John Littlepage scores on Yale's Daniel Kelly

No. 11 Texas Brands No. 18 Yale 12-6 in Final Game of National Collegiate Club Championship First Round

GAINESVILLE, Fla. -- John Littlepage (Gr., Trinidad) ripped in six goals to power No. 11-nationally ranked University of Texas to a 12-6 victory over No. 18 Yale University in the final game of the opening round at the 2009 Men's National Collegiate Club Championship at the University of Florida.

Texas advances to face No. 5 Michigan State University in the second round on Saturday, November 14 at 9:00 a.m. with a berth in the semifinals at stake, while Yale falls into a consolation game against 9:50 p.m. later this evening versus No. 10 and host University of Florida.

Tied 1-1 with 4:46 left to play in the first period the Longhorns stampeded out to a lead they would never relinquish as Littlepage buried a penalty shot at 3:42 before talllying natural goals at 3:26 and 44 seconds on counter attacks while Matt Johnson (Jr., Houston, Texas) added a counter goal of his own at the 1:46 mark to give Texas a 5-1 lead after a period of play.

The lead continued to expand to open the second period as Littlepage kissed a shot off the bar and into the cage at the 6:45 mark before Bryan Byrnes (Jr., San Antonio, Texas) tacked on a man-advantage goal with 5:03 remaining in the first half for a 7-1 lead. 

David Skophammer (So., Los Angeles, Calif.) trimmed the margin back to five goals before the halftime horn as he scored a goal with 55 seconds remaining in the second period to set the score at 7-2 as the teams returned to their respective benches for the break.

Texas put the game away in the third period with advantage (5:45) and natural (:38) goals by Littlepage and a successful penalty shot by Jackson Gould (Fr., Houston, Texas) at 5:05 to go ahead 11-2 and never look back.

Overall, Gould and Johnson both finished the game with a pair of markers, while Kieran Kapila (Fr., Woodlands, Texas) and Byrne registered single tallies to account for the Longhorns' scoring.

For Yale, Skophammer led the Bulldogs with a pair of goals, while Paul Orland (So., St. Louis, Mo.), Andrew Nelson (Fr., Baltimore, Md.), Andrew Gordon (Jr., Orlando, Fla.) and Thomas Lazzarini (Jr., San Marino, Calif.) added single scores.

In cage, Daniel Kelly (Fr., Greenwich, Conn.) registered four saves for Yale, while Hunter Henderson (Sr., Dallas, Texas) notched the victory for the Burnt Orange and White with nine saves.

Yale Goals: David Skophammer (2); Paul Orland; Andrew Nelson; Andrew Gordon; Thomas Lazzarini

Texas Goals: John Littlepage (6); Jackson Gould (2); Matt Johnson (2); Kieran Kapila; Brian Byrne

Saves: Yale - Daniel Kelly (4) ; Texas - Hunter Henderson (9)

Exclusions: Yale - 6 ; Texas - 5

Advantage Opportunities: Yale - 2-for-5 ; Texas - 3-for-6

Sprints: Yale - 1-for-4 ; Texas - 3-for-4