Behind four third-period goals, the Mids gave first-year head coach Mike Fox his first-ever collegiate hockey victory. Senior Nick Schwob scored the initial goal in the brand new facility, while senior Brian Gleason garnered the first penalty on the Olympic-sized ice surface.
"I think this is a great start for us," said Fox, who took over as head coach after assisting former head coach Rick Randazzo for six years. "We have a young team with some great returning leaders and we have a brand new rink. I think this facility is gorgeous. With the additions they still have to complete, it can only get better."
In front of an estimated crowd of 800, Navy got the scoring started when Schwob took a pass from junior John Patrick Culliton from behind the net and quickly deposited it in the back of the net with 7:29 gone in the opening period. With just 44 seconds gone in the second period, junior defenseman Matt Swezey converted a pass from Schwob and wristed one from the high slot on the power play to make it 2-0.
The Terps knotted the game with goals by Ryan Kucinski and Sean Gerding (Bowie). Joe Cullinan and Andrew DeVore (South River) assisted on the Kucinski goal.
The Midshipman used the spacious ice surface to their advantage by scoring four times in the final period. Swezey tallied his second goal of the game, unassisted, with the Mids holding a two-man advantage. Schwob netted his second seven minutes later on another two-man Navy advantage. Schwob turned passes from sophomore Andrew Ochalek and Swezey into the eventual game-winner.
Schwob added to the night of firsts with the first-ever hat trick in McMullen Rink by stealing a clearing attempt between the circles and beating Maryland netminder Bryan Barr high to the glove side.
Cullinan scored his second of the game for the Terps with 2:23 remaining, but sophomore Alex Wallis added the finishing touch by scoring with less than four seconds left. Junior Charlie Daniel and junior Jeff Dubinsky were credited with the assists on the final Navy goal.
Navy sophomore goalkeeper Eric Anderson stopped 30 shots on goal, while facing 12 short-handed situations.
"Eric is an awesome goalie," Fox said. "He did a tremendous job of cutting the angles and limiting his rebounds tonight. We were really impressed with what he was doing and I think he'll be a big help for us."
In two weeks, Navy opens up play in the new Eastern States Collegiate Hockey League by traveling to Kingston, R.I. for a two-game series against The University of Rhode Island. Other members of the newly formed league include former Eastern Collegiate Hockey Association rivals Drexel and Scranton, as well as the always tough Delaware and perennial club power Penn State. The Mids will play four games against each league team, with two being away and two being at home.
"I think we will give everybody in our league a good battle," Fox said. "We should be very competitive with all the teams. If certain things hold up for us, we could surprise some people. We're probably be one of the sleeper, underdogs in the league, But we will build on tonight and go from there."