Lexi Harbach

Battle of the birds. The FGCU Eagles took on the Bentley Falcons in Hertz Arena the weekend of Oct. 18-19. The Eagles’ Friday night game resulted in a 6-4 loss, but they redeemed themselves on Saturday, defeating the Falcons 3-2. This brought their overall record to 4-3.

Just over a minute after the puck drop, forward Tiernan Curley scored Bentley’s first goal. The Falcons kept the momentum and scored their second goal in the tenth minute. Defenseman Marc Frateschi’s goal resulted from a power play with forward Carson Engelmann in the penalty box. 

With the Falcons’ defenseman, Matt Gallagher in the penalty box; Chris Guyette’s penalty expired and just a few seconds later Eagles’ forward Jake Court sent the puck into the goal. Forward Andrew Castello followed this up with a goal of his own to send both teams into the second period tied, 2-2. 

Bentley’s goalie, Joey Purtell, blocked all 21 of FGCU’s attempted shots in the second period. Bentley put the puck in the net for three of their eight shots on goal at the other end of the rink. The three goals were completed by forward Cameron Fici in the third minute, Frateschi on a power play, followed by forward Logan Flynn.

Falcons’ forward Dillon Benoit maximized on a power play from defenseman Aiden McCarthy’s penalty. As the Eagles felt the pressure of 6-2 on the scoreboard, they fought hard. Earning his first goal of the season, FGCU forward Ryan O’Halloran, scored. While Eagles fans stood to celebrate O’Halloran, Court hit the puck back 36 seconds later. A notable fifth goal of the season for Court. 

In the final minute, the Eagles pulled their goalie with the hope that an extra player in the attacking zone would help close the gap. Despite the 51 shots on goal, the Falcons outscored the Eagles with a final of 6-4.

FGCU shook off Friday’s loss, securing a 3-2 win against Bentley back at Hertz Arena, on Saturday, Oct. 19.

The Eagles started the game with a goal by forward James Tilley, six minutes into the first period. There were no penalties for either team in the first period, compared to three in period one Friday night. FGCU headed into the locker room leading 1-0. 

Bentley’s Cooper Connell tied FGCU as the only goal of period two. This set the tone for an overall fast-paced game because of the game’s lack of penalties and scoring.

The Falcons’ second goal of the game was scored by Fici on a power play, giving the Falcons the lead. Forward Shayne Tomlinson evened the score with less than four minutes left of the game clock. Tomlinson shot again 32 seconds later, giving the Eagles the advantage, and attaining his fifth goal of the season. 

“Shayne Tomlinson, one of our assistant captains, was at fault a bit on their second goal, and he knew I wasn’t happy with him,” FGCU coach Eric Mabie. “And then the kind of player he is, he responded well and was able to go ahead and get two goals.” 

Paolo Suppa successfully defended the Eagles’ goal in the remaining minutes to secure the 3-2 win.

“It’s a win that we needed,” Mabie said. “It’s a win that I felt that we deserved. We’re changing some things within our game right now to implement throughout the rest of the season. So, there’s some growing pains. However, we like the direction that we’re going.”