In the extra frame, Salem State had the final say, grabbing the only shot of the overtime period to seal the victory early. The Vikings outshot the Falcons by a slim 38-35 margin, while senior captain Damen Nisula (Gardner, Mass.) earned Tournament MVP honors.
Freshman Sam Avoine (Ste-Perpetue, Que./Laconia Leafs) stood toe-to-toe with Vikings goalie, Robert Vorse, throughout the contest, turning away 34 shots over his complete game effort.
Salem State senior Brett Noll (Sandwich, Mass./Sandwich) opened the scoring, breaking a 49:17 scoring drought midway through the third period. The veteran defensemen settled nicely right in front of the crease and redirected freshman Nick Lampson’s (Groton, Mass.) blast from outside for his fourth score of the year.
The Falcons did not quit however as they continued pursue a dramatic comeback. With only 0:50 remaining in regulation and the Falcons on the power-play, Fitchburg State struck home, knotting the score at 1-1 on Thomas McAleer’s (East Islip, N.Y) 12th goal of the season. McAleer gave the Falcons some offensive momentum, grabbing rebounds from Chris Riggs (Sewell, N.J.) and Chris Costigan (Salem, N.H.) for a loose-puck goal at the 19:10 mark.
Fitchburg State concludes a very successful 2009-10 season with the MASCAC regular season championship and an overall record of 19-6-1 (14-4-0 MASCAC). Salem State ends its campaign with a 15-8-4 mark and an 11-3-4 clip in the MASCAC.
Avoine was also selected as Salem Sate College's "Athlete of the week" 2/22/2010 -- Posted 1-0-1 mark with 1.50 GAA and .944 saves percentage for Vikings, including 27 stops in 2-2 tie at Westfield State to go with 24 saves in 9-2 triumph over Framingham State.
