Sixth-seeded Ravens face #3 Chieftains in Quarterfinals Sunday Night

RINDGE, N.H. (February 26, 2004) - The sixth-seeded Franklin Pierce ice hockey team is set to face Stonehill in quarterfinal round action of the Northeast-10 Tournament on Sunday, February 29^th, in Easton, Mass.

Franklin Pierce completed its second varsity season with a 5-18-0 overall record, a 2-14-0 record in the ECAC Northeast and a 0-5-0 record its first season as a part of the newly formed Northeast-10 hockey conference.

Stonehill finished with an overall record of 9-10-1, an 8-7-1 record in the ECAC Northeast, and a 2-2-1 record in the Northeast-10.

Sunday will mark the first postseason meeting between the clubs and the fourth overall; the Chieftains lead the series 3-0, with a 6-2 victory in their last meeting back on November 22, 2003.

The Franklin Pierce offense is led by sophomore Robert Pendola (Everett, Mass./Mass. Mariners), classmate Matt Clemente (Middletown, N.J./Laconia Leafs) and senior Ed Farinato (Medford, Mass./Bay State Breakers).

Pendola leads all scorers with nine goals and nine assists for 18 points, including a team-best six power play goals and two game winning goals.
Clemente follows with eight goals and eight assists for 16 points, while Farinato also has 16 points with seven goals and nine assists.

Juniors Jason Pierce (Maynard, Mass./Nashoba Regional) and Matt DePuydt (Houghton, Mich./SUNY-Canton) have each contributed 14 points and DePuydt's nine assists ties him with Pendola and Farinato for the team lead in that category.

The defense is anchored by the goaltending tandem of senior Andy Tinti (Buffalo, N.Y./SUNY-Canton) and sophomore Dennis Millman (Billerica, Mass./Kimball Union). Tinti has appeared in 12 games, logging 550 minutes and averaging a team-best 34 saves per contest. Millman has seen action in 522 minutes over 11 games and is averaging 33.2 saves per contest.

Senior Rob Pascale (South Portland, Maine/South Portland) leads Stonehill with 18 goals and 16 assists for 34 points, including a team-high 12 power play goals. Pascale's 18 goals is a Northeast-10 Conference-best and his 34 points ranks second; he also ranks first in power play points with 20 and power play goals. Classmate Brendan Ready (Cape Elizabeth, Maine/Cape Elizabeth) follows with seven goals and 14 assists for 21 points.

In net, Stonehill is led by junior goalkeeper Billy Whitfield (Stoughton, Mass./New Hampton). Whitfield boasts a .912 save percentage, a 2.16 GAA and a 7-2-1 record.

The winner of Sunday's match will advance to the Northeast-10 semifinals. The winner will advance to face #2 Saint Michael's College (9-16-0, 3-1 NE-10, 4-14-0 ECAC-East) on Wednesday, March 3, at 7:00 p.m. in the Semifinals. The Championship will be played on Sunday, March 6, at the highest remaining seed.

Sunday's game will be broadcast live on WFPC-LP 105.3 FM and simulcast over the internet at www.franklinpierce.edu /athletics.

2003-04 Northeast-10 Conference
Inaugural Men's Ice Hockey Championship

Quarterfinals
Saturday, February 28
Game 1 #5 Assumption (9-13-2) at #4 Southern New Hampshire (11-12-1) 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, February 29
Game 2 #6 Franklin Pierce (5-18-0) at #3 Stonehill (9-10-1) 6:30 p.m.

Semifinals - at higher seeds
Wednesday, March 3
Game 3 Game 1 Winner at #1 Saint Anselm (19-6-0) 7:00 p.m.
Game 4 Game 2 Winner at #2 Saint Michael's (9-16-0) 7:00 p.m.

Championship - at highest remaining seed
Sunday, March 6
Game 5 Game 3 Winner vs. Game 4 Winner TBA