Heading into the Florida College Hockey Classic many expected Ohio State would face No. 9 Cornell on Tuesday. Not many expected to see that match up in the tournament’s championship game. However that is exactly what fans will see after a pair of upsets today.
| scoring by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
| No. 4 Boston College | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
In the matinee contest the Big Red handed No. 1 Providence its first loss of the season. Cornell allowed a goal in the first minute of the game before battling back to tie in regulation and win in overtime. In the nightcap Ohio State earned its biggest victory of the season, rallying to upend No. 4 Boston College.
BC took control of the game early. Adam Gilmour put his team on the board 1:22 into the contest when an odd bounce got behind OSU goaltender Christian Frey. Just over a minute later Zach Sanford extended BC’s lead with a shorthanded goal.
It looked as though the Eagles would roll to an easy victory. Ohio State had other plans. The Buckeyes stepped up their physical play, attempting to slow down their high flying opponents.
| pd | time | buckeye goal scorers (assists) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 3.10 | Anthony Greco (Matt Weis) |
| 2 | 17:21 | Tyler Lundey (Dave Gust) |
| 3 | 7:31 | PP - John Wiitala (Dakota Joshua, Josh Healey) |
The result was not immediately positive. Late in the first period an overzealous hit by Josh Healey earned the defenseman a major penalty. For five minutes the Eagles’ talented scorers swarmed the OSU net. However, for five minutes the Buckeye penalty killers stood tall.
When the Bucks returned to full strength the team was rewarded with a lucky bounce of its own. Anthony Greco chucked the puck toward the BC net. It deflected off a player in front and past goalie Thatcher Demko.
Ohio State continued to plug away. As the clock wound down in the second period the team’s hard work paid off. The Buckeyes pounced on a Boston College turnover. Tyler Lundey wasted no time knotting the score at two all.
Twenty minutes remained to decide the winner. Midway through the period a power play strike by John Wiitala ensured that Ohio State would be the victor. The tally was the freshman’s second goal in just ten games this season.
Boston College poured the pressure on over the final minutes, but goalie Frey was sufficient to the task. The junior netminder stopped 30 shots in his first victory of the year. The Bucks face No. 9 Cornell at approximately 7:30 p.m. for the title of 2015 FCC champion.
Other Big Ten Results: Robert Morris defeats No. 14/15 Penn State 6-3 at the Three Rivers Classic.
