WORCESTER, Mass. – Rochester Institute of Technology junior Brad McGowan netted the game winner 13:23 into overtime as the Holy Cross men's hockey team fell to RIT, 3-2, at the Hart Center on Friday evening in game one of a best two-out-of-three Atlantic Hockey Tournament first round series. With the loss, the Crusaders fall to 12-20-3 overall, while the Tigers advance to 12-18-5 overall and lead the playoff series 1-0. The two teams will continue the first round series on Saturday, March 8 at the Hart Center as the Crusaders look to win and force a game three on Sunday, March 9 at 5:00 p.m.

The RIT defense came out strong in the first period keeping the Crusader shots from reaching the net. Just over three minutes into the game, Tiger senior Nolan Descoteaux skated down making his way inside the Crusader defense and took a shot on junior goalie Matt Ginn (Lindsay, Ontario) to try for the first goal of the contest. Ginn came up with a chest save to keep the game scoreless. At 9:05, the Crusaders got their first shot on net of the game as senior assistant captain Shayne Stockton (Rochester, N.Y.) took a shot on Mike Rotolo from the goal line, but Rotolo stopped the puck. At 9:56, the Crusaders' junior Tommy Dwyer (Ridgefield, Conn.) tried to set up sophomore Joe McNamara (Chestnut Hill, Mass.). Dwyer brought the puck up the ice and sent it across the slot to McNamara in the stick side circle, but Rotolo made a body save and forced a whistle. At 10:23, Greg Noyes brought the first tally to the board. Noyes skated the puck down to the stick side circle of Ginn and from the top of the circle he fired a shot that hit off the post and fell into the net on the far side. While on the power play with less than two minutes remaining in the first period, Stockton tried to set up the game-tier. From the stick side of Rotolo, Stockton crossed the puck to McNamara waiting at the bottom of the crease on the far side. McNamara threw the puck in, but Rotolo came out with a pad save to keep the Tiger lead. Just 17 seconds later at 18:37, the Crusaders scored their first of the game. Freshman Logan Smith (Littleton, Colo.) gave the puck to senior assistant captain Adam Schmidt (Warrington, Pa.) who crossed the puck to a waiting sophomore Brett Lubanski (Farmington Hills, Mich.). Lubanski sent the puck high into the net to tie the game, 1-1. The RIT defense blocked nine shots during the period, and the Tigers outshot the Crusaders 10-7 during the period. The Crusaders converted one of their two power play chances.

The second period brought out the offense in the Tigers, as they mustered up 30 attempted shots including 13 on net. At 2:08 while on the power play, Ben Lynch fired a shot on Ginn from the faceoff circle causing a rebound out that Adam Mitchell tried to convert, but Ginn made an incredible save to keep the game tied. With roughly 10 seconds remaining on the Tiger power play, Noyes took a shot that sophomore Jake Bolton (Ellington, Conn.) blocked out to the stick of Schmidt. Schmidt took the puck up from the neutral zone into the offensive zone and took a backhanded shot on the stick side of Rotolo, but the puck didn't reach the back of the net. At 5:44, the Tigers tried again as Dan Schuler shot the puck high from the middle of Ginn's glove side circle. Ginn started to butterfly and sat into the catch, sniping the puck from the air and stopping the attempt. At 11:41, the Tigers' attempts brought them ahead again. Mitchell sent a wrist shot bar down and brought RIT ahead 2-1. Descoteaux tried to add another goal to the Tiger lead as he pummeled the Crusaders with four straight slap shots from the point, but sophomore Matt Vidal (Manorville, N.Y.), freshman Mike Barrett (Orland Park, Ill.) and McNamara stood their ground and kept the pucks from reaching the net. Vidal made three diving body blocks against Descoteaux during the last 10 minutes of the second period. The Tigers outshot the Crusaders 13-10 during the second and the Tigers could not find the net on either of their two power play chances.

Just under six minutes into the third period, Mike Colavecchia tried to give the Tigers a 3-1 lead. Ginn got caught on another Tiger shot and Colavecchia tried to capitalize on the open section of the net flipping the puck up, but Ginn sprawled out and caught the puck before it could reach the inside of the net. At 6:23, Mitchell tried to score his second of the game when he fired a shot point blank at Ginn, but Ginn made a chest save and held the puck. Vidal set up the game-tier when he sent the puck across behind the net to Stockton. Stockton skated the puck out before sending it to the point to McNamara. From just inside the blue line McNamara sent it back in to Stockton in the stick side circle. Stockton sent a wrist shot sailing into the near side top corner at 12:44. Sophomore Castan Sommer (Shrewsbury, Mass.) tried to give the Crusaders their first lead of the game when at 16:57 he dangled through two defenders and sent a backhanded shot in from the slot on the glove side of Rotolo that was saved. After a Barrett faceoff win, Bolton caught the puck and immediately sent a slapshot in that hit off of Rotolo's mask and went high and out just a minute and a half from the end of regulation. With just 52 seconds remaining, Vidal tried to get a goal of his own sending the puck in from inside of the stick side circle. RIT's Matt Garbowsky tried for a last chance goal with 10 seconds left in the third when he and two other Tigers came down the ice into the Crusader zone. Garbowsky took a shot point blank at Ginn from his stick side and Ginn got his body in the way to force overtime hockey. The Crusaders held the shot advantage in the period 17-12 and neither team was granted a power play chance.

After 12 RIT shots and four Crusader shots in the first 13:22 of overtime, the game ended at 13:23 with a Tiger goal by McGowan. Noyes flipped the puck up from his own blue line and despite Crusader defensive efforts, McGowan caught the puck at the Crusader blue line and broke loose. Ginn skated out to meet McGowan and dove to make the save, but McGowan sent the puck over Ginn into the net to end the game.

Ginn posted 45 saves during the contest while Rotolo made 36. Ginn had a strong showing making 12 saves in each the second, third and overtime periods. The Crusaders dominated from the faceoff circle during the evening going 41-24. Lubanski won his first nine faceoffs of the game and finished the game 12-3 (.800) and eight of the nine players who took faceoffs went at least .500. During the game, the Crusaders blocked 17 shots led by McNamara's four. Ginn's 45 save appearance tied for the sixth most of any Division I goalie at Holy Cross. Schmidt made his 147th appearance in tonight's game, the third most of any player at Holy Cross in a career. Ginn now has 939 saves this season making this season only the second time in program history where a single goalie made over 900 saves after his 994-save season last year.