WATERVILLE, N.H. – In a conference match up against Salve Regina, Plymouth came close to losing the game and their hopes for a playoff berth. A last second goal in regulation by freshman Dennis Kane helped the Panthers escape with a 5-5 tie at the Ice Arena. Sophomore Kyle Poirier led Plymouth State in Sunday’s game with two power play goals and an assist, while freshman Matt Gotts and sophomore Max Wernert also chipped in a goal a piece, while junior Captain Bryan Croft added two assists. Plymouth opened up the game with a 2-0 lead, but Salve Regina answered back with two goals to close out the first period, and opened up scoring the second period with a third to take a 3-2 lead. The teams would exchange goals early in the second period and again midway through the third, keeping Salve Regina up 5-4 as time ran down. Plymouth was eleven seconds away from defeat when Kane scored the tying goal, sending the game into overtime. Neither team could come up with a goal in the extra frame, and the game ended tied at 5. Kane’s last-second goal saved Plymouth State from losing their second straight game, and also kept them in the running for the eight spot in the ECAC Northeast Conference with two conference games remaining. Salve Regina, 7-5-1 in the ECAC Northeast, is ranked seventh. Chris Hyson (3-6-1) replaced Kyle VanDingstee in the net for Plymouth State, and made 39 saves for the Panthers. On the other end, senior Chris Burns (7-8-1) made 34 stops for Salve Regina. Two power play goals and a 4-0 run by Fitchburg during the second and third periods proved too much for Plymouth State College as the tenth-ranked Panthers fell to third-ranked Fitchburg State, 5-2 in an ECAC Division III Northeast Conference Game last Saturday at the Ice Arena. Fitchburg got the scoring started late in the first period when senior Dan Goulet scored the game’s first goal midway through the period, just as Plymouth was returning to full strength following a two-minute penalty. Dennis Kane would even it up minutes later after putting his thirteenth goal of the season from a pass by Matt Gotts, his first career assist, with just over four minutes to play in the first period. Plymouth and Fitchburg remained deadlocked until late in the second period, when Fitchburg finally pulled away. Taking advantage of Plymouth penalties, Fitchburg notched two power play goals, one by senior Chris McNeil with 3:25 remaining, and the second by sophomore Chad Fletcher with under half a minute to go, giving Fitchburg a 3-1 lead heading into the final period. Fitchburg continued their run near the middle of the third period. Goulet put in his second goal of the game just over seven minutes into the third to make it 4-1 Fitchburg, then sophomore Robert Zapf picked up an empty netter two minutes later to make it 5-1. The score was still 5-1 with five minutes to go when Plymouth began to fight back. Junior Matt Toutain put one past Fitchburg Captain/goalie Jason Holt off another assist by Gotts to make it 5-2, then Plymouth got its best chance of the game when two Fitchburg players were slapped with penalties, giving Plymouth a five on four advantage for over three minutes. Despite several attempts, Fitchburg’s Holt stood like a wall, deflecting Plymouth shots even after losing his stick during one drive against the Fitchburg net. In the end, Plymouth was unable to narrow the gap any, and Fitchburg came away with the victory. Plymouth finished 0-7 on the power play. Freshman goalie Kyle VanDingstee (1-3-0), Plymouth State’s third starter in goal this season, stopped 24 of 29 shots before leaving after giving up Fitchburg’s fifth goal of the game. Chris Hyson finished out the game, stopping all five shots he faced. Fitchburg’s Holt (12-7-1) stopped 25 of Plymouth’s 27 shots in the winning effort. Plymouth State, 3-8-3 in the ECAC Northeast and 5-11-4 overall, will play Worcester State at home Saturday before closing out their regular season next Tuesday at Western New England. The Panthers need to win both conference games in order to have a chance at the final playoff berth.
Plymouth State University
Thursday, June 26, 2025