Oct. 29, 2011

Box Score

Sophomore Joseph Pendenza (Wilmington, Mass.) led the River Hawks with a goal and an assist, but it wasn't enough as #1 Boston College ran away with a 6-3 decision in the Conte Forum on Saturday night.

The loss is UMass Lowell third straight as it falls to 2-3-0 on the season and 0-2-0 in Hockey East action. The Eagles enjoyed their fifth consecutive win to improve to 7-1-0 on the year and 5-0-0 in conference play.

The River Hawks found themselves facing a two-goal deficit after the opening seven minutes. Destry Straight (West Vancouver, B.C.) started off the night with a tally from Barry Almeida (Springfield, Mass.) at 4:34 into play.

The Eagles found the net again at 6:37 to push the score to 2-0. Johnny Gaudreau (Carneys Point, N.J.) carried down the wing and slipped a wrist shot past goaltender Brian Robbins (Scotrun, Penn.) for his fifth goal of the season.

UMass Lowell cut the score in half at 9:44 as Daniel Furlong (Stoneham, Mass.) skated down the wing and put a shot high on the goaltender, forcing him to make a waffle pad save. The rebound landed at the goalie's feet and Scott Wilson (Oakville, Ont.) flicked in a shot for his first collegiate goal.

Despite the perceived shift in momentum, Boston College hung another tally on the scoreboard just under two minutes later. Pat Mullane (Wallingford, Conn.) connected with Steven Whitney (Reading, Mass.) on a perfect back-door play to reestablish the two-goal deficit at 3-1.

The odds began to mount on the River Hawks as the Eagles scored again before the end of the first period. A botched defensive play in UMass Lowell's zone allowed Kevin Hayes (Dorchester, Mass.) to grab the loose puck in the corner and hit Chris Kreider (Boxford, Mass.) in the slot for his fifth score of the year.

Boston College followed with two more tallies in the second period, a power play goal from Kreider at 1:33 and a short-handed score from Bill Arnold (Needham, Mass.) at 14:07.

UMass Lowell got two goals back in the third period, starting with Josh Holmstrom's (Colorado Springs, Colo.) first career goal at 3:32. Shayne Thompson (Stittsville, Ont.) carried around the back of the net and hit Malcolm Lyles (Miami Gardens, Fla.) in the slot. Lyles' shot was tipped by Holmstrom stationed in front of the net for the tally.

Breeding new life into the River Hawks' offense, Pendenza cut the score to 6-3 with a goal at 5:16 into the third. Picking off a pass by Brooks Dyroff (Boulder, Colo.), Pendenza carried into the zone and knocked the puck through Parker Milner's (Pittsburgh, Penn.) legs for his second score of the season. The goal would be the game's last, as the score settled at 6-3.

The River Hawks used a pair of goaltenders on the night. The starter, Robbins, was replaced by Marc Boulanger (Olds, Alta.) late in the first period. Robbins finished with four goals allowed and nine saves, falling to 1-2-0 on the season. Boulanger allowed a pair of goals on 11 shots. The Eagles' Milner finished with 37 saves for the second consecutive night, improving to 7-1-0 on the campaign.

UMass Lowell failed to capitalize on several power play chances, scoring once in six opportunities with the man advantage. Conversely, Boston College enjoyed a strong night on the power play, going 2-for-4.

The River Hawks an extra day to prepare this week before resuming play with Boston University on Saturday night in the Tsongas Center at 7 p.m.