Junior forward Dave Zelasko scored two goals in a span of 1:17 late in the second period to lift Wentworth to a 2-1 win over Fitchburg State in the opening round of the 2002 ECAC Northeast tournament.
Fitchburg got on the board first as senior forward Jeff Brodeur capitalized on a Wentworth turnover and scored an unassisted, shorthanded tally with 3:20 left in the first period.
Zelasko knotted the game at 1-all, as he took advantage of a Fitchburg State turnover and scored an unassisted, four-on-four goal at 16:16 of the second. One minute and 17 seconds later, he connected on a feed from sophomore defenseman Chris Hartly and gave Wentworth a 2-1 lead it would not relinquish.
Sophomore goalie Raj Bhangoo turned aside 21 of the 22 shots he faced to earn his 12th win of the season. Falcon junior Jason Holt stopped 27 of 29.
With the win, Wentworth improves to 21-5 and advances, for the third consecutive season, to the semifinals of the conference tournament. With Salve Regina upsetting UMass-Dartmouth, 4-3, the Leopards will host one semifinal Wednesday at 8:15 p.m., at Boston University’s Walter Brown Arena. Fitchburg State ends its season with a 15-9-2 record.
