The UMass Boston men’s hockey team hosted the Southern Maine Huskies for a Little East Conference match-up Friday, resulting in a 3-2 Beacons win followed by a season-ending 5-4 loss.
The first match Friday, Feb. 21 saw the Beacons dominating the offense with 39 shots on the goal, but the first point came from the Huskies in the second period. The Beacons soon caught on, and senior Jazz Kristov netted the equalizer, assisted by star freshman Michael Lynch and veteran Evan Googins. That goal did wonders for the Beacons, and they got their momentum back when sophomore Jack Mortson secured a 2-1 score with his own goal, just three minutes after Kristov’s.
The third half was intense. The Beacons wanted to hold onto their lead while the Huskies hoped for an equalizer. This desperation led the Huskies to pull their goalkeeper, giving junior Jude Kurtas a clear long shot to the Huskies’ empty nest and bringing the team up to a 3-1.
With almost a minute remaining on the clock, the Huskies netted a goal and narrowed the Beacons’ lead. However, that was the last time the Huskies scored, as senior goalie Tyler Bost and the Beacons’ defense stood strong. Even though the Huskies got the last goal, the Beacons got the last word.
Senior Ryan Leonard said, “They kept it a tight game. The boys were playing really hard, getting pucks deep … The guys had a little talk in the locker room and came together to secure the win.”
Their match the next day saw the Beacons fired up, and just 2:33 minutes into the game, senior Kevin Sadovski netted the puck, securing them a 1-0 lead. Kristov proceeded to double the lead with almost a minute left, backed by an assist from Kurtas.
The Huskies retaliated with two goals as they leveled the ice with an aggressive power play of their own. The Huskies were soon leading in the second half. Captain Koyle Bankauskas scored for Southern Maine with the help of Tyler Drummond and Lynch.
The Huskies were quick to regain their lead and capitalized on the momentum, bringing their lead to 5-3. Sophomore Chris Repmann successfully narrowed their lead to just one point, but the clock wasn’t in their favor, and they ran out of time to secure a tie.
Even though the team’s journey has come to an end, this season saw a lot of highs and lows. Compared to last season, the team came back stronger and steadier under Head Coach Peter Belisle. They attacked more, and with Bost holding down the fort for them, they seemed more confident. The new talent recruited by Belisle proved to be strategically useful to the overall outcome of the season. Hopefully, the next season brings a lot more out of this team.
