BENTLEY COLLEGE: Bench comes up big for Falcon men

Non-starters Nate Fritsch, Brian Tracey and Tom Dowling combined for 43 points and 16 rebounds as Bentley, the No. 1 team in Division II, won its 32nd straight regular season game, 75-64 over Assumption College in Northeast-10 Conference men's basketball Saturday afternoon at the Laska Gym.

Bentley, with the win, took sole possession of first place in the conference, improving to 6-0 overall and 4-0 NE-10. The Falcons have now won their last 27 regular season NE-10 games and extended their winning streak against Northeast Region teams to 36.

Fritsch, a senior, topped the Falcons with 17 points and five rebounds, and Tracey, a freshman, followed with a career-best 16 points, in only 14 minutes, on 8-for-9 accuracy. Dowling, the current NE-10 Freshman of the Week, chipped in with 10 points, seven rebounds and two steals.

Tracey played a major role in the decisive run after Assumption had battled back from a 38-30 halftime deficit to forge a 45-all tie, with 12:54 left. Bentley scored 10 of the next 12 points, and Tracey accounted for six of the 10.

Bentley, which scored 35 points in the paint and had a 22-8 advantage in points off turnovers, remains on the road for a 7:30 p.m. game tomorrow night at Bryant.

Women's Basketball
Assumption 64, Bentley 46
Six-foot sophomore Kayla Parker scored 22 points and junior guard Bethany Plasski added 14 as Assumption College handed Bentley its first conference loss, 64-46 in Northeast-10 Conference women's basketball Saturday afternoon at the Laska Gymnasium.

Bentley, ranked ninth nationally in Division II this week, saw its four-game winning streak halted and fell to 4-2 overall (3-1 NE-10). Assumption, with its fifth straight home win and just its fifth win in 62 meetings in the all-time series, improved to 7-2 overall and moved even with the Falcons in the conference standings.

Wasted with the loss was a strong effort by Bentley sophomore forward Colette Josey, who recorded 15 points, a career-best 17 rebounds (eight at the offensive end) and two steals.

Josey was followed in the scoring column by junior guard Kristy McLean and senior post Vanessa Lux, with 10 and nine points, respectively.

Bentley is back in action Tuesday night at Bryant (5:30 p.m.).

Men's Hockey
Bentley 0-1-1 vs. RIT
Junior Anthony Canzoneri scored the game-tying goal for Bentley in the third period as the Falcons skated to a 2-2 draw with Rochester Institute of Technology in Atlantic Hockey action on Saturday night at Ryan Skating Arena.

Saturday night's tie followed a 3-2 loss to RIT Friday night at Ryan Arena. RIT freshman Andrew Favot scored his first collegiate goal to cap a three-goal second period that lifted the Tigers.

Bentley is now 5-9-2 overall (5-4-2 AH), while the Tigers remained at .500 with a 5-5-3 (4-3-3 AH).

In Saturday's game, Canzoneri tallied to even the score with just under five minutes to go in regulation, knocking in his own rebound after junior Dain Prewitt passed in the puck from the right side once classmate Jeff Gumaer started the play.

Sophomore Marc Menzione scored the other Falcon goal, knocking in a rebound after a shot from junior Tom Dickhudt was saved with a second assist on the play going to freshman Dustin Cloutier.

RIT thought it had won the game on a shot from freshman Sean Murphy midway through the extra frame, but the puck never crossed the goal line, so the goal was disallowed. It was the second goal disallowed in the game after Bentley put the puck in the net on a deflection off freshman Dustin Cloutier in the third period, but Cloutier was ruled to have kicked the puck in.

In Friday's game, the Falcons opened the scoring during a four-on-four in the first period as Canzoneri won a faceoff in the offensive zone and sent the puck back to Gumaer, who unleashed a one-timer that put Bentley on the board. It was the sixth goal of the season for Gumaer and his second in as many games.

After RIT's three-goal outburst in the second period, Bentley got one back late in the third period. With the goalie pulled for an extra attacker, senior Jaye Judd lit the lamp with his second goal of the year, thanks to assists from freshman Erik Peterson and sophomore Dain Prewitt, with 15 seconds left on the clock.

The Falcons are back in action on Wednesday, hosting Atlantic Hockey foe Sacred Heart at 7:05 p.m. at Ryan Skating Arena.