The first period started with the Redmen taking over the puck right out of the gate. Marquette looked hungry in their first game of the season. Several blistering shots at the start couldn’t find the back of the net.
Finally, at 10 minutes in, Andrew Fedrizzi sent a pass sailing down the ice to Sean O’Connor and, with some assistance from Jakob Peterson, scored the first goal of the game during a power play. The Bears tried to answer before the end of the first period, but no dice. Overall, the Redmen were markedly more aggressive with 15 shots on goal, and the Bears with only four.
The first four minutes of the second period had the Redmen shorthanded with few shots on goal. The next Marquette power play saw some promising attempts, but nothing found the back of the net.
With just two minutes to go, the period proved to be more evenly matched than the first. The Redmen held on to their 1-0 lead against the Bears, however, and entered the third period with the advantage.
The Redmen were in need of a little cushion on the scoreboard in the third period. Marquette was dominant in the first period, but struggled to widen their 1-0 lead in the second.
Redmen fans surely felt a jolt when the Bears scored a goal six minutes into the final period. The goal was waved off, though, and Marquette clung to their lead.
Not to worry, Marquette’s Sean O’Connor and Ansel Frost set up a chance for Gaetanno Cammarata to get a shot off. Cammarata secured a more comfortable lead of 2-0 with less than five minutes in the game.
The Bears answered with a goal of their own in short order. The Redmen were still in the lead at 2-1, and less than two minutes to go.
Berkley’s goal was too little, too late, and the Redmen ran down the clock to clinch the win in their season opener. The final score was 2-1, Marquette over Berkley.
The Marquette Redmen Varsity Hockey team will be away against the Utica Eisenhower Eagles on Saturday, November 17th. Pregame starts at 1:00 pm and the game starts at 1:30 pm on Fox Sports Marquette 105.1-99.9.
Listen to a recording of the live broadcast.
