One Down
UMSL shuts out Cal Poly Pomona in Nationals opener; two games on tap Thursday
GPCIHL April 5th, 2007 at 7:36AMJames Wetton put up four points (2-2) to lead the UMSL Rivermen to a 6-0 victory over the Cal Poly Pomona Broncos Wednesday in the Rivermen's first Nationals round-robin game.
Thomas Ames stopped 23 shots to earn the shutout, and Zach Stacy scored a pair of third-period goals as UMSL broke open a close game with four in the third.
Adam Clarke had two first-period points, assisting on Wetton's power-play goal at 11:06 before finishing a backhand chance :32 later to give UMSL a 2-0 lead.
The Rivermen will play their final two round-robin games on Thursday. The DII playoffs begin Thursday night.
THURSDAY, APRIL 5
UMSL vs. SHIPPENSBURG, 9:00 am
UMSL vs. DREXEL, 2:15 pm
Both games at Matteson Square Garden Triplex, South Rink. Check www.ibsu.net for live game broadcasts.
Stay tuned for video highlights.
WEDNESDAY'S RESULTS
POOL E
UMSL 6, Cal Poly Pomona 0
Drexel 7, Shippensburg 3
GREAT PLAINS DII: 3-5-1
Missouri State 4, Hofstra 3
Stony Brook 9, Wash U 6
Truman State 8, Northern Illinois 5
West Chester 5, Saint Louis 3
UMSL 6, Cal Poly Pomona 0
Emory 7, Missouri State 3
Wash U 5, UT Dallas 5
Neumann 8, Truman State 3
Long Beach State 2, Saint Louis 1
WEDNESDAY THOUGHTS
The Neumann-Truman State matchup was probably the most anticipated of the DII round-robin. I'd like to say it was closer than the 8-3 final indicates.
Such emotional games are the exception during the round robin. I think the rough night will benefit Truman State -- they've now seen the defending champs, who probably should be considered the favorite after two games.
Jon Donohue-Steve Klenk might be the best forward line in DII. Donohue took over the game against Truman.
Wash U fared better than expected, but that's Wash U. Their games are wild and crazy. Despite having been out of the lineup for a while, Zane Truman made an impact with four goals and six points in two games.
Stony Brook is calm under pressure. They don't seem to mind a close game at all.
Nevada's Corey Jones scored a nasty shorthanded goal to give his team a 1-0 lead over Stony Brook. He's been one of the best players in DII for the past four years. And in case you've forgotten, it was Jones -- not Steve Van Ness -- who took home Division II MVP honors in '05.
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James Lambert