Murphy's Late Goal Lifts MCLA Past Men's Ice Hockey, 3-2

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. – Quinn Murphy scored with 54 seconds remaining to lift the MCLA men's ice hockey team past Framingham State 3-2 in MASCAC action Saturday afternoon at Framingham.

THE BASICS:

• Score: MCLA 3, Framingham State 2
• Location: Framingham, Mass.
• Records: MCLA (2-5-2, 1-2-1 MASCAC), Framingham State (3-6-0, 1-4-0 MASCAC)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• First Period: Michael Kennedy opened the scoring at 7:05, assisted by Grig Kaagan, to give the Rams a 1-0 lead. Brent Scott extended the advantage to 2-0 at 14:43 with helpers from Scott Bugarin and Sam Larkin. MCLA cut into the deficit late in the period when Cade Herrera scored on the power play at 18:36 to make it 2-1 heading into intermission.
• Second Period: Charles Vukovic tied the game at 2-2 with an unassisted goal at 6:25. Despite outshooting Framingham State 12-9 in the period, neither team could break the deadlock.
• Third Period: Both teams traded power-play opportunities in a tightly contested final frame. Murphy finally broke through with the game-winner at 19:05, assisted by Herrera and Sean Schifferl, with the Rams unable to generate a response in the final minute.

INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• Benjamin O'Keefe: Made 30 saves on 33 shots in the loss.
• Brent Scott: Scored a goal and led the Rams with five shots on goal.
• Rocco Stoltz: Stopped 30 of 32 shots to earn the win for MCLA.
• Scott Bugarin: Recorded an assist and won six of 18 faceoffs.
• Team Stats: The teams were evenly matched, with Framingham State outshooting MCLA 32-33. The Rams went 0-for-5 on the power play, while the Trailblazers converted 1-of-3 opportunities.

UP NEXT: The Rams return to action after the holiday break when they host Roger Williams on January 3 at 8:50 p.m.