Jan. 21, 2012

Box Score

Sophomore Derek Arnold (Foxboro, Mass.) sped past the defense and scored the game-winning overtime goal on Saturday night to complete a weekend sweep of Northeastern at the Matthews Arena.

The victory improved UMass Lowell's record to 14-6-0 overall and 9-5-0 in Hockey East action, while the Huskies fell to 8-11-3 and 4-11-2.

The Huskies jumped on the board first, scoring a shorthanded goal from Braden Pimm (Fort St. John, B.C.) at 8:09. At the start of UMass Lowell's power play, Pimm scooped the puck on a broken play at the blue line and raced towards the River Hawk net. Despite colliding with defenseman Chad Ruhwedel (San Diego, Calif.) and goaltender Doug Carr (Hanover, Mass.), the puck found its way across the line.

It didn't take long for the River Hawks to respond, recording a power play goal at 12:21 into the first period. Ruhwedel fished out a puck in UMass Lowell's zone and dished to freshman Zack Kamrass (Atlanta, Ga.) in neutral ice. Kamrass carried down the near boards drawing defenders to the corner before passing to classmate Scott Wilson (Oakville, Ont.) in the slot for a one-timer that fluttered into the net. The goal was Wilson's 11th of the season, the most by a River Hawk freshman since Brad Rooney in 1997-98.

Northeastern reclaimed the lead just 32 seconds into the second period on a goal by Garrett Vermeersch (Macomb, Mich.). Vinny Saponari (Powder Springs, Ga.) curled from behind the net and flicked a wrist shot onto Carr's leg pads with Vermeersch waiting at the crease to knock in the rebound.

In the see-saw action, UMass Lowell leveled the score again just 2:32 later. Wilson picked off a pass in the Huskies' zone and passed to Terrence Wallin (Yardley, Pa.) low. Wallin's shot was saved by Rawlings, but the rebound kicked to Colin Wright (Burlington, Ont.) who ripped the puck into the mesh.

The clubs then exhausted regulation with a highly contested third period that Northeastern led in shots, 13-7.

The Huskies kept up the pressure in overtime, but the River Hawks counter attacked at 2:50 for the game-winning score. Michael Budd (Burlington, Ont.) flipped the puck high through neutral ice and the bounce sent the puck behind the defense for Arnold. The speedy forward raced to the net, faked the goalie short-side and then tucked the shot inside the far post for the win.

UMass Lowell's Carr improved his record to 13-3-0 on the season, stopping 29-of-31 shots and held the Huskies scoreless on a pair of power plays. Northeastern's Chris Rawlings (North Delta, B.C.) made 22 saves as he fell to 8-10-3.

With the four-point weekend in the books, the River Hawks now turn their attention to Providence College for a Tuesday night clash at the Schneider Arena.