Box Score

LOWELL, Mass. – Sophomore and reigning Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Northeast Player of the Week Sean Fleming (Easthampton, N.J.) racked up a goal and an assist as the Nichols College men's ice hockey team raced out to a 4-0 and held on to defeat Wentworth 5-3 in a key conference matchup Tuesday night at Tsongas Arena.

Senior captain Greg Strootman (Aston, Pa.) picked up a goal and an assist – giving him eight points (7-1-8) in his last five games – as the Bison swept the season series from the defending conference champions and moved to 15-5-2 (8-2-1 ECAC Northeast) with the win. Freshman Mike Weaver (Wakefield, Mass.) added his seventh in his return to the lineup while classmate Sean Swansen (Salem, N.H.) and junior Mike Schwartz (Long Beach, N.Y.) also scored for Nichols.

The Leopards saw their five-game win streak and six-game unbeaten streak come to an end, falling to 9-11-2 (7-4-0 ECAC Northeast). They are 0-3-1 in their last four meetings with the Bison, dating back to last season.

Nichols wasted little time scoring as Weaver capitalized on a turnover and went in alone at the 2:54 mark. The Bison upped their lead to 2-0 at 6:36 when junior Kyle Shapiro (Ambler, Pa.) tipped a pass to Swansen, who scored a shorthanded goal.

At the 16:44 mark, Nichols increased its lead to 3-0 with a power-play goal from Fleming, which was assisted by Strootman and junior Chris Gularte (Salinas, Calif.). After one period the Bison outshot the Leopards by a 12-7 margin.

The Bison extended their lead to 4-0 just 2:02 into the second when sophomore Steve Lecey (Cedarburg, Wis.) fed Swartz for his fourth goal of the season. That goal chased Leopard starter Alex Peck (Kirkland, Que.) from the game in favor of sophomore Joel Miller (Calgary, Alta.).

The Leopards began their comeback attempt at 7:14 when junior Jordan Bourgoje (Spruce Grove, Alta.) scored from senior Andrew Yarber (Livonia, Mich.) and sophomore Jake Diamond (Lakewood, Colo.). Just 37 seconds later, junior Kevin Crowe (Galloway, N.J.) scored from freshman Joe Mottiqua (Cecil, Pa.) and junior Mike Domsodi (Kirkland, Que.) to cut the lead in half. Wentworth had a 12-4 shot advantage in the second period.

With each team down a man on matching penalties at 15:02 of the third, Nichols was called for a holding penalty. Just seven seconds into the 4-on-3 situation, Yarber scored off a feed from freshman Jake Flynn (Lino Lakes, Minn.) to make it a 4-3 game.

Nichols had chances to increase its lead and Wentworth had chances to tie the game. With 48 seconds left, Miller was pulled for an extra skater, however the Bison iced the game with 10 second left on an empty-net tally from Strootman. Senior and fellow captain Josh DeLoach (Clearwater, Fla.) was credited with the lone assist.

Sophomore Alex Larson (Madison, Ala.) made 28 saves to improve to 12-5-2 on the year and 3-0-0 in his last four starts. Peck made nine saves in 22:04 of work while Miller stopped all 11 shots he faced in 37:18.

Nichols returns to action on Saturday when it travels to Portsmouth, R.I. to face Salve Regina at 7:05 p.m. Wentworth plays at Becker Saturday at 12:50 p.m.

Contributions from Wentworth sports information