MILTON, Mass. (November 16, 2024) – WNE traveled to Milton, Massachusetts, for another showdown with No. 8 Curry College. The Golden Bears would see Nolan Dawson and Jordie Morgan net goals, but the team would fall to the Colonels by a score of 4-2.

Records:

Western New England: 1-5-0 (0-4-0)

Curry College: 5-1-0 (3-1-0)

How it Happened:

Anthony Aureliano and Shane Soderwall led the Golden Bears and Colonels out for the second day in a row, respectively. The Golden Bears tried to flip the script from the previous day. They had the first two shots of the game. Both had to be saved by Soderwall. Curry College then turned around and had the next five shots, with the final shot of that run being a goal from Max Lundgren. Lundgren would get the puck at the bottom-left corner of the WNE defensive zone and would send a wrist shot just past the WNE goalie. Curry College led 1-0 3:51 into the game. The Golden Bears would hold the Colonels to just that goal in the first period of play. The Colonels would have chances, though. They had six shots in a row after the goal and a power play, which saw three shots saved by Aureliano and a WNE shorthanded shot saved by Soderwall. The Colonels kept the pressure on the Golden Bears with five of the next seven shots. Then, the Colonels had ten shots to finish the opening period of play. They had six shots on goal, and Aureliano saved each one. As much as the Colonels pressured the Golden Bear defense, they would not break through after that early opening goal, and the teams entered the first intermission with Curry College leading 1-0. The Colonels led the stats with more shots, 28-5, shots on goal, 20-4, and faceoffs won 11-9. The Golden Bears had more saves, 19-4, and blocked shots, 3-1.

The second period of play saw the Colonels and Golden Bears battle for most of the period before the Colonels extended their lead at the end, just before the second intermission. The Colonels did not hesitate to pressure the Golden Bears more in the second period of play. They had five of the first seven shots of the second. Each shot had to be saved by Aureliano. Then, the Golden Bears earned a power play chance. Each team had a shot on goal during the WNE power play, and both goalies had a save. The teams would trade shots for a couple of minutes after the Colonels' penalty time expired. Then, Curry College had four shots in a row before WNE was called for a penalty. The Colonels had two shots on that power play before the Golden Bears were called for another penalty, and the Colonels had a 5-on-3 opportunity. Curry College had three shots during the 5-on-3 chance and two shots after that, but Aureliano and the WNE defense kept the WNE deficit at one. The teams kept battling after that until Eelis Laaksonen found the back of the WNE net to double the Colonels' lead. Laaksonen picked up the loose puck in front of the WNE goalie and sent the puck into the top corner of the goal to give the Colonels the 2-0 lead with 1:16 left in the second. The Colonels had three more shots to finish the middle period of play. The second of those shots extended the lead to three for Curry College. Grady Friedman got the puck on the left side of the WNE defensive zone, skated into the middle of the WNE defensive zone, and sent a quick shot into the WNE net. Curry College led 3-0 with 49 seconds left in the second. That is how the second concluded. Curry College led in shots 23-6, shots on goal 19-5, and faceoffs won 14-7. WNE had more blocked shots, 4-1, and saves 17-5.

The final period of play saw Curry College extend their lead, but the Golden Bears would rally at the end. Curry College started the third by not backing off the pressure on WNE. They started the third with eight consecutive shots followed by earning a power play chance. They then had four shots in a row on the power play. They would have one more after that to start the third with thirteen shots in a row. WNE then earned a power play and three shots, with Soderwall having to save two and doing just that. The Colonels also had a shorthanded shot saved by Aureliano. The Colonels earned another power play chance shortly after. WNE had a shot saved by Soderwall, and then the Colonels had two shots but could not get a fourth goal. Then, after a WNE shot saved by Soderwall, Eelis Laaksonen struck again. Laaksonen skated from one side of the ice to the other and sent a shot past the WNE goalie to give Curry College a 4-0 lead with 6:45 left in the game. The Golden Bears would rally, though. The Colonels had the next six shots, but both teams would get a penalty called on them and during the 4-on-4 action, Matthew Dougherty and Nolan Dawson skated down the ice on a 2-on-1 chance. Dougherty found Dawson with a cross-ice pass and Dawson sent it into the back of the net. The Colonels now led 4-1 with 1:45 left in the contest. The Golden Bears did not stop there. They had a power play chance given to them soon after the goal, and after three shorthanded shots from the Colonels, Brayden Patricia had a shot saved by Soderwall. Patricia got the puck back and sent it to Jimmy Mettler, who fed a pass to Jordie Morgan, who scored. The Golden Bears trailed 4-2 with twelve seconds left. The game concluded shortly after, and WNE lost 4-2. The final stats saw Curry College leading in shots 76-17, shots on goal 55-16, and faceoff wins 35-29. The Golden Bears had more saves, 51-14, and blocked shots 9-3.

Coach's Corner:

Head coach Mike Young was asked for a comment on the game. "We showed a lot of fight and played until the final buzzer which says a lot about the character of the group. We started our conference play with two really difficult opponents, but the CNE doesn't really get any easier so we have to press on and continue to get better," Young stated.

Inside the Crease:

• The Golden Bears traveled to Milton, Massachusetts, to play the Colonels on Saturday.
• 1st 3:51 – Max Lundgren scored an unassisted goal to give the Colonels an early 1-0 lead.
• 2nd 18:44 – Eelis Laaksonen doubled the Colonels' lead with an unassisted goal to make the score 2-0, Colonels.
• 2nd 19:10.2 – Grady Friedman gave the Colonels a three-goal lead with an unassisted goal. The Colonels led 3-0.
• 3rd 13:15 – Eelis Laaksonen scored an unassisted goal to give the Colonels a 4-0 lead.
• 3rd 18:15 – Nolan Dawson scored for the Golden Bears off an assist from Matthew Dougherty. The Colonels led 4-1.
• 3rd 19:47.9 – Jordie Morgan scored off assists by Jimmy Mettler and Brayden Patricia. The Golden Bears led 4-2.
• Anthony Aureliano made 51 saves for the Golden Bears.
• Shane Soderwall made 14 saves to earn the Colonels the win.
• The Colonels beat the Golden Bears 4-2.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The Golden Bears will travel to Allied Veterans Arena in Boston, Massachusetts, for a conference clash with Wentworth Institute of Technology on Friday, November 22, 2024, at 6:00 PM.
• The Colonels will host Nichols College on Friday, November 22, 2024, at 7:00 PM.