As the buzzer rang, ending game two of the Bears’ first home Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference series since 2005 and sending Brown into the quarterfinals, men’s hockey goalie Anthony Borelli ’13 met his teammates with a fist pump and an on-ice celebration.
“I was just elated that we won,” Borelli said. “The team did great ... It feels great for our senior class to leave next year’s team something to strive for.”
Brown (13-12-6, 9-9-6 ECAC) swept Clarkson (9-20-7, 8-11-3) with victories on both Friday and Saturday in a highly physical series. The Bears will move on to face Rensselaer (17-12-5, 12-7-3) next weekend.
Game One: Brown 3, Clarkson 0
Borelli turned in yet another strong performance Friday night, recording 31 saves and his third shutout of the season to give Bruno the lead early in the series.
Late in the first period, Mark Naclerio ’16 took a pass from Matt Lorito ’15, skated around a Clarkson defender and opened the scoring for the Bears on a power-play goal.
In the second frame, Bruno had multiple scoring opportunities but could not find the back of the net. Nick Lappin ’16 hit the crossbar five seconds into the second period. Five minutes later, Lorito fired a shot past Clarkson goalie Greg Lewis, but the puck rolled across the crease and into the corner.
With 13:35 left in the game, Lorito ended the scoring drought on a goal set up by Naclerio and Lappin to put Bruno up 2-0.
“(Naclerio) kicked the puck out to me,” Lorito said. “I was just trying to put it on net. The shot just swept under his pad, and it trickled across the line.”
Clarkson pulled its goalie with 2:22 remaining and went on the power-play at 2:15 to gain a 6-on-4 advantage. But the Golden Knights could not capitalize on the opportunity.
“Our Achilles’ heel has been our penalty kill this year,” said Clarkson Head Coach Casey Jones. “We gave them a little momentum from the power play.”
With 14.7 seconds left, Joey De Concilys ’15 shot the puck from his own zone over a leaping Clarkson defender and into the empty net to seal the victory.
“We are a defensive-minded team,” said Head Coach Brendan Whittet ’94. “We have to be. It starts with (Borelli) and goes through our defensive corps.”
The game was physical from the very beginning, with both teams exchanging big hits throughout the contest.
Game Two: Brown 4, Clarkson 3
Brown came out firing in game two, scoring three goals in the first period on its way to a 4-3 victory over the Golden Knights. Jake Goldberg ’14 led Bruno with two goals, including the game-winner in the second period.
Facing a 4-1 deficit and its season on the line, Clarkson did not make it easy for the Bears in the third period. The Golden Knights outshot Bruno 17-3 in the frame, and Jarrett Burton scored two power-play goals, including one during a five-on-three advantage with 3:19 remaining to tighten the score to 4-3.
“We weren’t playing very well,” Whittet said. “It wasn’t from a lack of effort, I just think (Clarkson) was able to turn it on. We did some things we normally don’t do, in terms of penalties and coverage mistakes.”
Borelli came up big in the last few minutes with two key saves on a late Clarkson power-play, and another after Clarkson pulled its goalie with just over a minute to play.
“It was definitely hectic,” Borelli said. “Give a lot of credit to them. They made it a game for sure.”
Lorito started the onslaught in the first period, tallying his team-high 17th goal of the season on assists from Naclerio and Brandon Pfeil ’16.
Goldberg scored his first goal of the evening just over four minutes later, beating Lewis five-hole on an assist from Garnet Hathaway ’14 and increasing Bruno’s lead to 2-0.
“I saw an opening and tried to shoot it hard,” Goldberg said. “It didn’t really go too hard, but it slipped in, so I’ll take it.”
With 3:32 left in the first, Hathaway forced a Clarkson turnover and brought the puck down the ice on a two-on-one with Dennis Robertson ’14. Hathaway faked a pass, held on to the puck, then eventually made the pass to Robertson, who easily put the puck past a bewildered Lewis.
Goldberg struck again to put Bruno up 4-0 with 6:50 left in the second period on a wrist shot that found the upper right corner of the net. He was assisted by Chris Zaires ’13 and Michael Juola ’14.
“Zaires made a great pass across, and it was an easy goal,” Goldberg said. “All the credit goes to him.”
Whittet was eager to praise Goldberg’s play on Saturday.
“He’s been great all year,” Whittet said. “Ever since he moved back to defense, he’s been a revelation. He’s been consistently one of our top performing defensemen.”
Clarkson took its physical play to a new level in the final seconds. Multiple Golden Knights initiated a large scuffle at the end of the game, which eventually included all players on the ice. The Clarkson players were met with a chorus of jeers from the home crowd as they skated off.
“It was an interesting end, but the ultimate goal was to get a win,” Whittet said. “We won the game and the series, and we’re moving on to bigger and better things.”
The Bears will face RPI on the road next week for a three-game series in the ECAC quarterfinals.
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