Sports
Ice Hockey falters against nation’s top teams
By Dave Meisel '13, Sports Staff Writer
January 26, 2012
Jumbos and Jeffs and Lakers, oh my!
The Hamilton men’s hockey team, in the midst of a three-game losing streak, has fallen to 7- 8-1 and 3-7 in the NESCAC conference.
Top competition has given the Continentals trouble of late. After an impressive 4-1 victory against Connecticut College on Jan. 13, the Continentals have lost their last three games by a combined score of 15-5.
Following the win over the Camels, Hamilton lost a tough road contest against Tufts on Jan. 14. After a wild first period in which both teams scored three goals, Joe Quattrochi ’14 stonewalled the Jumbos until they took a 4-3 lead with 2:52 left in the third period.
Michael DiMare ’14 picked up his 50th career point with a goal and an assist, and Anthony Scarpino ’12 and Anthony Ruberto ’13 also scored for Hamilton. The Continentals displayed excellent resilience;after falling behind 2-0, they scored three consecutive goals (by DiMare, Ruberto and then Scarpino) but lost the lead with just over five minutes to go in the first period. Hamilton pulled Quattrochi with a minute to go but couldn’t overcome the efforts of Tufts’ netminder Scott Barchard.
The Continentals were routed by Amherst on Jan. 20, the 6th-ranked team in the nation. Hamilton fell behind 2-0 but halved the deficit on Ruberto’s fifth goal of the season with a two-man advantage in the second period. But the Lord Jeffs scored two goals in the final seven minutes of the period and added another with just 18 seconds to go, leading to a 5-1 loss.
SUNY Oswego was an even tougher challenge for the Conts. Ranked second in the nation, the Lakers trounced the Continentals 6-1. Scarpino contributed the Continentals’ only goal with a minute and a half to go.
Coach Robert Haberbusch mentioned in an interview last week that, like many Division III teams, the Continentals don’t have as deep a roster as they would like. It seems to have caught up to them against faster teams.
After winning the NESCAC regular season title with an 11-4-4 record in 2010-2011, the Continentals have fallen to eighth in the conference, ahead of Connecticut College and Colby. Hamilton still has a great chance to take back the conference, though, with their eight remaining contests coming against NESCAC competition. However, they are just 3-5 against their remaining opponents. Their next contests will both be on the road, with a trip to Hartford,
Conn. on Jan. 28 to play Trinity and a Jan. 29 visit to Wesleyan in Middletown, Conn.