Garnet Man-Up in Win over Bears
Swarthmore scored on two extra-man opportunities in the third period and freshman goalie Frank Mazzucco (above) made 17 saves as the Garnet defeated Ursinus College 12-9 on Wednesday evening in Centennial Conference action.
The Bears were hot early, scoring five goals on eight shots in the first period, enjoying a 4-1 at one point. Freshman Justin Reinke led the charge, scoring twice for Ursinus (2-6, 0-3 CC). Swarthmore closed the period strong, with goals by seniors Tom Coughlin and Jeff Donlea, both assists credited to freshman Chris Harman, cutting the lead to 5-3.
The Garnet retained the momentum when Donlea struck again in the second period, putting home a pass from Coughlin at the 8:06 mark. Senior Paul Chung knotted the score at 5-5, tallying an unassisted goal at 7:32 left in the half.
Ursinus' Anthony Tori gave the Bears the lead, 6-5, with a score at 4:55, but the Tide fought to even the score just before halftime. Harman one-timed a feed from Tim Chryssikos '05 with 25 seconds remaining, swing the pendulum of momentum back in Swarthmore's favor.
Jay Charles '07, encouraged by the 180 boisterous fans at Clothier Field, scooped up a ground ball off the opening face-off and bolted to the front of the net, beating Bears' goalie Matt Orlando on the left side for a 7-6 Garnet lead.
Adam Miller '08 gave Charles a breather on the ensuing face-off, immediately winning the scrum at mid-field, taking possession for the Garnet . The freshman midfielder, taking a page from Charles' book, scooped up the ground ball and sprinted towards the Bears' cage. Miller wasted little time, firing the ball past Orlando for his first collegiate goal and an 8-6 Garnet lead.
Ursinus took advantage of a Swarthmore penalty with an extra-man goal by Dane Mangin at 13:42 and then tied the contest at 9:07 with Tori's second goal of the night.
A Bears' penalty later in the third provided opportunity for the Garnet. Ryan McKenna took a feed from Coughlin and put the Garnet up 9-8 with 6:05 on the clock. Jason Lawson answered for Ursinus at 3:53 with an unassisted goal, tying the game 9-9.
Dual penalties on Mangin gave the Garnet a extra-man opportunity for two minutes near the end of the third period. Swarthmore cashed in via their man-up offense when Gavin Nurick '07 took a pass from Chryssikos and fired a rocket past Orlando for what turned out to be the game-winning goal.
Nurick struck again with 4:57 left in the fourth and Chryssikos bolted by three defenders for an unassisted effort at 2:40 to complete the scoring.
Mazzucco closed the door on the Bears in the fourth, making seven saves, including three heart-stoppers in the last three minutes, sending Swarthmore to their first Centennial Conference victory of the season.
Nine different players scored for the Garnet (4-3, 1-1 CC), led by Donlea with three goals and Nurick with two. Coughlin, Chryssikos, and Harman each had a goal and two assists, while Charles, McKenna, Chung, and Miller registered goals.
Reinke and Tori led the Bears with two goals apiece and Orlando made seven saves, taking the loss in goal.
Swarthmore will play host again on Saturday afternoon, welcoming the Green Terror of McDaniel College to Clothier Field for a 1:00 p.m. Centennial match-up.