WINCHENDON, Mass. (December 3, 2016) – A pair of third-period goals proved to be too little, too late for the Franklin Pierce University men's ice hockey team on Saturday night at the Jason Ritchie Ice Arena. The Ravens managed just six shots over the first two periods, as they fell behind, 3-0, en route to a 4-2 loss to Fitchburg State in non-conference play. Sophomore forward Nick DiNicola scored twice, including the game-winning goal, to lead the way for the Falcons.

With the loss, Franklin Pierce falls to 6-5-0, while Fitchburg State improves to 5-5-1.

Fitchburg State jumped out of the gate in a hurry on Saturday night, as the Falcons struck for the game's first goal just 74 seconds into the proceedings. The team's entire top line factored in on the scoring, as they led a rush into the offensive end. A feed from the left-wing side by freshman forward Christopher Vicario found senior forward Mike Fish at the top of the crease, and the latter stuffed home his first goal of the season from there. Junior forward Corey Hayashi notched an assist on the play as well.

Other than the early strike, neither team was able to amass much in the way of offense in the first frame, as Fitchburg State held a 7-3 advantage in shots through 20 minutes. The Falcons amped up the pressure in the second period, collecting a 15-3 advantage on shots in the middle stanza.

Fitchburg State did not cash in on any of its four power-play goals in the second frame, but did find a pair of goals to grow the lead to 3-0. First, at the 4:19 mark, the Ravens turned the puck over attempting to clear the zone, and saw it wind up in the back of their net. Sophomore defenseman Josh Victory took possession of the puck in the neutral zone and fed it to junior forward James Gordon, who led what was now a 2-on-1 rush down the right side into the attacking end. Gordon slipped a pass across the high slot for freshman forward Joshua Larson on the left side. Larson got everything into a one-timer, dropping to one knee at the left-wing faceoff dot as he connected with the puck and buried his first collegiate goal.

Less than two minutes later, at 6:03, DiNicola picked up his first of two scores on the night. Freshman forward Tyler Warila sent a shot towards the net from the middle of the blue line. DiNicola was stationed at the top of the crease, in front of the right post, and was able to deflect home his second goal of the campaign.

Fitchburg State pushed the lead as high as 4-0, with DiNicola's second of the night, at the 3:41 mark of the third period. Warila had the lone assist again, this time finding a passing lane through the slot from the left-wing side. His pass found DiNicola unmarked at the right post for the easy one-time finish. The goal spelled the end of the night for Franklin Pierce junior goaltender Tom McGuckin (Clayton, N.J.), who ceded the crease to senior netminder Austin Christopher (Winthrop, Maine) for the remainder of the game.

Franklin Pierce finally got the offense going from there, as the Ravens would ultimately hold a 12-4 advantage in shots in the third period, cutting the final deficit to 26-18, in favor of the Falcons. Just 60 seconds after the second DiNicola goal, Franklin Pierce got on the board with the fifth goal of the season for sophomore forward Nick Indelicato (Pembroke, Mass.). Sophomore defenseman Jack Williams (Suffield, Conn.) took the original shot from the point on the play, which was knocked down, and Indelicato cashed in the rebound at the 4:41 mark. Junior forward Jonathan Haun (Buffalo, N.Y.) had the first of two assists on the night on the play as well.

The Ravens followed up with a power-play goal at the 7:24 mark to cut the gap to 4-2. Haun added another assist, as he fed the puck from the center of the blue line to senior defenseman Alex Schleper (Sutton, Mass.) in the right circle. Schleper stepped into a snap shot from there and beat sophomore goaltender Kirby Saari on the short side for his second goal of the campaign. Freshman forward Matthew Toombs (Pleasanton, Calif.) added an assist on the play as well.

Franklin Pierce would go back on the power play at the eight-minute mark, as Fitchburg State senior forward Jon Johannesson was whistled for a five-minute major for interference, as well as a game misconduct. The Ravens were unable to convert on the lengthy power play though, and came up empty on another chance at the 15:15 mark as well, as the comeback attempt ran out of steam down the stretch.

McGuckin (6-5-0) finished with 21 saves against 25 shots on goal over the first 43:41 and suffered the loss in net for Franklin Pierce. Christopher turned aside the only shot he faced the rest of the way in relief. Meanwhile, Saari (3-2-0) made 16 saves against 18 shots to pick up the win for Fitchburg State.

The Ravens return to the ice on Sunday, Dec. 4, when they remain home to host Southern New Hampshire in a Northeast-10 Conference contest. Opening faceoff is set for 3 p.m. at the 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).