NEW LONDON, CT -- The Williams College Men's Hockey Team (4-0-2) scored three goals in the second period on Saturday afternoon en route to another 4-1 win, this time over NESCAC opponent Connecticut College (1-4-0).
Mike Brofft '13, Matt Doyle '14, and Evan Dugdale '13 all lit the lamp in the second frame to give the Ephs a commanding 3-0 lead.
Nick Anderson '14 added the fourth Williams goal on an Eph power play with less than five minutes remaining in the game, giving him three scores in the last two games.
The Eph offense put together a strong effort in the second period, but in the game's first twenty minutes neither side could find the back of the net. In a hard-fought first period, Williams managed ten shots on net, but they were all denied by Camel goalie Mike Petchonka. On the other end of the ice, goaltender Ryan Purdy '12 and the Eph defense held strong once again, limiting the Connecticut College attack to only five shots.
The Williams attack finally found its groove early in the second period with a goal from its power play unit. Making full use of the man-advantage, Brofft deposited his first goal of the season to give the Ephs the 1-0 lead. Dugdale contributed the assist.
Picking up the offensive momentum, the Ephs built on their lead less than a minute later when Doyle made a nice play with his stick to chip in a rebound attempt after a shot from forward Craig Kitto '15, extending the Eph lead to 2-0.
Williams widened the margin to 3-0 five minutes into the period on a nice individual effort from Evan Dugdale. With the Ephs on the penalty kill, Dugdale took advantage of a loose puck in the defensive zone, broke free on the breakaway, and beat the Mule goaltender for the shorthanded score. Dugdale's score was the second shorthanded goal in two games for the Ephs.
After the game, Head Coach Bill Kangas praised his team's inspired play in the second frame. "We played with a lot of energy in the second period, and after that first goal the guys were able to really build off that," noted Kangas.
Connecticut College responded late in the second period with a goal from defenseman Keith Veronesi to cut the deficit to 3-1 heading into the third period.
The Williams defense held strong, however, as Purdy stopped seven shots in the final frame to quell any attempt of a Camel comeback. Anderson sealed the victory with another power play goal at the fifteen-minute mark to put the Ephs up 4-1. Eph defensemen Justin Troiani '12 and Stephen Maier '12 contributed the assists.
Both goalies finished the day with 21 saves. Purdy faced 22 shots from the Mules in 60 minutes of play, while Petchonka faced 25 Eph shots in 60 minutes of play.
With the victory, the Ephs remain the only undefeated team in the NESCAC and sit behind only Middlebury and Amherst in the conference standings. Williams will have a week off before hitting the road for another pair of NESCAC games next weekend. The Ephs will battle their achrivals the Lord Jeffs in an anticipated matchup on Friday night at 7 PM, then travel to Hamilton on Saturday to take on the Continentals at 3 PM.
