Springfield, Mass. (March 2, 2024) – The Golden Bears hosted the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Engineers on Saturday afternoon in Golden Bear Stadium. The Golden Bears were coming off a loss and looking to bounce back. The Golden Bears jumped to a 4-0 lead after a quarter of play. MIT scored two quick goals to start the second; however, WNE answered with a 6-2 run to end the first half up 10-3. The second half saw the Golden Bears outscore the Engineers 6-5 to pick up the win, 16-8. Dylan Hanley led the team with five total points (two goals and three assists). Jack Houlden and Jacob Roy both had four total points (three goals and one assist). 

Result:

• Western New England: 2-1 (0-0)
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology: 1-1 (0-0)

How it Happened:

The Golden Bears and goalie Carter Randall hosted goalie David Vapnek and the MIT Engineers on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Bears entered the game looking to get back in the win column after losing to St. Lawrence University almost a week ago. The Golden Bears got to work early after a Chris Catuosco faceoff victory led to Jacob Roy finding Dylan Hanley for the opening goal 54 seconds into the game. The Golden Bears would get two more within the span of 52 seconds, as Jacob Roy netted the first with 7:54 left in the opening quarter, and Thomas Labbe scored on the man-up opportunity after MIT was called for a penalty. Joseph Contino was the player who assisted Labbe on the goal. Dylan Hanley capped off the first quarter with a goal with 1:22 left in the first quarter. Carter Randall and the Golden Bear defense kept the Engineers' offense quiet in the first quarter, giving up no goals. Randall made three saves during the opening quarter. The Golden Bears led 4-0 after one.

The second quarter saw the Engineers fly out of the gate with two goals in the opening 1:08 of play. Nick Stiles would grab the first Engineers goal after picking up a ground ball, going down the field, and sending the ball into the net. Heath Nilsen had the second goal for the Engineers, and MIT was trailing 4-2. After a Carter Randall save, the Golden Bears cleared the ball and eventually got it to Zachary Mein, who netted the fifth Golden Bear goal of the day. Just over two minutes later, MIT would get back to within two goals, courtesy of a Zach Bleil goal, assisted by Bennett Stankovits. After that, the rest of the first half was all WNE. The Golden Bears would end the first half on a 5-0 scoring run. It started with Jack Houlden netting a goal with 9:14 left in the half. Then, Jacob Roy scored 27 seconds later. With 3:03 left in the half, Dylan Hanley found Jack Houlden for another Golden Bear goal. Max Rudgers kept the momentum with the Golden Bears with a goal with 1:22 left in the half. To finish up the scoring in the first half for the Golden Bears, Nicholas Campagnone sent a shot that crashed into the back of the net after getting the pass from Dylan Hanley. The Engineers were called for two penalties right before the end of the half. The Golden Bears would start the second half with a two-man-up opportunity. After the first half, the Golden Bears led in shots 27-18, faceoffs won 10-5, and ground balls 20-12. The Golden Bears were 10-10 on clears, and the Engineers were 6-7. Carter Randall had six saves in the first, and David Vapnek had ten. The Golden Bears led 10-3 at the halftime break.

The Golden Bears started with the ball to start the second half. Zachary Mein would net the sixth Golden Bear goal in a row 7:50 into the second half. Brian Madden had the assist. Jack Houlden would make it seven Golden Bear goals in a row after getting the assist from Griffin LaRochelle. MIT would fight back with a goal from Bennett Stankovits, assisted by Garrett Campagna, and a goal from Ashton Axe. That pushed the score to 12-5. The Golden Bears answered via a Thomas Labbe goal, assisted by Joseph Bussinelli, and a James Wrynn goal. Garrett Campagna would get the final goal of the third quarter for the Engineers with 44 seconds left in the quarter. After three quarters of play, the Golden Bears had a 14-6 lead against the Engineers. 

The final quarter of the game saw the Engineers get the opening goal. Garrett Campagna netted the goal off the assist from Heath Nilsen. Jacob Roy and Brian Madden would net the final two goals of the game for the Golden Bears. Hanley assisted Roy on Roy's goal with 7:04 left in the game. Jack Houlden assisted Brian Madden's goal with 6:07 left in the game. After a Golden Bear penalty, the Engineers would make the most of the man-up opportunity when Heath Nilsen got a pass from Zach Bleil and scored a goal with 1:29 left in the game. That would be the final goal of the game. After sixty minutes of game time, the Golden Bears got the win. The Golden Bears had more shots, 42-38, more ground balls picked up, 32-25, and more faceoffs won 18-9. The Engineers had more saves, 16-11. The Golden Bears were 24-24 in clear attempts, and the Engineers were 18-20. The Golden Bears picked up their second victory of the year, 16-8.

Inside The Crease:

• The Golden Bears hosted the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Engineers on Saturday.
• Jack Houlden and Jacob Roy both led the team with three goals, and each had an assist.
• Dylan Hanley led the team with five total points, which included two goals and three assists.
• Garrett Campagna and Heath Nilsen both led the Engineers in points, with three each (two goals and an assist for each).
• Carter Randall made eleven saves for the Golden Bears.
• Michael Marinello made sixteen saves for the Saints.
• Chris Catuosco was 16-24 from the faceoff circle.
• The Golden Bears picked up their second win of the year by a score of 16-8.

Up Next:

• The Golden Bears will travel to Maine for a showdown with the Bowdoin College Polar Bears on Wednesday, March 6, at 5:30 pm.
• The Engineers will return home to Roberts Field to host the Endicott College Gulls. They will play on Wednesday, March 6, at 4:00 pm.