Shane Green's OT Game-Winner for Men's Ice Hockey Helps MCLA Complete a Multi-Sport Sweep of Fitchburg State

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – The MCLA Men's Ice Hockey team welcomed Fitchburg State to the Peter W. Foote Vietnam Veterans Memorial Rink for a MASCAC matchup with the Falcons. Following the Men's Basketball 71-67 win over Fitchburg earlier in the day, MCLA was looking for a multi-sport sweep of the Falcons. Shane Green sent the Trailblazer faithful home happy, scoring 30 seconds into the overtime period for a 2-1 OT victory.

THE BASICS:

• Date: Saturday, February 1, 2025
• Score: Fitchburg 1, MCLA 2
• Records: Fitchburg State University Falcons 9-9-1 (MASCAC 5-6-1) | MCLA Trailblazers 3-15-1 (MASCAC 3-8-1)

HIGHLIGHTS

• Fitchburg State opened the scoring when Hunter Dunn redirected a shot from the point by Jack Johansen with just over 12 minutes off the clock. The goal was Dunn's sixth of the season, while assists were awarded to Johansen, his seventh, and Matteo Orme Lynch, his ninth.
• MCLA responded about three and a half minutes later, scoring a power play goal to tie the game at 1-1. Sophomore defenseman Shane Green (Bear, DE / Philadelphia Little Flyers) started the sequence from below the goal line, sending a pass along the boards that eventually found its way to sophomore forward Cade Herrera (Brentwood, CA / Seahawks H.C) along the left boards. Herrera returned the puck to Green, who had moved out to the right side point; Green's wrister from the point was tipped in by sophomore forward Sean Schifferl (Fort Myers, FL / N.H. Monarchs), who was crossing in front of the net. The goal was Schifferl's third on the year, and the assists were the seventh and fourth, respectively, for Green and Herrera.
• Following the one-goal-apiece first period, the teams settled into a defensive struggle. The Trailblazers outshot the Falcons 13-11 in the second period, but Fitchburg had a 19-8 advantage in shots in the third period.
• However, there would only be one shot on the net during the overtime period. The shot was by MCLA's Green 30 seconds into the bonus hockey. After a shot by Fitchburg went wide of the net, sophomore forward Easton Moore (Red Deer, AB / Florida Eels) recovered it below the goal line and took advantage of the open ice the three-on-three OT format provided by sending a tape-to-tape pass ahead to Herrera along the right-side boards. Green then streaked through the neutral zone, and Herrera set up a two-on-one with a defenseman caught in the middle. Herrera's pass to Green allowed him to skate in on the netminder and lift the puck over his glove-side shoulder.
• Sophomore goalie Mathew Gover (Atkinson, NH / East Coast Wizards) recorded 43 saves on 44 shots for the Trailblazers and upped his season record to 3-15-1. Max Macchioni took the tough luck loss, falling to 1-1-0 after stopping 34 of 36 shots.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS

• Shots: Fitchburg 44, MCLA 36
• Saves: Fitchburg 34, MCLA 43
• Faceoffs Won: Fitchburg 27, MCLA 36
• Penalty/Minutes: Fitchburg 2/4:00, MCLA 3/6:00
• Power Plays: Fitchburg 0 for 2, MCLA 1 for 1

UP NEXT:

On Friday, MCLA will be back in action when it travels to Rivier University at the Conway Arena for a MASCAC matchup with the Raiders. The puck will drop at 7:40 p.m.

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