Ephs battle Castleton to OT for second time in a week, settle for 3-3 draw
Andrew Lepore '10, Octavian Jordan '10
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. - For the second time in eight days three periods proved to be not enough time for the Williams College men's hockey team and Castleton State to decide the victor; however, the debate could not be settled in the five minute overtime either, and the two teams had to settle for a 3-3 draw Saturday.
Nonetheless, the tie comes against a Spartan team which was just coming off a victory over NESCAC powerhouse Middlebury, and brings the Ephs to 6-3-1 (2-0 NESCAC). While Castleton State, who had previously defeated the Ephs 1-0 in last weeks overtime bout and had won five of their last seven coming in, improve to 6-6-1.
"We knew it was going to be tough, especially coming off of last nights game," said Eph coach Bill Kangas, "It's a bit disappointing because we had a few mistakes and missed assignments which allowed them to even the score, but I think we saw what we can do this weekend."
The Ephs had previously defeated Skidmore 4-0 in a conference showdown Friday night.
Offensively, the Ephs were led by the two scores of Octavian Jordan and the two assists of Alex Smigelski, while Brett Haraguchi made it three straight games with a tally for the Ephs. And while the Williams defense did surrender three scores, they continued to play at a high level and were anchored by goalkeeper Marc Pulde (20 saves).
Castleton used good puck movement in the first period to take an early advantage, when Steven Culbertson fed teammate Jeremy Hilliard in front of the net to give the Spartans the 1-0 lead only 4:39 into the game. However, Williams answered right back just 3:30 later, when Smigelski corralled a loose puck behind the Spartan net and fed a posting up Jordan, who promptly pushed it past Castleton keeper Seth McNairy (13 saves).
Castleton came out throwing their weight around in the second period, but the Ephs weathered the storm and countered when Haraguchi navigated a sea of Spartan defenders and slipped it into the net to give the Ephs the 2-1 advantage eight minutes into the period. But, in what proved to be the theme of the match, Castleton answered, this time with just 1:26 remaining, and the two teams went into the intermission locked at 2-2.
Octavian Jordan notched his second score of the contest five minutes into the third period, when he slapped in a faceoff richochet to give the Ephs the 3-2 lead. However, the Spartans responded once again. This time off the stick of Stuart Stefan with just over five minutes remaining.
Neither team could muster much offense in the games extra minutes, as the defenses held the offenses to a paltry one shot a piece in the overtime and preserved the stalemate.
The Ephs will look to duplicate Castleton's success against Middlebury when the travel to face-off next Tuesday, January 13th. The Panthers, after starting the season with six consecutive wins, have dropped three of their last five and sit at 8-3 overall. The game is scheduled for a 7:00 PM start.
