By Brittany Burke
A four-goal streak made by Marist in the third put the Red Fox in the lead as time ran out, handing the CCSU hockey team its second consecutive loss.
Following a 6-1 Saturday loss against third-ranked Montclair last week, the Blue Devils took to the ice with a must-win mentality, but it didn’t transfer to on-ice play.
“I think that we just didn’t have the heart in it tonight just from the beginning. I thought that they just assumed that they were going to win – that’s why we play these games,” said Head Coach Ben Adams. “Hockey can go either way. Three bad bounces in their favor and they got three goals out of it. It’s a tough one.”
Due to a late second period goal by Jon Knobloch, the Blue Devils managed to go into the second intermission with a one-goal advantage, leading Marist 5-4. However, 26 seconds into the third Marist struck for the fifth time, which began a slew of unanswered Red Fox goals.
CCSU broke down in the third, coming out slow. The team had trouble finding its rhythm and chemistry that worked with the different lines.
“I think the little things weren’t just going our way,” said Ryan Beaulieu. “We had some bounces, some bad calls, the pucks weren’t going our way, they had a couple goals that were a little tough and we probably should’ve been a little tighter defensively.”
With less than two minutes left in the game, the Red Foxes found the net for the eighth time of the night. The late period goal gave Marist the three goal advantage over CCSU, 8-5. Despite scrambling, goaltender Greg Coco remained in net as the Blue Devils tried to skate it out and salvage the game.
The entire period wasn’t unproductive for the Blue Devils, as Knobloch netted the final goal from Dillon and Michael Joy with 30 seconds to play, but by that time it was too late to stage a comeback of their own.
Despite the third period breaks, CCSU and Marist went head to head for the first two periods, keeping the game close and even keeled. Marist struck first, but CCSU was seemingly unaffected as Eric Blewett took the puck up center ice to tie the game at one with 16:06 still left to play.
“It’s good to see other guys getting on the score sheet, it’s definitely gonna help in the long run. By no means do I think we’re out of playoffs, out of regionals, out of post season, so it’s definitely going to help them get there,” said Adams.
Blewett, a third-year forward, tied the game up for the Blue Devils twice against the Red Foxes, finishing the game with two goals and an assist, bringing his season total to five points. Blewett struck again with 7:05 to play in the second. With a backhanded pass from Tim Dillon, who finished the game with three assists, Blewett tied the game at four with a shorthanded glove-side goal as Eric Muroski served two minutes in the penalty box.
“I was injured first semester and I’m just trying to get back with my legs back, my game legs back and my hands, start getting used to playing with my line mates and a couple games later and we’re flowing and I’m just getting chances and taking advantage of it,” said Blewett.
A goal made by CCSU with no time left in the first period would have put the Blue Devils ahead 4-3, however it was waived off and the score remained tied going into the first intermission. With a debate ending the first, the second began with the same amount of commotion as a fight broke out behind Coco between Tom Carroll and Marist’s Matt Rodriguez, which caused both athletes to be ejected from the game.
As of the end of the game, Carroll was still eligible to play in the Saturday game at Bryant. The Blue Devils have a full weekend schedule going into the start of the semester with a game on the road against Bryant followed by a Sunday afternoon game against UNH.
“This was a statement game, we had to win and win by a big margin. It’s a team ranked below us, so it’s gonna hurt and we don’t want to make it look like a big win against William Paterson last week was a fluke. You know, it makes the games this weekend even bigger,” said Blewett.
