The Oswego State men's ice hockey team upended Salve Regina in a top-10 battle during the first day of the 13th annual PathFinder Bank Hockey Classic on Friday.
Oswego – ranked seventh in the latest USCHO poll – bookended the middle period with two three-goal frames to move past the No. 9 Seahawks and into the 7 p.m. title game on Saturday.
THE BASICS
- Result: Oswego 6, Salve Regina 2
- Location: Marano Campus Center Arena – Oswego, N.Y.
- Records: Oswego 9-3-0 | Salve Regina 8-4-1
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The first period featured five goals between the two teams, with Oswego's Josh Nenadal striking first in rare fashion.
- With 17 seconds left on a Seahawk power-play, Nenadal won a puck along the boards of the Lakers' offensive zone, sprinted to the net, stopped short and beat the goalie at 5:07.
- Salve answered less than two minutes later before Oswego recorded back-to-back tallies before the 15-minute mark.
- The second Laker goal came as Mitch Emerson and Colton Fletcher found Joseph Molinaro for a goal by the left post.
- At 14:47, Oswego made it 3-1 with the eventual game-winner from Michael Gillespie.
- Gillespie collected a rebound on the weak side near the right post for a goal after Carter Allen sent a puck from the point that was batted down in front by Travis Broughman.
- The Seahawks scored what proved to be its final goal with less than three minutes to play in the opening period, sending the teams to intermission with Oswego on top, 3-2.
- Neither team was able to score in the second, which was a penalty-ridden period.
- In the third, Tyler Currie popper the water bottle off the net at 5:41 off a pass from Molinaro just seconds after a Laker power-play expired.
- Anthony Passero then hopped into the action, moving from right to left and beating the goalie with a backhand at 8:24 to make it a 5-2 Oswego advantage.
- Gillespie and Broughman teamed up for the exclamation point on the night, finding Max Novick for the defenseman's second goal of the campaign.
- Between the pipes, David Richer earned the victory, stopping 22 Seahawk shots for a .917 save percentage over 60 minutes.
WHAT'S NEXT
Oswego will face a familiar foe in the 7 p.m. championship matchup on Saturday night, as SUNY Canton earned a 5-2 victory over Concordia University Wisconsin in the tournament's opening game. The Kangaroos and Lakers met earlier this season, with Oswego winning 6-2 in a road contest on Nov. 9.
