Ravens host Assumption Friday night

WINCHENDON, Mass. (February 9, 2016) – In a game which featured little scoring and less flow, a breakaway early in the second period provided the only necessary scoring, as the Franklin Pierce University men's ice hockey team tallied a 2-0 victory over Daniel Webster in non-conference play. Senior forward Paddy Murphy (York, Maine) went top-shelf on the second-period break, while senior forward Matt Batis (Lakewood, N.Y.) popped an empty-net goal in the third period to seal the deal on Tuesday night at the Jason Ritchie Ice Arena.

With the win, Franklin Pierce improves to 4-15-3, while Daniel Webster falls to 3-17-0.

Franklin Pierce -- which saw multiple odd-man rushes go by the boards both before and after -- cashed in for the only goal it would need just 81 seconds into the second period on Tuesday night. Sophomore forward David Wilcox (Stillwater, Maine) pressured Daniel Webster into a neutral-zone turnover, which left the puck on the stick of sophomore forward Blake Manginell (Troy, Mich.) near center ice. Manginell was able to work the puck ahead and to the right side, springing Murphy around the last defender and into the attacking end all alone. Murphy tucked a wrist shot underneath the crossbar from the hash marks for his fourth goal of the season, at the 1:21 mark.

Franklin Pierce -- which was, inexplicably, whistled for two too many men on the ice penalties on the night -- killed off all four power plays against on the night to make sure the Murphy goal stood up. On the flip side of things, the Ravens came up empty on three power-play chances of their own, which left the Murphy goal as the only tally for much of the night.

The Ravens did come up with an insurance marker, at the 19:39 mark of the third period, after Daniel Webster had pulled the goaltender for the extra attacker. Senior forward Brendan Glynn (Quincy, Mass.) fed the puck ahead to Batis, who had an angle through the neutral zone to salt away his fourth goal of the campaign into the empty net as he gained the blue line, creating the 2-0 final.

Sophomore goaltender Tom McGuckin (Clayton, N.J.) stopped all 32 shots he faced to pick up the win (3-7-3) for Franklin Pierce and post his second shutout of the season. Junior netminder Morgan Hudson (2-10-0) collected 35 saves against 36 shots but still suffered the loss between the pipes for Daniel Webster.

The Ravens return to the ice on Friday, Feb. 12, when they remain home to host Assumption in a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Opening faceoff is set for 7 p.m. at Jason Ritchie Ice Arena.

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' online store (http://athletics.franklinpierce.edu/store).