Panthers tie Falcons on ice

John LaPierre

He/him

Staff Writer

11/17/23

Thursday night, Plymouth State welcomed in conference rival, the Fitchburg State University Falcons to town. Plymouth State Panthers came into the contest with an overall record of (4-1-1) and a (2-0-1) record in the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference and on the other side the Fitchburg State Falcons came in with an overall record of (3-1-1)  and like Plymouth the same conference record of (2-0-1) In the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference. 

The Panthers started the first period off in the offensive zone quickly with a couple shots but the Fitchburg State goalie stood tall early on. In the first couple of minutes, both teams had numerous offensive chances to score but were unable to capitalize. Around the twelve-minute mark, The Panthers got on the board first with a goal coming from number seventeen Anton Jellvik who is an offensive forward. Both teams stayed disciplined as no penalties came from either team. Winding down in the last couple of minutes left in the period, the Panthers tallied another goal from number five Eddie Mulligan defenseman after a beautiful wrap-around-the-net assist coming from his defensive partner number twenty-two Donte’ Diponio. End of the period, the Panthers take a 2-0 lead.

The second period started off just exactly like the first period with both teams having numerous chances to bury one past the goalies but no goalies early on. The Panthers made some critical errors which resulted in Fitchburg State tallying three power plays but Plymouth’s penalty kill was stellar not allowing a goal. The Panthers again were spending the majority of the period in the offensive zone but the Fitchburg State goalie Max Macchioni was outstanding in between the pipes. Fitchburg State was able to tally one late in the period of an unlucky bounce from number nineteen Micheal Macchioni. The end-of-period score was 2-1 still in favor of Plymouth State.

Period three gets underway and once again both teams come out the gate firing with numerous offensive chances but once again both goalies start the period off with numerous saves. Fitchburg State was getting a majority of the offensive zone time to start. The Panthers notched another goal from number twenty-three, Josh Kagan, forward after a two-on-one breakaway opportunity for the Panthers.

Within a blink of an eye, the Falcons notched two goals within minutes of each other to tie the game up. Defenseman number three Colin Tracy was going for the puck against the boards but unfortunately took a nasty hit from behind with seconds left in the period. He headed to the locker room after the hit with no call on the play for a possible penalty causing PSU fans started booing the ref. 

Both teams got prepared over time by coming out firing and tired from the previous three periods. Both teams were hungry for a goal to win the game by going back and forth with offensive rushes. After a quick five minutes, no team could tally a goal which resulted in a tie to end the game.

Coming up for the Plymouth State Panthers, they host another conference opponent in Framingham State for a 6:00 pm puck drop on Saturday. As for Fitchburg State, they will host another conference opponent in Worcester State for a 4:00 pm puck drop on Saturday as well.