By: Analisa Vizzoni
The Blue Hens traveled five hours up to Syracuse this weekend. After splitting this weekend’s series, the University of Delaware ended on a high note, winning Saturday’s game. They played two very close, intense games this weekend.
Friday night the puck dropped at 6:30 p.m. in the Tennity Ice Arena. The first period was one of fast play and a lot of opportunity for both teams. The Blue Hens made a couple of great plays in front of Orange’s net, but they were denied every time. The first period ended with a 0-0 score, and the second period was underway. UD started the period with a flurry of shots on goal that were all blocked by Syracuse’s goalie. With the clock having about 14 minutes left on the clock, SU scored two goals in a row, making the score 2-0. There were a few penalties called on both teams, but there was still no score for the Hens at the end of the second period.
With a few minutes into the third period, UD was on a power play. Cole Zucker scored the first Blue Hen goal of the night on the power play, making the score 2-1. The intensity was high in the third period. There was a lot of movement on the ice, and plenty of opportunity for both teams. Delaware was playing a great offensive game throughout the latter part of the period. Syracuse scored on a power play with a minute and 37 seconds left to play. The Hens pulled goalie off the ice, Dylan Troiano, to give themselves an offensive advantage. With a minute and 12 seconds left in the period, John Redgate scores, making the score 3-2. The Blue Hens fell to Syracuse, but were up for the challenge of playing them again Saturday night.
Saturday night’s game started off in full swing. Syracuse scored the first goal of the night on a power play about six minutes into the first period. There was a lot of movement on the ice, and SU struggled to put away any more goals on their power play. With a few good minutes of play and a lot of opportunities in front of Orange’s net, UD’s Alex Guerere scores off a redirect with 9 minutes and 7 seconds left in the period. The score is all tied up, 1-1! There was a lot of heat on the ice from the players. With 7 minutes left in the period, Syracuse scores off of another power play goal, but two minutes later, with one of their men in the box, Delaware’s Nick Ustaski launched a slapshot and scored to make the score 2-2. Less than thirty seconds later, Andrew Corapi scores the third Blue Hen goal of the night, to put us in the lead! There was a lot of tension on the ice. The Blue Hens were controlling both the offense and the defense. For the last minute of play, Orange was playing on a power play that will continue into the third period. The period ended with the score being 3-2 UD, and shots on goal favoring Delaware 14-10.
After a long delay due to Zamboni issues, the second period finally started. Both teams working hard on the ice. With another UD player in the box, Syracuse was on power play. They took quite a few shots on goal, but were shut down by our defense or denied at the net by Dylan Troiano. There was a lot of action up and down the ice, and Syracuse scored with 9 minutes and 28 seconds left in the period, tying the game 3-3. Both teams were putting up a great offensive game to try and gain the upper hand. The energy was high on the ice. With about two minutes left in the period, Syracuse scored again, making the score of the game 4-3, and that’s how the period ended. However, UD was leading the game with shots on goal.
With the third period underway, the Blue Hens came in ready to take the game. John Redgate had a beautiful backhand shot on goal, but was denied at the net. UD played strong both offensively and defensively. About halfway into the period, there was two Delaware players in the box, but our defense remained strong. Syracuse had a player in the box, and Cole Zucker scored with 9 minutes and 57 seconds left on the clock to tie up the game! There was a lot of movement on the ice, and there both teams were trying to take the lead. With a turnover at the blue line, Vinny Zingarelli took the puck to the goal to score the winning goal of the night, making the score 5-4 with 6 minutes and 37 seconds left in the game! With both teams fighting hard the last part of the period, the Blue Hens won the game!
I was able to catch up with a few of the players after their win on Saturday night. John Redgate said that after the loss on Friday, “We went over aspects of our game that we needed to improve on in order to be successful. Our guys were definitely more focused and motivated to win after losing a few [games] in a row.” Reflecting on the win, Andrew Corapi said, “After a tough loss Friday, we knew how important it was to come away with a win tonight. You never want to go on the road for a weekend and lose two games. The first two periods was full of back and forth hockey, which Syracuse led going into the third. Fortunately, we scored two goals late in the game and came away with a big two points.” I also spoke with captain, Leo Skehan, about how they are going to prepare for this upcoming weekend after having their first full weekend series away. He said, “We’re going to battle hard in practice early in the week, then fine tune some things later in the week to get ready to take care of business this weekend.”
Delaware will be back on their own stomping ground on Friday October 23rd, at 7:00 p.m. at the Fred Rust Arena as they take on West Chester University. It will also be our Military Night! Come on out to support your fellow Blue Hens!
