2008 Woodie Awards
Men's ice hockey season ends in semi finals
Todd Herrmann
Issue date: 3/9/07 Section: Sports
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Arthur Fritch '08 scored the first goal of the game, giving Colby a 1-0 lead with 6:43 left in the first period. But Middlebury would score two goals before the end of the period, and the game went into the first intermission with Middlebury leading 2-1. Four minutes and twenty seconds into the second period, Joe Rothwell '08 scored, briefly tying the game at two. Only twenty seconds later, though, Middlebury reclaimed the 3-2 lead. One minute and three seconds after that, Fritch tallied his second goal of the game, evening the score once again.
The game would remain tied 3-3 for the rest of the period. But with just under six minutes left in the game, Middlebury scored their fourth goal, and a relentless Colby attack could not get the equalizer. A Colby power play during the last minute provided some close opportunities, but the back of the net could not be found, and the season ended in disappointment for the school, the team, and mostly the three seniors on the team, Captain Greg Osborne '07, Ben Grandjean '07 and Patrick Rutherford '07, whose last game at Colby ended in defeat. But one must have some perspective, and a season in which the team finished third in the conference regular season, was in contention for first place going into the last day, and made the NESCAC semifinals only to lose to the reining NCAA champions, can and must also be seen as successful.
In the other NESCAC semifinal, regular season conference champion Bowdoin College defeated Amherst College 6-3, setting up a NESCAC final between the top two teams from the regular season on Sunday. Bowdoin had the home ice advantage but could not handle Middlebury, who took a 4-2 victory and won their fourth consecutive NESCAC championship. They have won seven of the eight NESCAC championships since the tournament was born in 2000. The win gives Middlebury the NESCAC's automatic bid to the NCAA tournament, where they have been crowned national champions the past three years.
The weekend also marked the announcement of conference award winners, where there was some good news for Colby. Osborne was voted NESCAC Player of the Year, leading the league with 40 points, 21 goals and 11 power play goals. He scored goals in 12 of Colby's 14 wins, and was held scoreless in six of their eight losses. He had four separate four point games. He is the first player to win the award for Colby. He ends his Colby career with 104 points. He was also named to the All-Conference First Team for the first time in his career, along with defenseman Fritch who led all defensemen and was second overall in points with 35. Fritch was on the All-Conference Second Team last season. Josh Reber '08 was named to the second team for Colby.
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