FRAMINGHAM, Mass. -- Westfield State senior forward Daniel Backstrom (Helsinki, Finland) netted two goals, including the game winner, as the Owls' hockey team defeated Framingham State 5-2 Thursday night in MASCAC action at Loring Arena.
It was the second-straight two-goal game for Backstrom, as the senior has collected six points over his last three games.
With the win, the Owls improve to 9-4-5 overall and 7-2-2 in the league. Due to a Fitchburg State loss earlie rthis evening, the Owls grab sole posession of second place in the MASCAC.
Westfield took a 1-0 lead with a shorthanded goal with just over five minutes remaining on the clock in the first. Backstrom controlled a loose puck behind the Rams net and fed Joseph Carbone (Marshfield, Mass.) in front and Carbone found the back of the net.
Westfield doubled the lead just under four minutes into the second frame when Backstrom converted a shot into the top corner off feeds from Francois-Xavier Girard (St. Lazare, Quebec) and Andrew McCormick (Canton, N.Y.).
The Owls took advantage of their first power play of the game extending the lead to 3-0 just four minutes later on Backstrom's second tally of the game.
The Rams got on the board with 7:46 on the clock in the second period as junior Soren Colstrup converted off a feed from sophomore Trevor Lewandowski cutting the deficit to 3-1 after two periods.
The Owls tacked on a pair of goals in the opening minutes of the third extending the lead to four. Danny Totten (L'Ile-Perrot, Quebec) tallied unassisted with 14:02 left in the game and Robert Neuwirth (Zlin, Czech Republic) tallied one on the power play with 11:50 left in the game.
Westfield was 2-5 on the powerplay on the night with both man-advantage tallies proving to be big ones. The Owl penalty kill was hard at work, killing off all six Ram powerplay opportunities.
The Rams added a late marker as sophomore Erick Walsh found freshman Ethan Cervonayco off a faceoff and Cervonayco connected from in front of the net with 3:48 left in the game.
Freshman Blake Carlson took the loss in net for the Rams, but made 30 saves, while Thierry Messervier (Montreal, Quebec) earned the victory for the Owls making 23 stops.
The Owls continue the quick two-game road trip when they head to Umass. Dartmouth on Saturday for another MASCAC matchup with the Corsairs at 4:20 p.m.