Gallagher’s Hat Trick Not Enough, Men’s Hockey Overtaken by Keene State

RUTLAND, Vt. – The MCLA Men's Hockey Team returned to action this afternoon, taking on the Keene State Owls in the Terry Moran Invitational consolation game at the Spartan Arena. A tight game through two periods turned into an offensive extravaganza in the final frame, with the teams combining for nine goals over the last 15 minutes and 33 seconds.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Saturday, November 30, 2024
• Score: Keene State 8, MCLA 5
• Records: Keene State Owls 3-5-1 (Conference N/A) | MCLA Trailblazers 0-7-0 (MASCAC 0-2-0)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• MCLA was the first on the scoreboard when sophomore forward Christopher Gallagher (Albany. NY / Islanders H.C.) put home an unassisted goal at 9:16 of the first period. Keene State would answer before the end of the period with a goal from Payton Jones (15:28, assisted by Connor Perrier)
• Just past the midpoint of the second period, Gallagher again lit the lamp for the Trailblazers, with assists being credited to sophomore forward Easton Moore (Red Deer, AB / Florida Eels) and sophomore defenseman Joshua Romanowski (Amenia, NY / Connecticut Chiefs). The assists were the first of the year for both Moore and Romanowski. For the second time, the Owls responded before the end of the period when Marcus Chrisafideis (13:59, Chase Carney and Conor Perrier) made the score 2-2.
• Chrisafideis (4:27, Peter Unger and Kyle Gonzalez) gave Keene State their first lead of the afternoon, only to have MCLA answer back with a goal about a minute and a half later by sophomore forward Cody White (Orange, CT / East Coast Wizards) at 5:59 and an assist from sophomore forward Jack Bortle (Granville, OH / New England Wolves). The goal was White's second of the season, and the assist was the first of the year for Bortle.
• Two goals in less than three minutes pushed the Owls back in front again. The goals were credited to Carney (8:04, Peter Unger and Chrisafideis) and Unger (10:45, Carney and Chrisafideis).
• Starting with Unger's goal, the teams combined for four goals in 57 seconds. Gallagher (10:59, sophomore defenseman Alex Ferris (Enfield, CT / Northern Cyclones) and sophomore forward Walter Brown (New Canaan, CT / Conn. Roughriders)) completed his hat trick for the night and sophomore defenseman Shane Green (Bear, DE / Philadelphia Little Flyers) (11:42, sophomore forward Cade Herrera (Brentwood, CA / Seahawks H.C)) sandwiched a goal around an Owl goal by Corey Tumenas (11:09, Michael Boschetto). Gallagher's goal was his fourth of the season, while Green's was his first. The assists for Ferris, Brown, and Herrera were all their first of the year.
• The Owls added two more goals by Carney (15:02, Unger and Chrisafideis) and an empty netter by Unger (19:16, unassisted).
• Will Slohm (1-0-0) picked up his first win of the season after recording 18 stops, while sophomore goalie Mathew Gover (Atkinson, NH / East Coast Wizards) fell to 0-7-0 while picking up 34 saves.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Shots: Keene State 42, MCLA 23
• Saves: Keene State 18, MCLA 34
• Faceoffs Won: Keene State 47, MCLA 39
• Penalty/Minutes: Keene State 3/6:00, MCLA 4/8:00
• Power Plays: Keene State 1 for 3, MCLA 0 for 2

UP NEXT:

On Thursday, MCLA will be back in action when they travel to Fitchburg State for a MASCAC matchup with the Falcons at the Wallace Civic Center. The puck will drop at 6:30 p.m.

STAY CONNECTED:

For the latest on MCLA Athletics, follow the Trailblazers via our social media platforms on Facebook, Instagram, or X (formerly Twitter).