UMass-Lowell forward C.J. Smith notched his 12th goal of the season at 14 minutes, 20 seconds of the third period and finished with two points, fueling Lowell to a 4-1 win over Merrimack Saturday afternoon. The win at Tsongas Center snapped a four-game losing streak for the previously struggling River Hawks.
UML (16-8-3) came firing right out of the gates, as Zack Kamrass ripped a shot from just outside the circles past Warriors goalkeeper Rasmus Tirronen, providing the game’s first goal just 23 seconds into the first period. In the second period, the River Hawks found the back of the net again, as Joe Gambardella pounced on a rebound that Tirronen failed to recover.
A goal from Ben Bahe under four minutes later got Merrimack (14-9-3) on the score sheet, but it was the only offense the Warriors would be able to muster.
Lowell will return to action Friday night with a matchup against No. 3 Boston University, set for 7:15 p.m. at Tsongas Center.
Connecticut rallies against Maine for 2-2 tie
Two seniors led the way for Connecticut Sunday afternoon at the XL Center in Hartford, as Ryan Tyson and Trevor Gerling each scored in the second period to power the Huskies to a 2-2 tie against Hockey East foe Maine. It was the second straight overtime contest between the two sides, after UConn bested the Black Bears 2-1 in the extra frame Friday night.
UConn (8-12-6) battled against familiar foes Maine (10-16-2) on home turf on Sunday, a match which followed up on their most recent game which ended in favor of UConn 2-1 in OT.
The opening goal of the game came right before the end of the first period, when Maine forward Cam Brown scooped the puck in after a net front scrum to put the Black Bears up 1-0.
At 11:39 seconds of the second period, Maine struck again when Jake Rutt collected another rebound to double the lead, after an acrobatic save by UConn goaltender Rob Nichols left the puck loose in front.
The Huskies bit back late in the second period with a pair of goals to tie the game. The first came from Tyson to put UConn on the board, and the tying goal was scored by Gerling just 34 seconds later.
Neither team was effective on the power play – UConn finished an abysmal 0-for-4 while Maine was just 0-for-2.
The Huskies will try to extend their point streak Saturday night at Providence against the No. 13 Friars.
Irish top UNH 5-3
In a high-scoring affair, it was Notre Dame that proved to have more firepower, as three goals in the second period powered the Irish past UNH 5-3.
Notre Dame (11-14-3) came out on top at home this Saturday, beating the UNH Wildcats (9-15-2) in a high scoring affair.
Austin Wuthrich opened the scoring for the Irish, blasting a shot through traffic to give Notre Dame a 1-0 lead at 17:46 seconds of first period. At 2:32 of the second period, Steven Fogarty scored on the power play to give the Irish a two-goal lead.
The Wildcats responded in a big way. Warren Foegele scored to get UNH on the board, and Matias Cleland added a power play goal later in the second to tie the game up.
But a backbreaking goal from Ben Ostlie put the Irish back up just two minutes, four seconds later, and they would hold that lead for good.
Notre Dame returns to action with a trip to Maine for a pair of games, starting Friday night at 7:05 p.m. in Orono, Maine.
Chris Martinez can be reached at [email protected]
