Gulls net two hockey all-stars

March 4, 2009

BEVERLY, Mass. - Senior forward Chris Linnehan (East Longmeadow, Mass.) and junior defenseman Mike Vacca (North Reading, Mass.) have been named to the NECHA All-Stars as announced by the NECHA League Offices on Wednesday. The two Gulls helped lead Endicott to an 11-10-2 overall record including an appearance in the NECHA Semifinals.

This was Chris Linnehan's first All-Star selection as the senior had a team-high 29 points for the Gulls this season. In 22 games played, Linnehan was able to tally a team-high 19 goals while dishing out 10 assists. The forward was able to score a pair of goals and have three assists en route to Endicott's dominating 8-1 victory over UMass in the NECHA Quarterfinals.

Junior Mike Vacca was also selected to his first All-Star team. The defenseman netted 12 points this season including three goals to go along with nine assists in 21 games played. Vacca was the anchor of a defense that stymied opposing offenses into just scoring 3.45 goals per game.

The Gulls wrapped up their season with a 5-1 loss in the NECHA Semifinals against the University of Connecticut. Endicott was able to improve on its 2007-08 season as the Gulls picked up one more victory and moved onto the NECHA Semifinals for the first time since 2004-05.