BOX SCORE
BRUNSWICK, Maine - Bowdoin sophomore Kyle Shearer-Hardy scored four
goals to lead the Polar Bears to an 8-3 victory over Williams in
the inaugural men's ice hockey game at Sidney J. Watson Arena on
Sunday evening. The Polar Bears snap a four-game losing skid and
improve to 7-5-1 as Williams falls to 7-4-2 before a sellout crowd
of 2,400 fans.
Shearer-Hardy got Bowdoin on the board 9:13 with a tremendous
individual effort to score the first men's goal in Watson Arena
history. Shearer-Hardy stole the puck from Williams defender Ryan
Scott behind the Ephs goal, circled the net and wristed a shot to
the top corner for a 1-0 Polar Bear lead. Bowdoin's powerplay unit
double the lead late in the period, as Shearer-Hardy pounced on a
rebound off a Graham Sisson shot with 4:53 left in the frame. The
Ephs replied with a powerplay goal of their own with 1:31 left
before intermission. Brian Malchoff received a pass from Andrew
Lepore and snapped a perfectly-placed shot into the top-right
corner to cut Bowdoin's lead to 2-1 after one intermission.
A flurry of action highlighted the second period. Aaron O'Callahan
banged home a rebound just 2:14 into the second period to give the
hosts a 3-1 advantage. Williams replied later in the stanza with a
shorthanded tally with 7:33 remaining in the period as Matt
Dreiheim finished off a breakaway goal to close the gap to 3-2.
Bowdoin answered just 1:03 later as Graham Sisson redirected a
Brendan Reich slapshot to make it 4-2. But Williams replied 47
seconds later as Matt Masucci deposited a shot from the wing,
trimming the Polar Bear advantage to 4-3 after forty minutes.
Shearer-Hardy put the game out of reach for Bowdoin in the third
stanza. Ryan Blossom stole the puck behind the Williams net and
slipped a perfect pass in front to Shearer-Hardy to complete the
hat trick. Shearer-Hardy netted his fourth goal of the contest just
54 seconds later to improve the lead to 6-3. Ryan Blossom sealed
the win with 3:55 remaining as he knocked home a rebound off his
own shot. Colin MacCormack poked home a loose puck with 2:12 left
to make it an 8-3 final.
Marc Pulde earned 26 saves for Williams. Bowdoin's Richard Nerland
collected 25 stops for the Polar Bears.
Events around the men's game on Sunday included a pre-game
dedication ceremony that included comments from President Barry
Mills, alumni Bob White and Jim MacAllen and Athletic Director Jeff
Ward. Christopher Watson, Sid Watson's son and Bowdoin Class of
1988, dropped the ceremonial first puck while the NCAA Champion
field hockey team was recognized during the first intermission.
Photos courtesy of Brian Beard and Creative Images
Photography. Visit the website for photos of the Watson Arena
Opening Day games and ceremonies.
