BEVERLY, Mass. – The No. 4/6 Endicott men's ice hockey team fell to No. 10/11 Salve Regina, 5-1, on Thursday night in a conference matchup at the Raymond J. Bourque Arena.
Tonight's game marked the first-ever contest between two nationally ranked Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) opponents. The CCC currently has three teams ranked in both national polls (No. 4/6 Endicott, No. 10/11 Salve Regina, No. 9/9 University of New England).
Tied 1-1 headed into the third, Salve Regina seized all momentum with two goals just 2:41 into the period and never looked back. Seahawks netminder Blake Wojtala (Trenton, Mich.) also made 15 of his 16 saves in the third over the final 17:19 of play and did not allow a goal down the stretch to preserve the win. Wojtala finished the contest with 43 saves to improve to 14-4-2 on the season.
Meanwhile, Endicott goaltender Justin Ketola (Esko, Minn.) compiled a career-high 43 saves in the loss (7-2-2).
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The Gulls jumped out to a 1-0 lead when Jack Musil (Hull, England) found the back of the net at the 12:21 mark of the first period with a one-timer goal attempt that hit off of Musil's skate near the left post and went into the back of the net off a cross-ice feed from Jack Kilty (Medway, Mass.).
- Connor Costello (Nottingham, N.H.) also picked up an assist on Musil's eighth goal of the season.
- As a team, Endicott blocked a game-high 25 shots.
- The Gulls are now 4-2-1 against nationally ranked opponents in program history.
FOR THE FOES
- Down 1-0 at the start of the second, Salve Regina responded with a tally from Paul Boutoussov (Dana Point, Calif.) 1:12 into the frame to even the game at 1-1.
- The Seahawks then went on to control the majority of play in the second period before potting four goals in the third (one empty-netter).
- Boutoussov led the charge in the third with a tally at 2:14 and an empty-netter at 17:22 to record a hat-trick
- Salve Regina also received goals from Colin Clapton (Canton, Mass.) and Erik Udahl (East Walpole, Mass.).
- The Seahawks won the faceoff matchup 49-40.
WHAT'S NEXT
No. 4/6 Endicott (15-3-2, 11-2-0 CCC) and No. 10/11 Salve Regina (14-4-2, 9-2-2 CCC) faceoff again on Saturday, January 27 at 7:05 PM at the Portsmouth Abbey Ice Rink.
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(Photo Credit - Allison Moore)
