WORCESTER, Mass. – The Holy Cross men's ice hockey team defeated No. 20 UConn, 2-1, in game one of the home-and-home series on Friday night at the Hart Center Rink.
 
The two teams played an even, physical first period, with Holy Cross (2-0-0) outshooting the Huskies (1-1-1), 13-9.
 
UConn's Jake Richard opened the scoring 3:51 into the second period on a power play goal. The Huskies lead did not last long as the Crusaders answered just under five minutes later. Sophomore Matt DeBoer fought for a 50/50 puck, with the rebound flying right to senior Matt Guerra who was open in front of the net. Guerra one-timed the free puck through UConn's netminders legs to tie the game at one apiece.
 
Senior Jack Ricketts picked up his first goal of the season, a shorthanded score, 6:32 into the third period to take the 2-1 lead. Junior John Gelatt sent a shot onto net that trickled through the Huskies' goaltender. Open in front of the net, Ricketts pushed the free puck into the net.

The Crusaders' defense tallied 17 blocked shots, with junior Nic Petruolo leading the charge with six.

Senior netminder Jason Grande recorded 22 saves in the win, while UConn's Arsenii Sergeev posted 20 in the loss.
 
The Crusaders will travel to UConn on Saturday, Oct. 14, for the second game of the series. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m.
 
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