AHSTON, PA – The Utica College men’s hockey team led 5-1 6:58 into the second period but host Neumann University rallied with four consecutive goals as the ECAC West Conference opponents skated to a 5-5 overtime tie on Saturday night. Utica senior forward Louie Educate (Chicago, IL/Aberdeen (NAHL)) led the Pioneers with one goal and two assists.
Utica led 5-3 late in the third period until the Knights rallied with two goals in the final 1:26 of action to send the contest into overtime. Joey Mullin scored the game’s final two goals in the third period with 1:26 left and 12 seconds left, respectively. Neumann outshot Utica 7-3 in the five minute overtime period but Pioneer goalie Dylan Wells (Nashville, TN/Bonnyville (AJHL)) made all seven saves to preserve the 5-5 tie.
Utica jumped out to a 3-1 lead in the first period behind goals from senior Peter LaFosse (Merrimack, NH/Kimball Union Academy), freshman Dalton Carter (Toledo, OH/Northern Cyclones (EHL)) and junior assistant captain Joel Wetmore (Horseheads, NY/Lindsay (OJHL)). The three Pioneer goals came in a span of just 5:12. With UC trailing 1-0, LaFosse tallied his sixth goal of the season to knot the score at 1-1 off assists from Max Bartell (Rome, NY/Walpole (EHL)) and Jide Idowu (Copper City, FL/Carleton Place (CCHL)). Just 46 seconds later Carter scored his fourth goal of the season to give the Pioneers their first lead of the game, 2-1. Educate assisted on Carter’s goal. Wetmore then wrapped up the first period scoring with his fifth goal of the season, off assists from Educate and freshman Vinny Stefan (Pittsburgh, PA/Kenai River (NAHL)), to hand the Pioneers a 3-1 lead after 20 minutes of action.
Utica continued to pour it on early in the second period when junior Nick Miglio (San Antonio, TX/Bismarck (NAHL)) netted his third goal of the season just 2:04 into the stanza. Sophomore Trent Samuels-Thomas (West Hartford, CT/Omaha (USHL)) and sophomore Luc Boby (Chicago, IL/Kalamazoo (NAHL)) assisted on the goal that goal UC a 4-1 lead. Educate then gave the Pioneers a four goal advantage 4:54 later when he netted he team-high 10th goal of the season of an assist from Carter to give UC a commanding 5-1 lead.
Neumann’s charge began late in the second period when Mike Davis scored his first of two goals to make it a 5-2 game with 5:03 left in the second.
The third period proved to be all Neumann as the Knights outshot the Pioneers 15-7 in the final 20 minutes of regulation. Davis got his second of the night and sixth of the year just 15 seconds into the third to make the score 5-3.
After a scoreless 18:19 of third period action Neumann’s Jory Mullin exploded with two clutch goals to send the contest into overtime. His first of the night came with 1:26 remaining to make it a 5-4 game. Davis’s game-tying goal came with just 12 seconds left and was unassisted.
Utica is now 8-6-4 overall and 1-5-2 in ECAC West action and the Pioneers will travel to Manhattanville next Friday to take on the Valiants at 7 p.m. Neumann’s record moved to 9-5-4 overall and 5-2-1 in conference play.
Wells finished the evening with 37 saves in net for the Pioneers as his record moved to 6-3-3 overall on the year. Ben Curley and Matt Gibney combined for 26 saves in net for the Knights
