Fresh off their upset win over a DI club team in Rutgers, Marist club hockey continued their winning ways in a resounding 7-2 home-opening win over St. Thomas Aquinas.
Despite the score, this match was a fight to the end until the late moments of the game. While the Red Foxes scored early in the first and second periods, the Spartans answered back both times with their own goals, initially making it difficult for Marist to pull away. Ultimately, an untimely ejection of their goalkeeper proved costly for the Spartans, and Marist took advantage in a decisive third period.
Johnathan Hoang got the scoring started for the Foxes with a crisp shot from the slot to beat STAC goaltender Michael Pippo. STAC’s Jason DeSalvo tied it up minutes later with an unblocked shot from the slot.
The Red Foxes regained the lead late in the first period on a goal from Johnathan Martirano from the top of the key. In the second period, Marist scored early yet again from a quick shot off the faceoff from Christian Wilde to jump out to a 3-1 lead. Andrew Fenninger answered back with a goal in close on goaltender Andrew Schauder, narrowing the deficit to 3-2.
“We had a slow start and let them in the game too long,” said Wilde. “We battled back the second period and got a couple and in the third period we really turned it up and put the game away.”
The Spartans remained a thorn in Marist’s side for a good chunk of the game. When the Foxes gained scoring opportunities, so did the Spartans, with multiple odd man rushes and shots from the slot. Yet key defensive plays from the Red Foxes prevented them from getting on the board more, and as Marist cleaned up their game, they began to dominate.
A turning point in the match occurred late in the second period with the Red Foxes up 3-2. After a big hit by Marist’s Chris Citera, an altercation occurred with STAC goaltender Michael Pippo. A scuffle ensued between the teams, resulting in Pippo being ejected. Sophomore goaltender Theo Morris then came in on short notice for the Spartans, and things took a turn for the worse.
“We could’ve pounced on them a little bit earlier, and we waited too long to get into our systems and the way we want to play,” said head coach Anthony LoBianco. “We also got involved in the extracurriculars like pushing, shoving, cross-checking.”
On an offensive zone rush, A Marist pass deflected off a STAC defender’s skate, causing the puck to careen toward the goal and through Morris’ five-hole into the net. This marked the beginning of the end for the Spartans, as Marist added three more goals in the third period, including two by assistant captain Sean Bruno.
The more that Marist scored, however, the more physical the matcg became. After Sean Bruno’s first goal to put Marist up 5-2 late in the third, another fight broke out that resulted in an ejection for Marist, with possible consequences to come later. These little scuffles and brawls continued for the duration of the game, as both sides got extremely chippy towards the end.
Schauder had a stellar game in goal for Marist, making big save after big save and shutting down multiple odd man rushes and breakaways to keep the Foxes in the game and allow them to pull away at the end. He held the Spartans to just two goals despite being tested a good number of times and fulfilled LoBianco’s desire of having his goalie be the backbone of the team.
This afternoon, Marist will go back on the road to take on a tough Army team in a hostile environment; puck drop is set for 1 p.m.
Edited by Luke Sassa
Graphic by Victoria Guardino; Photo from Jaylen Rizzo
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