, on February 3, and February 10, respectively. They wrap up the regular season on February 14 against MIT in Cambridge, MA