NIAGARA UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. — Down 2-0 late in the first period, the Niagara men’s hockey team (4-5-0, 4-3-0 AHA) used the momentum from a nullified Holy Cross goal that would’ve made the score 3-0 to fuel a torrid comeback and propel itself to a 6-3 win. The Purple Eagles’ corps of defenders combined for eight points and had a hand in five of the team’s tallies.
Game Recap
- After registering the game’s first two goals, Holy Cross appeared to notch a third with less than four minutes left in the opening period. After review, however, the officials reversed the call and waved off the goal.
- Following the call, Niagara’s energy did a 180 and the team came at Holy Cross hard. The effort did not go unrewarded, as Kris Spriggs cracked the scoresheet to halve the Crusaders’ lead.
- With 4:59 gone in the second, Jared Brandt used a feed from Stephen Kleysen and Ludwig Stenlund to put the game level at 2-2. Brandt’s shot was wide of the mark initially, but the puck hit a Holy Cross defender’s leg and redirected to the back of the net.
- Less than five minutes later, Spriggs tallied again to give Niagara the lead, 3-2. After a turnover in the neutral zone, Spriggs raced to the net and niftily tucked the tally in behind the keeper.
- Noah Delmas scored what proved to be the game-winner later in the second. The defenseman weaved his way through traffic and set off a low wrister that snuck through for Niagara’s fourth of the evening.
- Jon Hill chased the goaltender by bagging the fifth of the night for the Purple Eagles. With 3:14 to play in the second, Hill took a pass from Eric Cooley and Brandt and gave Niagara a three-goal lead. However, Holy Cross responded just 18 seconds later and sent the teams to the dressing room mired in a two-goal game.
- For good measure, Johnny Curran got his first goal of the season 8:16 into the third to put Niagara back up by three again.
Beyond The Boxscore
- Noah Delmas’ three-point night (1 G, 2 A) set a new career mark. His previous high had been two points, which occurred eight times in his career, most recently in the season opener against AIC on October 12.
- The victory snapped a six-game winless streak to Holy Cross in Dwyer Arena. The Crusaders had been 5-0-1 since their last loss on October 14, 2006.
Up Next
- Both teams will be back at Dwyer tomorrow for the series conclusion. The puck will drop at 7 p.m. once again.
