In their final regular season game the Jeffs traveled to Williamstown and beat the Ephs in a tight 3-2 game on Feb. 17. When the two teams met on Saturday, in the first round of the inaugural NESCAC tournament, and the game wasn't nearly as close.
"With the win last week we got the monkey off our back," said Tri-captain Chris Orszulak '01. "We knew we were a better team, and we came out and proved it."
In the first period neither team played well, and the frame was full of poor play. Both teams fell victim to weak passing in the neutral zone, and neither team could convert on their scoring chances.
The Jeffs got on the board first, and it turned out to be all that they needed. Mike Kreger '04 sent a shot towards the Ephs net, and goalie Benjamin Fash was able to make the save, but he could not control the rebound. Justin Pitrack '03 pounced on the loose puck and sent a pass to Kreger, who got the job done this time. The goal came with just over five minutes left in the period, and the Jeffs added their second goal quickly.
Just 72 seconds later the Jeffs scored another pretty goal. Greg Carr '02 sent a pass through the Williams defense, and Darren Reaume '02 finished it off with a nifty backhand shot.
"It was a great feeling ending their season," said Rob Hill '02. "They ended our season last year, so we were able to get our revenge this year."
In the second period neither team capitalized on their chances, failing to score on numerous power play opportunities, and the Jeffs remained on top 2-0.
In the third period the Jeffs had one of their best extended opportunities of the game, but they were unable to convert. Just 3:24 into the period Williams' Daniel Houck was assessed a game misconduct penalty for checking from behind. The Jeffs had a five-minute power play, and while they did have some good chances, they were unable to put the puck past Fash.
The Jeffs continued to apply pressure on the Eph defense for much of the period, and they tallied their final goal with 1:38 left in the game. Pitrack fed Orszulak in front of the net, and Orszulak patiently roofed a backhand shot over a diving Fash. Fash finished the game with 32 saves, and his solid play kept the Ephs in the game.
"The third goal really broke their back," said Orszulak. "For me, there is no better way to finish a career than to shutout Williams and score a goal in my final game at Orr Rink."
Nick Rieser '01 faced 21 Williams shots in the win, and stopped them all. The win was Rieser's third shutout of the season.
In the second round of the tournament the Jeffs will travel to Middlebury College to take on Bowdoin College on Saturday. The Jeffs met the Polar Bears once during the regular season and trounced them 6-1. In the first round of the tournament, the Bears took out Trinity College 4-3 in an overtime decision.
"We don't expect the game to be such a blowout this time," said Hill. "We played a great game last time, and they had an off night, but we still expect to win."
Orszulak agreed and said, "This should be a closer game than last time. Each team will be motivated for the game, but we are a better skating team and should be able to exploit that again."
If the Jeffs get past the Bears in the semifinals they expect to face Middlebury College in the finals. The Panthers have won five NCAA Division III titles in a row from 1995-1999 and are still a very strong team. In their two meetings this year the Panthers have beaten the Jeffs, 1-0 and 6-3.
"If we end up playing Middlebury, we expect to win," said Orszulak. "Our last two wins have given us a lot of momentum and we have been playing well."