Box Score
GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Senior attackman Chase Stewart (Downingtown, PA/Downingtown) netted his second hat trick of the season, including the game winner early in the third quarter to guide No. 3 Gettysburg past No. 2 Middlebury in non-conference action Wednesday afternoon at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium. His man-up goal with five minutes to play in the game sealed the victory for the Bullets, which have now won two in a row over the Panthers.
Gettysburg (5-0) junior goaltender Pat Vaughan (Cockeysville, MD/Loyola-Blakefield) made eight stops while allowing just four goals to pick up his fifth win of the season. His Centennial Conference-best goals against average now stands at 3.07. Middlebury (2-1) got one goal each from four different players as it fell behind early and was forced to attempt a comeback.
The Bullets scored three times in the game's first 4:44. Senior attackman Evan Gallant (Lutherville, MD/Loyola-Blakefield) opened the scoring just 1:30 into the game on an assist from classmate Brian Pryor (Dallas, Texas/St. Mark's). Stewart and senior midfielder T.J. Liberto (Arnold, MD/St. Mary's) also scored in the opening flurry.
The Panthers pulled within one by the end of the first quarter though, with goals from senior midfielders Travis Meyer and Jeff Pello. An even second quarter saw Gettysburg go up by two scores on a strike from junior Jared Harriman (Yarmouth, ME/Yarmouth) with 9:27 to go before halftime, but the home squad could not shake Middlebury. Sophomore midfielder Frank Granara closed the gap to one at 4-3 just 2:20 later, and that was the score at the intermission.
Coming out of the locker room, Gettysburg controlled the opening faceoff. Senior Chris Renzi (Fairport, NY/Fairport), who won 10-of-15 faceoffs and collected a game-high eight ground balls, won the draw and scooped up the ground ball, driving into the Panthers' end. Just 57 seconds in, Stewart struck with the game winner. Less than two minutes later, Middlebury's Jim Cabrera closed the deficit to one goal for the third time in the game, but the team would never get any closer.
Senior attackman Jonathan Sisto appeared to have the game-tying goal that would have made it 5-5 with 5:25 left in the third period. He fired a hard shot into the ground, trying to bounce it into the net, but the angle was just off. His shot rung off the underside of the crossbar, and Vaughan picked up the ground ball, leading to a breakout the other way. The Bullets controlled possession for the next minute-and-a-half. A shot by junior midfielder J.R. Parker (Summit, NJ/Summit) sailed wide, but Gettysburg retained control. Only 36 seconds later, junior attackman Greg Montgomery (Asheville, NC/St. Andrew's School [DE]) turned the momentum decidedly in favor of the Bullets with his third goal of the season. The home team played a possession game and picked its spots carefully the rest of the way, resulting in Stewart's third goal.
Gettysburg will continue its five-game home stand on Saturday, kicking of the Centennial Conference slate with a 1 p.m. contest against Swarthmore.
| Score by Quarter |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
- |
F |
| No. 2 Middlebury |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
- |
4 |
| No. 3 Gettysburg |
3 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
- |
7 |
Goals:
Middlebury: Cabrera 1, Granara 1, Meyer 1, Pello 1.
Gettysburg: Stewart 3, Harriman 1, Liberto 1, Montgomery 1, Gallant 1.
Assists:
Middlebury: Wood 1.
Gettysburg: Pryor 1.
Goalies: M (Palmisano – 60:00, 11 saves, 7 GA), G (Vaughan – 60:00, 8 saves, 4 GA).
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