Bowdoin College's Kyle Lockwood posted a hat trick and an assist, and the nationally ranked No. 4 Polar Bears rallied for a 5-3 win against Hamilton College in a 2013 NESCAC Championship quarterfinal at Bowdoin's Watson Arena on Feb. 23.
The Polar Bears (20-3-2 overall) are the top seed in the championship, and will host the NESCAC semifinals and final on Saturday and Sunday, March 2 and 3. Bowdoin is making its 14th appearance in the conference championship. The Polar Bears have been runners-up four times, but are searching for their first title.
Hamilton (6-16-3), which was the No. 8 seed, ended the season with eight losses in its last nine games. The Continentals haven't defeated Bowdoin since 2007. The Polar Bears swept the season series by scores of 6-2 at Hamilton and 5-2 at home.
Rob MacGregor chipped in one goal and one assist for Bowdoin. Timothy McGarry scored the other goal, Robert Toczylowski was credited with three assists and John McGinnis had one helper. Steve Messina made 16 saves and improved to 12-3-1 in goal.
Kenny Matheson '16 paced the Continentals with one goal and one assist, and Marko Brelih '16 and Pat Curtis '15 notched the other goals. Anthony Ruberto '13 picked up an assist for his 55th point in his 100th and final game at Hamilton. Joe Quattrocchi '14 turned away 31 shots.
The Continentals grabbed a 1-0 lead at 8:28 of the first period on Brelih's seventh goal this season. A faceoff in the Bowdoin defensive zone came to Brelih's stick, and he snapped a shot from the blue line that redirected off a defender and past Messina.
Lockwood tied the score on a power-play goal with 9:04 remaining in the first. McGinnis took control of the puck on the right dot, tucked a no-look pass to Lockwood just outside the crease and he tapped it home. The Polar Bears finished 1-for-4 on the power play. McGinnis was credited with his 15th assist.
Lockwood put Bowdoin in front on another goal with 2:41 left in the period. He took control of the puck after a scrum in front and circled a shot inside the left post. The Polar Bears led 2-1 at the first intermission.
Curtis tied the score on his sixth goal just 29 seconds into the second period as he ripped a shot from above the left faceoff circle that tipped off Messina's glove and into the net.
Matheson gave Hamilton a 3-2 lead on an unassisted, short-handed goal at 7:06 of the second. He forced a turnover in the neutral zone, skated unabated to the goal and wristed a shot top-shelf past Messina. Matheson recorded eight points in just nine games this season. Bowdoin players were sent to the penalty box with 3:50 remaining and again with 2:37 left in the period, but the Continentals couldn't take advantage of 47 seconds of a 5-on-3 power play.
Hamilton hung on to its one-goal lead deep into the third period. The Polar Bears came out firing and hit a pair of posts, including a shot that Lockwood rifled off the post with 11:30 remaining.
MacGregor's second goal of the season with 8:00 left finally tied the score again for the Polar Bears. He received the puck between the circles, snapped a wrist shot that deflected off the crossbar straight down and the puck trickled over the goal line.
McGarry tallied the game-winner on his fifth goal with 3:49 remaining. After a neutral zone faceoff, McGarry took a low, hard slap shot from beyond the blue line that skipped through Quattrocchi's five-hole. Lockwood clinched the victory as he scored on an empty net with 45 seconds left for his ninth goal. Bowdoin took just five shots in the period.
The Polar Bears, who enjoyed a 36-19 shot advantage, lead the NESCAC with 4.38 goals per game. The Continentals were 0-for-4 on the power play.
