Junior forward Tim Yakimowsky and senior forward Ivan Filippov each scored a pair of goals as Wentworth (17-7-2) defeated Fitchburg State (11-13-2), 7-2, in the opening round of the 2001 ECAC Northeast Tournament.
Fitchburg State got on the board first, as sophomore forward Greg Horan scored a power-play goal at 12:36 of the first period. Wentworth senior forward Tim Hebert answered 31 seconds later to knot the game at 1-all.
Wentworth sophomore forward Jamie Weiss gave the Leopards a 2-1 lead, scoring a power-play goal 3:36 into the second period. the lead was short-lived as Fitchburg State scored the equalizer at 8:58 on a goal from senior forward Brian Baldassare.
Yakimowsky gave the Leopards the lead for good, scoring two consecutive power-play goals 11 seconds apart to give the Leopards a 4-2 lead with 3:47 left in the second. His first, coming at 16:02 was his 24th of the season, tying a school record.
He broke the record set by Filippov during the 1997-98 season on his 25th of the season at 16:13. Filippov scored the first of his two shorthanded tallies with :15 left in the second.
Filippov scored his second of the game at 13:50 of the third, while junior forward McGregor Chadwick rounded out the scoring at 14:59 of the third.
Wentworth sophomore goalie Jamie Vanek made 29 saves for the Leopards. Fitchburg State sophomore Jason Holt made 23 saves over the first 54:59. Freshman Mike Marino stopped both shots he faced over the final 5:01.
With the win, the Leopards tied a school record for wins in a season and improves to 17-7-2. This mark was also accomplished by the 1997-98 squad (17-10-0), as well as last year’s ECAC Northeast Championship team (17-2-1). Wentworth will host a semifinal game Wednesday night at 7:30 p.m.
