McGuckin stops all 11 shots he faces in relief

WINCHENDON, Mass. (November 25, 2014) – Westfield State senior forward Frank Zuccaro scored three goals to lead the way on Tuesday night, as the Franklin Pierce University men's ice hockey team was dealt a 5-2 defeat at home in non-conference play at Jason Ritchie Ice Arena. Freshman forward Evan Marek (Enfield, Conn.) and sophomore defenseman Taylor Fletcher (Leominster, Mass.) each scored their first collegiate goal in defeat for the Ravens.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 1-6-0 (1-2-0 Northeast-10), while Westfield State improves to 6-2-0 (3-1-0 Massachusetts State).

Westfield State wasted no time finding the back of the net on Tuesday night, as the Owls struck just 84 seconds into the proceedings. Zuccaro notched his first goal of the night, and his fourth of the season, from the top of the crease while cutting across the goal from left to right. Freshman forward Cody Campbell-Rich and junior forward Dalton Jay picked up the assists on the play.

Franklin Pierce answered just 90 seconds later, at the 2:54 mark, when Marek put away his first career goal from close range. Fellow freshman forward Brett Becker (Devils Lake, N.D.) picked up his first career point on the play, as he contributed the lone assist.

From there, it would be four straight goals for Westfield State, which pushed the lead as high as 5-1 early in the third period. First, at the 6:44 mark of the first stanza, Franklin Pierce junior goaltender Kyle Moran (Marshfield, Mass.) made the initial save on a shot from the right circle by sophomore forward Jackson Leef. The rebound went into the left circle, where hard-charging senior forward TJ Powers was able to bat it out of midair and into the goal for his second goal of the campaign.

The Owls added a pair of Zuccaro power-play markers in the second period to make it 4-1 heading into the second intermission. At the 1:43 mark, Zuccaro's fifth goal of the season came on a finish near the left post, as he put home a rebound. Moran appeared to get a piece of Zuccaro's shot on the play, but not enough to keep the puck out of the net. Jay added his second of three assists on the night, while freshman defenseman Josh Finkelstein notched his first of two helpers.

Later in the middle frame, at the 19:00 mark, Zuccaro capped his hat trick from the slot, as he one-timed home a centering feed from Jay, while senior forward P.J. McCadden added an assist as well. For Zuccaro, it was his first collegiate hat trick and his second career multiple-goal game.

Westfield State struck once more at the 2:05 mark of the third period. The original shot on the play was a blast by freshman defenseman Lenny Caglianone from the right point, which rang off the left post. The rebound off the pipe was collected and put away by freshman forward Jeremy Young, who scored his first career goal, while Finkelstein added an assist.

The Franklin Pierce power play, which entered the game just 1-for-21 on the season, was able to strike at 18:23 of the third to cap the scoring and create the 5-2 final. Junior forward Matt Batis (Lakewood, N.Y.) sent the puck to the left point for Fletcher, who let fly from there. Fletcher's drive through traffic found the back of the net for his first career goal.

Moran started in goal for Franklin Pierce and made 19 saves against 24 shots on goal over 42:05 while taking the loss (0-5-0). After the fifth Westfield State goal, Moran was lifted in favor of freshman Tom McGuckin (Clayton, N.J.), who made his collegiate debut in relief, stopping all 11 shots he faced over the remaining 17:55. Senior Ian Perrier made 19 saves against 21 shots to pick up the win (5-2-0) in the crease for Westfield State.

The Ravens return to the ice on Tuesday, Dec. 2, when they travel to Southern New Hampshire for a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Opening faceoff is set for 7:30 p.m. at the Ice Den in Hooksett, N.H. Franklin Pierce next plays at home on Saturday, Dec. 6 against Suffolk at 7:30 p.m.

For more information on Franklin Pierce Athletics, please visit the official website of Franklin Pierce Athletics (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu). Also be sure to follow the Ravens through the Department of Athletics' official Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/FranklinPierceRavens), its YouTube channel (http://www.youtube.com/franklinpiercesports) and its Twitter feed (http://twitter.com/FPUathletics). Fans wishing to purchase Franklin Pierce men's ice hockey apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' brand new online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).