Shane Foley
Connector Editor

Sophomore Robert Francis got on the score sheet twice Friday night during a 5-3 win over Penn State.

While it was a high scoring game, the victory was set up from strong goal tending by Kevin Boyle, who stopped 34 pucks Friday night. Penn State actually outshot the River Hawks 37-30, but they still couldn’t get enough goals.

Penn State had many opportunities early. Joe Gambardella got penalized for tripping (only River Hawk penalty in the game) which lead to an early power play for the Nittany Lions. They managed 11 shots in the period, but Boyle and UMass Lowell’s defense kept them out of the net.

On the other side of the ice, UMass Lowell got two goals in the first period. The first came off a nice assist by Adam Chapie. He stole a puck Penn State was trying to clear down ice, and fed it to Francis for his first goal of the game.

“I think I got helped by Chaps (Chapie) on the first goal,” said Francis. “He made a nice move coming to the middle.”

The second goal was scored by captain Zach Kamrass. Chris Maniccia, who had two assists in the game, got his first by wrapping around the net and finding Kamrass who was in front of the goal, ready to score.

“I think UMass Lowell really worked hard in our zone,” said Guy Gadowsky, Penn State Ice Hockey Head Coach.

In the second period, things got close for the River Hawks. Penn State’s Casey Bailey scored with only 17 ticks off the clock. This was answered 1:40 later with a goal from John Edwardh. He was set up by Joe Gambardella, who corralled the puck off the boards in Penn State ice, and then gave a centering pass to Edwardh to make the score 3-1.

This may have been the turning point in the game, seeing as Penn State didn’t score throughout the rest of the period. Francis did get his second goal however, and in stunning fashion.  He was only assisted by Maniccia, who won a faceoff, and immediately passed it behind him to Francis, who fired the puck into the top shelf for the River Hawk’s fourth goal. Nobody else even touched the puck.

UMass Lowell Head Coach Norm Bazin was pleased so see the team get the early lead. “The start helped,” said Coach Bazin. “I thought we shot the puck well.”

Francis’ second goal led Penn State to pull their goalie. In the third period, CJ Smith got a nice goal, off of an assist by Dylan Zink.  However, Penn State didn’t quit. They rattled off 15 shots in the third period, compared to nine by UML. Kevin Boyle, the third “star of the game,” was able to make 13 saves in that period, only giving up two goals to secure the victory.

Overall, it seems as though the River Hawks play best when they get off to a good start. Aside from the Boston College home opener, UMass Lowell has scored in every game in which they have scored first. The only other game they failed to score first in was the 8-4 loss to Michigan.

To Coach Bazin, the good starts are impressive, but he isn’t focusing on them too much. “I think statistically your chances [of winning] go up when you score first,” said Coach Bazin. “I don’t really worry about starts or stats; I worry about the next game.”