Richmond runs out of steam against UNCW
With only two goalies and ten skaters the Richmond Spiders gave it their all against a full rostered UNCW squad. The Spiders, who have been plagued by injury and other issues all season, fought hard for as long as they could, but couldn't keep up with the high energy Seahawks in the third period.
The Seahawks jumped out to an early lead scoring just four minutes into the game. The goal came on a rebound, where the initial shot rung off the post. For the majority of the rest of the period the play was back and forth, with no real great scoring chances occurring. With just two minutes remaining in the period the Seahawks tacked on another as Eric Kirkham got loose and buried a shot above the glove of sophomore goalie Ben Napierala. The first period would end 2-0.
The second period was dominated by the Spiders. Coming behind some big saves by Nap the Spiders carried momentum all period long. Perhaps the most crucial point in the game came when sophomore defenseman was blindsided and took a nasty hit to the head. He would leave the game and not return. On the ensuing powerplay, junior defenseman Sam Blakely scored on a shot from the point that found its way through traffic and into the back of the net. Then, halfway through the period Michael Blaum made fantastic play in which he navigated through three Seahawks and was able to still get a shot away. The shot somehow snuck past the UNCW goalie and all of the sudden the score was tied. The Seahawks continued to pepper the Richmond tender and found the back of the net once more before the period came to a close. The score was 3-2 heading into the third.
The Seahawks came out flying in the third scoring twice in the first five minutes. An exhausted Richmond team fought hard, but was unable to hold off the non-stop attack. Seahwaks goalie Ryan Davis ended the night with 26 saves, and the offense registered 67 shots en route to an 8-2 victory.
