Batis scores for Ravens

WINCHENDON, Mass. (January 19, 2016) – A natural hat trick by freshman forward Bryan Green -- the first three goals of his collegiate career -- put Saint Anselm out front 3-0 just over midway through Tuesday night's game at the Jason Ritchie Ice Arena. The Hawks would not relinquish the lead, going on to deal a 5-1 loss to the Franklin Pierce University men's ice hockey team in Northeast-10 Conference play.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 2-14-0 (0-4-0 Northeast-10), while Saint Anselm improves to 9-6-1 (3-0-0 Northeast-10).

The Hawks would not give up the lead on Tuesday night after scoring the first period's only goal. Green's initial collegiate marker came at the 9:50 mark, after sophomore forward Jon Pallotta had his original shot saved and then wound up with the puck again in the left-wing circle. Pallotta threw the puck towards the slot, and freshman forward Jeremy Carignan was able to redirect it towards the net, though with not much force behind it. With Franklin Pierce senior goaltender Kyle Moran (Marshfield, Mass.) caught out of position, Green was there to clean up the loose puck and salt it away at the right post.

Green would strike twice more in the second period to grow the Saint Anselm lead to 3-0. First, at the 5:55 mark, he finished off a feed from Pallotta at the bottom of the left circle and beat Moran between the pads for the eventual game-winner. Later, he completed the natural hat trick with a power-play tally at 13:22, finishing amid a scramble out front, with assists going to senior forward Bryan Sullivan and junior forward Brendon Kerrigan.

Franklin Pierce answered before the middle stanza expired, with its lone goal of the night coming at the 17:58 mark. Senior forward Matt Batis (Lakewood, N.Y.) picked the top-left corner of the net from the middle of the left circle for his second goal of the campaign, with junior defenseman Dan Gibbons (Quincy, Mass.) picking up the lone assist on the play.

Saint Anselm scored a pair of goals in quick succession in the middle of the third period to create the 5-1 final. At the 10:05 mark, with the Hawks on the power play, Sullivan finished off a nifty give-and-go play on the left side for his third goal of the year, off of assists from senior forward Mark Meads and junior forward Nick Leonard. Just 50 seconds later, at 10:55, the initial shot on the play was redirected, and fell in the slot for junior forward Vin D'Amato, who turned and fired home his third of the season, while Kerrigan and junior defenseman Peter Sikalis notched the assists.

Moran (1-5-0) finished with 30 saves against 35 shots on goal between the pipes for Franklin Pierce. At the other end of the ice, sophomore netminder Shane Joyce (8-5-1) stopped 15 of 16 shots in the crease for Saint Anselm.

The Ravens return to the ice on Sunday, Jan. 24, when they travel to Southern New Hampshire for a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Opening faceoff is set for noon at Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, N.H.

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 soccer apparel can do so at the Department of Athletics' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).