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http://www.pressherald.com/sports/college/hockey/030307umhock.shtml

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                     Friday, March 7, 2003

                                            One minute, man: UMass, 5-3


                        By   KEVIN THOMAS, Portland Press Herald Writer

                      Copyright  2003 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc.





 ORONO  --  University of Maine forward Gray Shaneberger tied the game early in the third period. Here come the Black Bears, the cheering Alfond Arena thought. This veteran Maine team knows what playoff hockey is all about, and it doesn't lose at home, especially to the University of Massachusetts.

   Um . . . never mind.

   Just 18 seconds after Shaneberger's score, UMass freshman forward Stephen Jacobs wristed in the winner at 1:54, providing the Minutemen a huge 5-3 victory in the Hockey East quarterfinals Thurs- day night before 3,500 at Alfond Arena.

   UMass added an empty-netter to seal the win and take a 1-0 lead in this best-of-three series. The two teams play tonight at 7 at Alfond Arena. If Maine wins tonight, Game 3 will be here Saturday night.

   The Alfond crowd filed out stunned Thursday. The Black Bears (24-8-5) had never lost a league playoff game at Alfond Arena, and they had never been beaten by UMass (18-16-1) on their home ice. Thursday was the Minutemen's first-ever quarterfinal win.

   "Disappointing, obviously," said Maine Coach Tim Whitehead. "I liked the things we did, but we did not do them thorough enough."

   UMass outshot Maine, 27-26. Maine made turnovers or lost faceoffs at the wrong time. Also, goalie Jimmy Howard (nine saves on 12 shots) was not on his game and was yanked when UMass took a 3-1 lead early in the second period.

   With the loss, fourth-ranked Maine continued a trend that is bordering on the ridiculous. The Black Bears have now lost the first game of a series for six straight weeks.

   "We got to come out every night to play, not every other night," said Shaneberger. "We claw our way back, tie it up and then . . . this is frustrating, on our home ice."

   Maine went ahead 1-0 on a 5-on-3 power play, with Martin Kariya tapping in Lucas Lawson's feed at 8:07.

   Howard, who shut out the Minute- men when they played here last November, looked sharp and stopped a point-blank blast from Mike Warner.

   But at 12:19, UMass broke through with a seeing-eye slap shot by Dustin Demianiuk, which deflected off a skate and past Howard.

   Then, 92 seconds later, Howard gave up a softie. Matthew Anderson sent in a harmless backhand from within the blue line. Howard tried to flick it away, but the puck bounced off his stick and over his shoulder for a 2-1 UMass lead.

   Maine and Howard got a scare later in the period when Greg Mauldin's blast almost sneaked through his pads.

   It did get scary in the second period. Howard left the puck behind his net when he should have cleared it away. UMass got control and centered it, where Peter Trovato swatted it in at 2:54.

   That prompted the entrance of Frank Doyle.

   "We had to do something to jump-start the team," Whitehead said.

   John Ronan closed Maine to 3-2 at 9:47. With fellow forwards Robert Liscak and Paul Lynch screening, Ronan sneaked one by Gabe Winer.

   That score energized Maine and the Alfond crowd, but UMass weathered the storm.

   Shaneberger got the crowd back into it at 1:36 of the third period, blasting a shot from the slot to tie it, 3-3.

   But then Jacobs beat Doyle on a shot from deep in the right circle.

   "He had a bad angle and I thought he was going to pass it," Doyle said. "I let the team down. Now I have to forget about it."

   The entire Maine team has to forget about it.

   NOTES: Two of the other Hockey East quarterfinal series openers were postponed Thursday because of bad weather. The Boston University at Providence and Merrimack at Boston College series will start tonight. Over 1,000 tickets are available for tonight's Maine game. Call the ticket office (1-800-756-TEAM) for more information.

   Staff Writer Kevin Thomas can be contacted at 791-6411 or at: [log in to unmask]