ERIE, Pa. – No. 20 Colgate mounted a furious third-period rally to erase a four-goal deficit, but Mercyhurst scored twice in the final 1:17 to pull out a 9-7 victory in collegiate men’s ice hockey action Sunday at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.
Down 7-3 late in the third period, the Raiders tallied four goals in a span of 3:20 to draw level at 7-7.
Senior Mike Borkowski started the rally, netting an extra attacker goal at the 14:56 mark before junior Derek Freeman potted his second goal of the contest with a shorthanded effort 77 seconds later to make it 7-5.
Borkowski completed his hat trick with an even-strength marker with 17:43 elapsed and junior Brett Corkey capped the comeback with the Raiders second extra attacker goal of the frame with 2:17 to play in the period.
The Lakers were able to recover and avoid overtime, regaining their lead just 27 seconds following Corkey’s equalizer when Jonathan Charbonneau put one into the cage with 77 seconds to play. Mercyhurst added an empty net goal to determine the final margin.
After a wild first period that saw the two teams exchange six goals in a span of 11:43, Mercyhurst scored three goals during the middle frame to take a 6-3 lead.
The Lakers expanded their margin to four, 7-3, with a power play goal early in the third, setting up the game’s dramatic finish.
Bottom Line
Mercyhurst 9, No. 20 Colgate 7
Won-Lost Records
– No. 20 Colgate saw its record evened at 1-1.
– Mercyhurst leveled its mark at 1-1.
Key Raider Info
– Borkowski became the first Raider to record a hat trick since senior Darcy Murphy netted three goals in a 5-2 win over St. Lawrence on March 15, 2014.
– Freeman turned in his first multi-goal game as a Raider. His three goals this weekend are more than his career total in his first 56 games as a Raider (2).
– Corkey and sophomore Sebastain Weberg both netted their first collegiate tallies during the contest. Weberg recorded his first goal as a Raider with a power play tally in the first period.
– Senior Tyson Spink matched his career high with three assists, moving him just five points away from reaching the 100-point plateau for his career (95). It marked the third time in his career that he has recorded three assists in a game.
– Sophomore Mike Panowyk notched a pair of third-period assists for his first career multi-point game.
– Newcomer Rory McGuire made his collegiate debut in the contest. He recorded an assist on Derek Freeman’s first-period tally.
‘Gate One Timers
– Colgate slipped to 34-4-1 since the start of the 2013-14 season when scoring three or more goals in a contest.
– The Raiders moved to 1-1 on the season when scoring the first goal of the contest.
– Colgate allowed three or more power play goals for the first time since surrendering three man-advantage tallies in a 3-2 setback at St. Lawrence on Feb. 17, 2012.
– The Raiders tallied seven goals in a game for the first time since a 7-3 victory versus St. Lawrence on Jan. 25, 2014 in Hamilton.
Inside The Box Score
– Colgate out-shot Mercyhurst, 44-35, for the contest. The Raiders held the edge in the first (15-9) and third (15-10) periods while the Lakers enjoyed the edge in the second (11-10).
– Mercyhurst was 3-for-4 on the power play while the Raiders were just 1-for-6 with the man advantage.
– The Raiders held a 45-42 in the faceoff circle. Panowyk was 11-of-16 at the dot to lead Colgate.
– Murphy and Tyson Spink led the Raiders with six shots each.
From the Source
Colgate Head Coach Don Vaughan
(On game)
“It was crazy. I’ve never been part of a game quite like that. We didn’t play well for a large part of the game, but certainly we showed a ton of character coming back to tie the game.
“When you find a way to come back and tie it up like that, only to then give up a goal right after that is very disheartening. There was certainly some good stuff at the end when we battled back and showed a lot of poise and character, but to give it up like we did is something that we’re going to have to get over pretty quickly.”
Up Next
– Colgate completes its three-game road swing Oct. 10 as it travels to Northeastern for a 7 p.m. contest at historic Matthews Arena.
