THE BASICS:
Score: Holy Cross 5, Mercyhurst 4
Location: Worcester, Mass. (Hart Center)
Records: Holy Cross: (8-6-0, 7-3-0 AHC); Mercyhurst (8-7-0, 6-3-0 AHC)
Date: Friday, December 4, 2015
Time: 7:05 p.m.
THE LEAD: Junior Mike Barrett (Orland Park, Ill.) led the Crusaders with two goals and sophomore Scott Pooley (Granger, Ind.) tallied a goal and an assist as the Holy Cross men's hockey team defeated Mercyhurst 5-4 on Friday night. The win was the Crusaders' fourth in a row, and they have now won eight of their last 10 contests. Entering tonight's game, the Crusaders and Lakers were tied for second in the AHC standings with 12 points, and tonight's win moves the Crusaders into sole possession of second place. Robert Morris is in first place with 17 points.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
- At 12:50 of the first period, sophomore Danny Lopez (Barrington Hills, Ill.) attempted a wrap around shot and the rebound bounced out to Barrett, who punched it home, yet the play was ruled goaltender interference and overturned after video review.
- With 8:56 remaining in the first period, freshman Peter Crinella (East Longmeadow, Mass.) sent a pass from behind the Mercyhurst net to senior Tim Driscoll (Hingham, Mass.) who wristed a shot from the right circle that found the back of the net high above the glove side of goaltender Brandon Wildung, giving the Crusaders the 1-0 lead.
- At 11:54 of the first period, freshman Michael Laffin (Hopewell Junction, N.Y.) retrieved the puck from behind the net and sent a perfect pass across the crease to Pooley who found the open side to make it 2-0 Crusaders. Sophomore Brett Mulcahy (Kelowna, British Columbia) also recorded an assist on Pooley's goal.
- With 1:06 remaining in the first, as the Crusaders were on the man-advantage, Laffin once again sent a pass across the Mercyhurst crease to Barrett, who punched it in, to give the Crusaders a 3-0 lead.
- The Crusaders outshot the Lakers 12-7 in the first period, while going 1-2 on the power play and the Lakers went 0-1.
- At 15:48 of the second period, Mercyhurst sent a shot from the slot on goal, yet the rebound bounced out to Kyle Dutra, who sent a backhander into the open side, making it 3-1.
- 1:38 later, Josh Lammon sent a pass from the slot to Jack Riley who was posted in the front of the crease, and sent a backhander on goal, beating sophomore goalie Paul Berrafato (Williamsville, N.Y) on the glove side and cutting the lead to 3-2.
- With 11:04 remaining in the second, Pooley dug out a loose puck at the top of the left circle, moved towards the goal and sent a cross-ice pass to Barrett who stickhandled around a defender and beat Wildung high on the blocker side for his second goal of the contest, making it 4-2 for the Crusaders. Sophomore T.J. Moore (Edina, Minn.) recorded an assist on the goal.
- The Crusaders outshot Mercyhurst 14-13 in the second period, and went 1-1 on the man-advantage and Mercyhurst went 0-1.
- With 8:16 remaining in the third period, Mercyhurst cut the lead to 4-3 as Matthew Whittaker sent a cross-ice pass from the right circle to Taylor Best, who sent a shot from the left circle that beat Berrafato on the blocker side.
- With 5:00 remaining in the third period, senior assistant captain Joe McNamara (Chestnut Hill, Mass.) sent a pass from the point to Mulcahy, who spun and sent a backhanded shot from the slot that was deflected by sophomore Ryan Ferrill (Havertown, Pa.) and slid through the pads of Wildung, extending the Crusaders lead to 5-3.
- With 1:34 remaining in the third, and the net empty, Mercyhurst added a goal to make it 5-4, as Lester Lancaster sent a shot on goal from the blue line, that was deflected in front of the net by Josh Lammon, and past Berrafato's stick side.
- With less than 10 seconds remaining in the contest, Lancaster ripped a slap shot from the slot, which ricocheted off Berrafato's mask, as the Crusaders held on for the 5-4 victory as time expired.
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
- Holy Cross outshot Mercyhurst 41-24 in the contest.
- Berrafato recorded 20 saves, to earn the win and improve to 7-4-0 on the season, while Wildung tallied 36 saves.
- Holy Cross went 2-3 on the power play, while Mercyhurst went 0-2.
- Holy Cross won 43 face-offs, while Mercyhurst won 32.
BEYOND THE BOXSCORE:
- The victory is the Crusaders' fourth in a row. The Crusaders have won eight out of their last 10 games, outscoring their opposition 37-24.
- The win over Mercyhurst moves the Crusaders into sole possession of second place in the AHC standings.
- Ferrill's goal was his second game-winner of the season and the third of his career.
- The victory snaps a seven-game losing streak against Mercyhurst.
UP NEXT:
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