Ice Hockey

By Jim Fenton, The Enterprise


Whitman resident Anthony Chighisola has gotten his college hockey career off to a successful start.

The Franklin Pierce University freshman forward leads his team in goals and is second in assists and points through 14 games at the New Hampshire school.

Chighisola, a 2007 graduate of Archbishop Williams High who spent one year at prep school, was named the Northeast-10 Conference freshman of the week on Monday for the third time this season.

In three games, Chighisola had three goals and three assists, getting the hat trick in a 4-0 win over Southern New Hampshire and assisting on all three goals in a 10-3 loss to Curry.

Chighisola, who was also honored on Nov. 12 and Dec. 8, leads the Ravens with nine goals and is second with six assists and 15 points. The center has adjusted to the college game rather quickly, earning prime playing time for Franklin Pierce.

"I knew it was going to be a lot quicker and faster and it has been,'' said Chighisola. "In high school, I was more of a do-it-all type of player, going end-to-end. Here, you have to learn to play both sides, offense and defense.

"I didn't play much defense in high school. Here, you get benched if you don't do it right, and I've been benched a couple of times already.''

Chighisola led Williams in scoring three consecutive years, and he continues to have a knack for finding the net.

There have been key goals scored by Chighisola during the season. He had the game-winning score in the third period when Franklin Pierce edged Morrisville, 3-2, and sent two games into overtime with third-period goals.

In the season opener, Chighisola made it 2-2 against Westfield State College, and his power-play goal with 1:16 remaining created a tie against Western New England College.

"I used to get a lot of hat tricks in high school, but it's a lot tougher to score in this league,'' he said. "I'm still scoring a point a game. I knew I could do that, but I didn't know it would come that quick.

"There's only room for improvement. I think I can be a lot better and get quicker as a player.''