2005 - 2006 SEASON

W&J Falls to Delaware in Season Finale; 6-1
Saturday, February 18th - 5:00PM
GREENBERG ICE PAVILION--W&J lost to Delaware by the score of 6-1 on Saturday night in the consolation game of the Penn State Nittany Lion Invitational. The game marks the end of the 2005-2006 Season for the Presidents. Defenseman David Bean scored the Presidents' lone goal.

GAME SUMMARY

Penn State resumed play and peppered W&J goaltender Jed Michael with numerous shots. Lukas Delorenzo scored two goals for the Icers and Justin DePretis added a goal of his own. Keith Jordan ripped a wrister with 54 seconds to go in the first that beat Michael and gave Penn State a 4-0 lead.

2ND PERIOD SUMMARY

1:12 into the second, W&J scored as Craig Frey took a pass from Chad Talotta to make the score 4-1. However, Delorenzo notched the hat trick for the Icers in the second for his 37th of the year and then Justin Depretis scored his 13th of the season to give PSU a 6-1 lead at the end of two.

President goaltender Andrew Torchia replaced Jed Michael in the Presidents' net and played admirably and made some unbelievable saves. Despite the efforts, Penn State dominated the game play from the get-go and managed to outshoot the Presidents 16-8 in the second.

3RD PERIOD SUMMARY

W&J picked up a power play goal late in the third. W&J screened PSU goaltender Chris Matteo and Ian Beitler deflected home a Craig Frey shot on net.

Justin Depretis came right back for the Icers with a minute left and picked up the hat trick on Senior Night for the 8-2 final.

W&J simply couldn't find its way through the tough Penn State defense tonight and PSU rolled to victory.

PRE - GAME DETAILS

Delaware and St. Clair are also taking part in the Nittany Lion Invitational and will face off against each other on Friday at 5:00PM. The winner of each game will play on Saturday (2/18) in the Invitational Championship at 8:00PM. The consolation game will be played at 5:00PM.

W&J and PSU last met up for the opening game of the season in which the Icers defeated the Presidents by the score of 5-1 at the Iceoplex.

PRE-GAME INFO - STAT LEADERS

Bob Rose (14)
Ian Beitler (13)
Craig Frey (13)

Lukas DeLorenzo (34)
Michael McMullen (26)
Frank Berry (20)
Nathan Obringer (20)

Mario Panucci (16)
Jeff Cobb (14)
David Bean (13)

Ryan McMullen (35)
Lukas Delorenzo (31)
Keith Jordan (30)

Andrew Torchia (7-9-1)
SV% - .898
G.A.A. - 3.67

Paul Mammola (9-5-2)
SV% - .909
G.A.A. - 2.86

Jed Michael (3-7-0)
SV% - .898
G.A.A. - 3.38

Chris Matteo (12-3-0)
SV% - .906
G.A.A. - 2.56

W&J @ RMU

FINAL: W&J 7   RMU 3

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 15^th, 2006 - RMU ISC - 8:45 PM

GAME SUMMARY

ISLAND SPORTS CENTER - Washington & Jefferson defeated Robert Morris University by the score of 7-3 on Wednesday night at the RMU Island Sports Center.

The Presidents took charge with a convincing win over the Colonials and got a solid offensive showing from nearly the entire lineup. Freshman Ian Beitler notched the hat trick on some slick moves and puck handling. Meanwhile, sophomore Craig Frey added 2 goals and an assist. Defenseman David Bean dished out three assists while freshman Mario Panucci and Mike Guthrie each picked up two more assists on the night.

W&J also looked great on the power play with Frey moving the puck to Ian Beitler on W&J's first goal. Frey then scored on W&J's next power play opportunity off slick passing from Clint Lang, Mike Guthrie, and Panucci on the setup.

The line of Craig Frey, Mario Panucci, and Chad Talotta were all on the same page tonight with great puck movement and generated tons of offense for the Presidents. Talotta would add an empty net goal as well.

The line of Ian Beitler, Jeff Cobb, and Doug Johnston have been scoring at will as of late. Along with Beitler's hat trick, linemate senior Jeff Cobb banged home a goal after a nice centering pass from senior Doug Johnston and put W&J up 3-2.

The line of Pat Vallely, freshman Bryan Colligan, and senior Dylan Wyrostek grinded out and played the body against the Colonial offense, while hustling and helping out tremendously on the back check.

Goaltender Andrew Torchia picked up the win between the pipes for W&J, stopping 20 of 23 Colonial shots. W&J outshot RMU 40-23 on its way to victory.

W&J will now travel to play in the Penn State Invitational this upcoming weekend.

W&J vs. BUFFALO

FINAL:  WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON 5  BUFFALO 3

SATURDAY, FEB. 11^th, 2006 - ICEOPLEX - 4:50 PM

W&J vs. SLIPPERY ROCK

FINAL / OT:  SLIPPERY ROCK 6  WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON 5

FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 10^th, 2006 - ICEOPLEX - 7:30 PM

W&J DROPS TWO TO ST. CLAIR

FRI. FEBRUARY 3^rd, 2006 - 8:00PM

SAT. FEBRUARY 4^th, 2006 - 2:00 PM

ST. CLAIR 8 W&J 1

ST. CLAIR 6  W&J 3

SCORING SUMMARY

W&J Scoring:
1. B. Colligan (D. Wyrostek)

W&J AT LINDENWOOD TOURNAMENT

W&J vs. Lindenwood - 1.29.06 - 1:30 PM - W&J continued to struggle without its depth on the road and lost the Lindenwood Tournament finale on Sunday to Lindenwood 9-0.

W&J vs. RMC (Illinois) - 1.28.2006 - 1:15 PM - W&J fell to Robert Morris College (Illinois) in another tough loss versus the Eagles at the Lindenwood Tournament on Saturday night. The Presidents simply ran out of gas again and couldn't eliminate the small mental breakdowns as RMC took advantage.

The game was closer than the 5-2 final score indicated. RMC jumped out to a quick lead and held W&J's scoring chances to a minimum through the first two periods, frustrating the W&J offense. However, W&J fought back hard. Skating with only 2 lines yet again, the W&J freshmen again stepped up.

W&J was given a power play opportunity to get them back into the game. W&J capitalized as freshman Mario Panucci moved a setup pass over to defenseman Clint Lang. Lang in turn scored and helped put W&J on the scoreboard as he delivered W&J's first goal of the game.

Later in the third period, Mario Panucci continued his unselfish play and picked up another helper as he sent a lead pass to freshman Chad Talotta. Talotta found himself on a 2 on 1 with another freshman forward, Ian Beitler. Talotta sent a nice pass to Beitler who buried it home for his 8th goal of the season and cut the RMC lead to 3-2.

However, the celebration was short-lived as RMC came right back, scored on two shifts in a row to make the score 5-2, and put the game out of reach.

President goaltender Andrew Torchia replaced starting goalie Jed Michael midway through the game and put forth another great effort in net, stopping 18 of 20 RMC shots down the stretch.

W&J finishes up this weekend's Lindenwood Tournament in St. Charles vs. Lindenwood tomorrow (1.29.2006) at 1:30PM. As always, be sure to check back for the game summary.

W&J vs St. Clair - 1.27.2006 - 9:00 PM - W&J played yet another game shorthanded with two more players being out of the lineup. W&J played 2 lines for the entire game and never quit. Heading into the third period, the score was 1-0 in favor of St. Clair. St. Clair rattled off 3 more goals early in third and defeated W&J 5-1.

Goaltender Andrew Torchia played great in net for the Presidents and kept W&J's hopes of an upset alive facing 40 shots on goal.. W&J's lone goal was scored by freshman Ian Beitler, his 7th of the year.

W&J vs. ROBERT MORRIS COLLEGE

 FINAL:    ROBERT MORRIS COLLEGE 5    WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON 2

SATURDAY, JANUARY 21^st, 2006 - ICEOPLEX - 4:50 PM

GAME SUMMARY

W&J couldn't quite find the go-ahead goal early in the third period and it cost them. Robert Morris College capitalized on W&J breakdowns in the neutral zone and scored 4 goals in the third period to give RMC a 5-2 win at the Iceoplex on Saturday night.

Despite outshooting RMC 40-26, W&J could only find the back of the net twice. W&J's Clint Lang tied the game at one with a nice shot from the point. Freshman Ian Beitler won the draw back to freshman Chad Talotta. Talotta moved the puck over to Lang at the right point and he blasted a slapper, five hole to tie the game.

RMC began the third with two quick goals to make the score 3-1 seemingly putting the game out of reach. However, W&J answered back and cut the lead to one when Craig Frey put home a rebound, making the score 3-2. Credits to Doug Johnston and Michael Guthrie assisting on the play.

With the game now 3-2, W&J looked for the equalizer. RMC had different plans and answered back quickly and often to seal the fate of the Presidents. RMC scored 2 more goals off rebounds and odd man rushes and gave RMC its second win in two days against W&J.

W&J vs. ROBERT MORRIS COLLEGE

FINAL: ROBERT MORRIS COLLEGE 6   WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON 4

FRIDAY, JANUARY 20^th, 2006 - ICEOPLEX - 7:30 PM

GAME SUMMARY

Freshman forward Mario Panucci scored two goals for the Washington & Jefferson Presidents off nice passing from Ian Beitler. Freshman Chad Talotta provided a spark for the Presidents and mixed it up with a member of RMC. Following the fracas, the W&J scoring escalated. Freshman Bryan Colligan crashed the net well and scored his first two goals as a President in the third period off passes from Doug Johnston & Adam Figlioli. However, it would not be enough as RMC held on for the 6-4 win.

W&J couldn't dig itself out of a huge hole as it trailed 5-0 and allowed 2 shorthanded goals. W&J was also unable to get the power play to work as numerous chances to get back into the game were discarded throughout the first and second periods. W&J had two 5 on 3's but only generated 1 shot during each opportunity.

President goaltender Andrew Torchia played admirably in net and faced 50+ RMC shots.

W&J will host RMC again tomorrow, January 21st at 4:50PM at the ICEOPLEX in Southpointe.

W&J vs. DELAWARE

FINAL: DELAWARE 5  WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON 2

FRIDAY, JANUARY 13^th, 2006 - ICEOPLEX - 7:30 PM

GAME DETAILS

W&J AT MERCYHURST, NIAGARA

vs. MERCYHURST - FRIDAY, JANUARY 6^th, 2006 - ERIE - 7:00 PM

vs. NIAGARA- SATURDAY, JANUARY 7^th, 2006 - NIAGARA U. - 7:30 PM

GAME DETAILS

W&J fought hard but was limited in numbers and tired in the third periods as they dropped Friday's game versus Mercyhurst by the score of 4-2 and to Niagara on Saturday night by the score of 6-2.

W&J MID-SEASON REPORT

PRESIDENTS ON A ROLL INTO THE BREAK

There was no bigger win than W&J's 1-0 triumph over previously undefeated and #2 ranked Rhode Island just before the Holiday Break. W&J now has an overall record of 10-7-1 and has been able to compete against the best that it's schedule has had to offer.

W&J kept games close earlier in the season against the likes of Delaware and St. Clair, losing 2 games vs. Delaware in OT and to St. Clair by only a goal. They also were shorthanded for much of the season and had several players battling through numerous injuries to the likes of Craig Frey, Mario Panucci, Dylan Wyrostek, Matt Chapman and Jeff Cobb. One of the biggest injuries came when leading scorer Bob Rose was forced to leave a game versus Drexel on 11/20. Rose had accumulated 14 goals and 10 assists on the season and was amidst a scoring rampage. Rose was also an integral part of the power play and penalty killing units.

W&J has managed to get healthy and has fought through a difficult part of its schedule. As of late, W&J has been nearly unbeatable. W&J undoubtedly played its best hockey of the season just before the break with a record of 5-1-1 since early November. This was no more evident as W&J tied Rhode Island on 12/9 and pulled off probably the biggest upset of the year with a win against  the #2 Rams the next day.  Led by first year Head Coach Peter Taglianetti, the team has come together and each player has stepped up knowing that they have a role to fill.

Despite having some good senior leadership, the W&J offense has been coming of age with several sophomores and freshmen in the mix as well. The loss of junior Bob Rose dealt a huge loss for W&J but the offense has managed to stay on track with some good puck movement, speed, and timely shooting.

The senior line of Mike Colligan, Jeff Cobb, and Doug Johnston has added an extremely important scoring touch to the W&J offense again this season. The three have provided senior leadership that is essential for any team's success. Colligan has put together another consistent season with 8 goals and 10 assists and has continued to be a playmaker. His good skating / work on the power play has been great and he has moved the puck very well. Cobb has used his speed to accumulate 7 goals and 9 assists for 16 points. His great fore-checking ability to stifle opposing team breakouts has been beneficial to the team. Johnston has grinded in the corners, used his size to his advantage, and worked the play to the front of the net for 5 goals and 6 assists.

The young line of Craig Frey (sophomore), Mario Panucci (freshman), Ian Beitler (freshman) has come on strong and has shown signs of brilliance on the ice while adding to the W&J offense. This wasn't more evident throughout the two games versus Rhode Island in which Panucci and Frey hooked up on the game winner while Beitler scored an incredible game-tying goal the previous night against the Rams in crunch time. Frey has scored consistently tallying 8 goals and 8 assists on the season and has made life miserable for the opposition. Despite battling injuries this season, Panucci's speed, puck-handling, and passing abilities have shown and accounted for 3 goals and 8 assists. Beitler's speed and ability to stickhandle out of any situation has been extremely beneficial to the Presidents in which he has accounted for 4 goals and 5 assists. Freshman Chad Talotta (also a freshman) has gotten a significant amount of ice time and has done well. He possesses great hands to move the puck at will. He has accumulated 4 goals and 4 assists for 8 points on the season. He, Panucci, Frey, Beitler, Cobb, Colligan have been beneficial to the power play and penalty killing units as well.

Forwards Bryan Colligan (freshman) and Pat Vallely (senior) have grinded along the boards and moved the puck out of the zone and have generated some scoring chances. Meanwhile Matthew Kenney (senior), Adam Figlioli (sophomore), Dylan Wyrostek, and Jason Pastorius (freshman) have skated hard and chipped in for the Presidents' offense this season.

The 6 defensemen composed of David Bean, Matthew Chapman, Rob Fitzpatrick, Michael Guthrie, Matt Kubacki, Clint Lang have played solidly and have done a great job clearing the net in front of goaltenders Andrew Torchia, Jed Michael, and Colin Sebastien. The W&J goaltenders have played out of their minds and have combined for 10 wins; a 2.82 G.A.A; and a 0.917 save percentage.

W&J has caught the attention of the nation with its successful season thus far and will now look to take an additional step the second half of the year as it battles its way up the rankings and onward toward Nationals.

W&J vs. RHODE ISLAND

FINAL: WASHINGTON & JEFFERSON 1   RHODE ISLAND 0

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 10^th, 2006 - 4:50 PM

GAME SUMMARY

After tying #2 ranked Rhode Island on Friday night, W&J pulled off the upset against the previously undefeated Rams, shutting them out by the score of 1-0 on Saturday night.

SOUTHPOINTE -- Heading into Saturday night no one thought that last night's game could have been topped. We were wrong. W&J shocked the nation and defeated previously undefeated and #2 ranked Rhode Island by the score of 1-0 at the Iceoplex at Southpointe.

Craig Frey scored the game winner midway through the third period after Mario Panucci made a great effort to keep the zone. Panucci sent a tape to tape pass through a defender's legs to Frey. Frey out skated the defenseman to the Rhode Island net and completed the play with a beautiful backhand and slid the puck five-hole along the ice and past Rhode Island goaltender Anthony Feyock.

Tonight it was W&J goaltender Jed Michael who played flawlessly and stole the show, stopping 45 Rhode Island shots on goal and was undoubtedly the difference maker. Feyock played extremely well in net for the Rams stopping 23 of 24 W&J shots. The defense helped shut out the high scoring Rams for the first time this year. Rhode Island had averaged over 7 goals a game this season prior to the 2 games this weekend.

MORE GAME NOTES... Tonight's game was the epitome of a total team effort. Every person on the team did their job and it added up to the huge win. W&J battled throughout the entire game and had momentum going its way but it was ceased with the sound of three rings off the post in a matter of five minutes and the game remained 0-0. Rhode Island would hit two posts in the third period and it proved to be a game of inches.

W&J held off a late charge by the Rams in the third. Once again, W&J found itself on the short end of a 5 on 3 with only 2 minutes to play but the Presidents stood up to the challenge and held off the Rams' attack with the goalie pulled.

W&J and Rhode Island face-off deep in the W&J zone with only 5 seconds remaining. W&J prevailed 1-0.

W&J would give up plenty of shots throughout the game but limited the Rams' from any second scoring chances in front of goaltender Jed Michael. Meanwhile, the W&J forwards did an excellent job of back-checking and clearing the zone which undoubtedly frustrated the Rhode Island offense. Mike Colligan, Craig Frey, Jeff Cobb, Chad Talotta did a fantastic job getting back and stopped several Rhode Island chances. Doug Johnston drew some important penalties and all the small things added up and gave W&J the chance to win.

W&J (10-7-1) now heads into the Holiday Break on an extremely high note and will resume its play on January 6th @ Mercyhurst.

GAME SUMMARY

Rhode Island came out with a flurry of shots early and peppered W&J goaltender Andrew Torchia with 24 shots in the first period alone. Torchia however brilliantly stood up to the challenge and kept Rhode Island off the board in the first. Torchia would turn aside 45+ shots on the night.

W&J also managed to obtain a 1-0 lead on the power play as a result of great puck movement between Mike Colligan and David Bean. On the play, Bean worked the puck over to Colligan who found Clint Lang to the right side of the ice. Lang took a snapshot and the puck found its way five hole past the Rhode Island goaltender for the 1-0 W&J lead at the end of one.

W&J came out stronger in the second and had seemingly turned the tide when they suddenly found themselves on the short end of a 5 on 3. Rhode Island made them pay twice on the power play in a matter of a few moments and the game was quickly in favor of Rhode Island by the score of 2-1. At a crucial moment in the game, W&J Head Coach Peter Taglianetti called a critical timeout following the second Rams goal and calmed the troops.

Head Coach Peter Taglianetti calls a crucial timeout during tonight's game vs. Rhode Island. W&J and Rhode Island would skate to a 2-2 tie.

W&J bounced back in the third and continued to play tough and gritty. W&J had a great opportunity as Rhode Island had to serve a 5 minute major penalty. However, W&J did not take advantage of the situation and generated little during the five minute span.

Mike Colligan, who skated extremely well all night, found himself on a breakaway midway through the third and almost tied the game but couldn't pull the puck to his backhand and the game continued on. W&J continued to keep up the pressure and out shot Rhode Island in the third. Craig Frey, Mario Panucci, & Ian Beitler continued to torment the opposition and played tremendous two-way hockey.

Meanwhile, the W&J defense clamped shut on the Rhode Island offense in crunch time and limited their scoring chances down the stretch. Matt Chapman, Mike Guthrie, Clint Lang, David Bean, Matt Kubacki, and Rob Fitzpatrick worked all the defensive grunt work in great fashion. The veteran line of Jeff Cobb, Mike Colligan, and Doug Johnston got stronger as the game wore on and hustled to every loose puck and created some great scoring chances all day for the Presidents.

Just after Colligan's breakaway, Panucci beat a Rhode Island defender to a loose puck coming out of the W&J zone, poked the puck off the boards around the defender, and was off to the races for a 2 on 1 break. Panucci fed the puck to Chad Talotta but the Rhode Island goaltender stood up to the challenge and turned away another great President scoring chance.

The line of Jeff Cobb (10), Doug Johnston, and Mike Colligan (22) attempt to clear the zone against Rhode Island.

However with just under 10 minutes to play, freshman Ian Beitler scored the equalizer after a few slick moves deep in the Rams' zone. Beitler turned a defender inside-out near the left boards, deked around another Ram, skated the puck in front of the net, and buried a wrist shot top shelf to tie the game at 2.

Each team elevated its game down the stretch but could not find the go-ahead goal. On to overtime they went and Rhode Island generated a few shots on goal but the W&J defense was able to turn aside each opportunity and clear the zone in front of Torchia. The clock ran out and the tremendous game ended in a 2-2 tie.

W&J holds off Rhode Island in the waning moments of overtime.

As Mike Lange stated: "If you missed this one then shame on you for six weeks." In case you missed tonight's action, you can see Part II tomorrow (Saturday, December 10th) at the ICEOPLEX at Southpointe. The puck drops at 4:50 PM.

W&J vs. SYRACUSE

FRIDAY & SATURDAY, DECEMBER 2^{nd &} 3^rd, 2005

W&J ROAD TRIP UPDATES

FRIDAY, SATURDAY, & SUNDAY NOVEMBER 18^th 19^{th &} 20^th, 2005

W&J Over WVU, Slips vs. West Chester, Battles Through Drexel

GAME SUMMARIES

W&J 2-0 on Recent Road Trip

FRIDAY & SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 11^{th &} 12^th, 2005

GAME SUMMARIES

W&J Falls Twice to St. Clair; 4-0 & 4-3

FRIDAY & SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 5^{th &} 6^th, 2005

W&J came out firing early on Saturday and out-shot St. Clair 20-10 in the first period (and out-shot St. Clair 36-30 for the game) but found itself trailing 1-0 at the end of one after St. Clair's Erik Stone deflected an initial shot from the point for the goal.

St. Clair came out quickly in the second period and out-skated and frustrated the Presidents. St. Clair caused some trouble in front of the W&J net and managed to force a W&J clearing attempt. Sean Turner took the puck, skated down the right hand side, and roofed a nice backhand shot over the shoulder of W&J goaltender Jed Michael for the St. Clair 2-0 lead. St. Clair would mange to score once more before the end of the period and held a 3-0 lead at the end of two. The fourth and final St. Clair goal came on the power play in the first minute of the third period as Derek Graansma would deflect a shot five hole after a shot from the point by Preston Kivell.

GAME NOTES: W&J could not manage to get a puck behind St. Clair's goaltender Tyler Bilton. Bilton stood strong and stopped all 36 W&J shots. Craig Frey and Jeff Cobb skated well for the Presidents and created some chances down low. W&J suffered another big injury and lost freshman Mario Panucci to injury midway through the first period and for the remainder of the weekend.

ICEOPLEX, SOUTHPOINTE -- (Game 2) -- In another choppy and penalty filled game on Sunday, W&J played like a different team and nearly defeated the visiting Saints.

W&J's Craig Frey tallied 2 goals on the day while Bob Rose scored his 9th goal of the season off a great pass from freshman Chad Talotta. With the game tied at three with only six minutes to play, St. Clair delivered the game winner and 4-3 victory.

W&J will next play at Slippery Rock on Friday November 11th - 9:30 PM @ Bladerunner's in Cranberry.

W&J @ WVU

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 29^th, 2005 -- 7:30 PM

W&J Improves to 5- 4 Overall; Posts 6-3 Win Over WVU

ICEOPLEX, SOUTHPOINTE -- Despite two early goals by Mike Colligan and Mario Panucci being inexplicably waived off, W&J managed to put the unfortunate situation behind them and dented the scoreboard 6 times against the Mountaineers on Saturday night at the Iceoplex at Southpointe for a convincing win.

Mike Colligan scored twice and added an assist while Chad Talotta, Michael Guthrie, David Bean, and Jeff Cobb all scored goals of their own. W&J out shot WVU 42-25 with Andrew Torchia picking up his fourth win of the season for W&J. W&J improved its record to 5-4 and will host St. Clair twice this upcoming weekend on Saturday (11/5) and Sunday (11/6) at the Iceoplex.

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 28^th, 2005 -ICEOPLEX-- 7:30 PM

W&J Loses a Tough One to Mercyhurst 3-2

GAME SUMMARY

ICEOPLEX, SOUTHEPOINTE -- W&J returned home to the Iceoplex although suffered a tough loss to Mercyhurst by the score of 3-2 Friday night.

W&J took an early 1-0 lead on a Mike Colligan goal after an initial shot on net by Bob Rose. However, Mercyhurst answered right back to tie the game as Mercyhurst's Ryan Bessey took a shot from the point that was deflected home by Kevin Binsell for the goal and tied the game at one.

Mercyhurst would score again as they took advantage of a developing 3 on 2 to make it 2-1 as Mike MacSata made a nice pass to Jason Kilijanski who finished the nice play for Mercyhurst's second goal.

The game flow was once again slowed drastically by penalties and whistles and Mercyhurst again scored during sloppy second period and took a 3-1 lead to the locker room. On the play, Brent Klimow possessed the puck behind the W&J net and centered a pass to Brad Maxa who one-timed it past W&J goaltender Jed Michael. Michael played admirably in net and would not let another puck past him for the rest of the game. Michael kept W&J's hopes of a comeback alive as he made several sprawling saves throughout the game.

Down the stretch, W&J answered on the power play to cut the Mercyhurst lead to one as Jeff Cobb took a pass from Bob Rose and wristed a shot low stick side past the Mercyhurst goaltender. W&J kept the game close and tried to find the equalizer. The line of Craig Frey, Mario Panucci, and Bob Rose continued to create several scoring chances for the Presidents and had some nice cracks from in front of the net. Ian Beitler and Chad Talotta skated hard and generated some nice scoring chances as well.

However, W&J could not conjure up the equalizer with the man advantage and an empty net behind them as Mercyhurst held off a late flurry.

W&J will play again tomorrow (Saturday, October 29th) at the Iceoplex vs. West Virginia.

ACHA DI SHOWCASE

W&J Sneaks Past Kent State 3-2

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 23^rd, 2005 -YOUNGSTOWN -- 6:00 PM

W&J post big win over John Carroll 9-2

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 22^nd, 2005 -YOUNGSTOWN -- 10:00 AM

Beitler and Craig Frey each played strong games for the Presidents. Frey scored a key goal to put W&J up 3-2 and got the Presidents' offense rolling.

Despite giving up 2 early goals, W&J goaltender Jed Michael would not let another puck past him for the rest of the game, preserving the win for the Presidents. Defenseman David Bean added 2 assists for W&J.

W&J will play its final game of the ACHA DI Showcase tomorrow at 6:00PM vs. Kent State.

W&J Defeats Towson 5-4 in Overtime

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 21^st, 2005 -YOUNGSTOWN -- 2:00 PM

YOUNGSTOWN, OHIO - Overtime has become a common occurrence early in the season for the Presidents. Washington & Jefferson has found itself in overtime its last two games and tonight was no different. This time, however, it was Washington and Jefferson who pulled out a come from behind victory today at the ACHA Division I Showcase at the Ice Zone in Youngstown, Ohio over Towson by the score of 5-4 in overtime.

W&J came out quickly and scored twice early. On W&J's first goal, Pat Vallely and Mario Panucci worked a nice setup and Clint Lang buried a slap shot for the power play goal and an early 1-0 W&J lead.

Just after the first goal, W&J would light the lamp for a second time as Michael Guthrie scored on a slap shot from the point that found its way top shelf past Towson goaltender Jeff Mekelburg.

W&J seemingly felt that the game was over. Towson had a different idea and tied up the game. A combination of physical play from Towson and several W&J penalties led to the comeback.

Towson eventually took a 3-2 lead on a breakaway goal from Chad Sillery as he found himself behind the W&J defense and scored five hole on W&J goalie Andrew Torchia.

However, W&J would find their legs late in the third and Bob Rose would bury a shot to tie the game at three. W&J would take the lead with 1:33 to go in the third as W&J's Chad Talotta stole an errant pass and took a shot on the Towson goaltender. The rebound would pop free and Rob Fitzpatrick scored what seemed to be the game winner. However, with only 23 seconds remaining Towson crashed the net following a faceoff win deep in the W&J zone. A centering pass was tapped home by Towson to tie the game at four.

Thus, it was on to overtime where W&J found some energy and skated well. At the end of a shift, Mike Colligan made a heads up play and spotted Craig Frey streaking up the middle of the ice. Frey split the Towson defensemen and scored on a nice backhand move to give W&J the thrilling overtime win.

Deja Vu: W&J Falls Again in OT 3-2

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 15^th, 2005 -DELAWARE- 1:00 PM

W&J Suffers 3-2 Loss in Overtime

SATURDAY, OCTOBER 14^th, 2005 -DELAWARE- 7:00 PM

NEWARK, DELAWARE - W&J lost to Delaware in its first game tonight at the Fred Rust Ice Arena in Delaware by the score of 3-2 in overtime. W&J put forth a great effort despite suffering several injuries at key positions throughout the game.

W&J trailed by the score of 2-0 early in the second period. However, senior Mike Colligan scored a huge goal as he gained possession of the puck (following a pass from Jeff Cobb) just inside the Delaware zone and blasted a slap shot past the goaltender to cut Delaware's lead in half. However, on the play, Colligan was hit late and was knocked from the game. W&J kept up the effort despite also losing defensemen David Bean and Matthew Chapman to injury. W&J goaltender Jed Michael played solidly in net and made several stops to keep W&J's chances alive.

With about 8 minutes remaining in the third period, W&J found itself on the power play. Defenseman Michael Guthrie fed the puck down low to Mario Panucci. Panucci cradled the puck and faked a shot on net. He then spotted line mate Bob Rose to the right of the Delaware net and gave a quick pass to Rose. Rose took the pass and dunked it in to tie the game at two.

The game continued and eventually went to overtime. However at 3:30 of overtime, Delaware struck to end the great comeback of the Presidents. W&J will look to avenge tonight's overtime loss versus Delaware tomorrow (Saturday, 10/15) at 1:00 PM.

W&J vs. EASTERN MICHIGAN

ICEOPLEX SOUTHEPOINTE - Washington & Jefferson picked up its first win of the season as it defeated Eastern Michigan by the score of 5-3 on Thursday night at the Iceoplex at Southpointe and gave Head Coach Peter Taglianetti his first win at W&J.

W&J came out scoring early as Doug Johnston lit the lamp first on a pass from Jeff Cobb just after Cobb kept the puck in the zone. W&J would take a 2-0 lead as goaltender Andrew Torchia made a heads up play and sent a long pass up ice to an awaiting Doug Johnston. Johnston then spotted Cobb streaking up ice and hit him with a tape to tape pass that Cobb buried past Eastern Michigan goaltender Tom Gresham, giving W&J a 2-0 lead at the end of one.

Early in the second period, senior Mike Colligan nearly gave W&J a 3 goal lead as he made a nice move to fake out a defender but Greshman made a nice save to keep EMU within striking distance. Meanwhile, W&J goaltender Andrew Torchia was making key saves as well to preserve the early President lead.

Only a few minutes into the second period, freshman Mario Panucci would give W&J the 3 goal lead that they desired as he slammed home his first goal as a President. On the play, Bob Rose took a pass behind the EMU net and dished it out front to Craig Frey. Frey snapped a quick shot that was stopped and Panucci quickly slammed it home for the goal.

The game then began to open up and W&J took a few costly penalties. EMU would fight back and score 2 power play goals to make the score 3-2. EMU would complete the comeback as Kelly Koester would score shorthanded to tie the game at 3 early in the third period.

However, that would be the last time EMU would dent the scoreboard as goaltender Andrew Torchia would make several key saves and played strong down the stretch for W&J.

With a 1:33 to go in the game, EMU's goaltender misplayed the puck behind his own net and Cobb hustled to steal the puck and dunked in a wraparound on the backhand to give W&J the 4-3 lead.

With 33 seconds to go, W&J put the game away for good as Rose won a draw deep in the EMU zone and dropped it back to Panucci. Panucci then sent a tape to tape pass to Craig Frey who one-timed it into the EMU net to send Elvis home for the night for the 5-3 final.

The W&J defense played strong tonight and limited the scoring chances of the EMU offense. All of EMU's three goals came on either the power play or shorthanded opportunities. Meanwhile, the gritty play from the Chad Talotta, Ian Beitler, and Pat Vallely line caused fits for the opposing Eagles all night.

W&J will now travel to Delaware for two games. The first game will be Friday at 7:00PM and then again on Saturday at 1:00PM.

SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 9^th, 2005

GAME DETAILS

W&J pulled within two goals and made the score 3-1 in the third period as freshman Mario Panucci worked the puck over to senior Jeff Cobb. Cobb in turn found Doug Johnston. Johnston put a low shot on net and put it past PSU's goaltender. W&J would hit the post just after the goal. PSU rushed back and scored to put the game out of reach at 4-1. PSU would score again with just under 10 seconds to play for the 5-1 final.