WORCESTER, Mass. – Men's ice hockey defeated Air Force, 5-2, Saturday night at the Hart Center Rink to complete its weekend sweep and extend its win streak to five games. With the win, Holy Cross moves to 16-11-4 (11-9-3 Atlantic Hockey), while Air Force falls to 14-15-1 (11-8-1 Atlantic Hockey).
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Senior Lucas Thorne put the Crusaders on the board with 7:43 remaining in the opening frame, picking up a loose puck off a shot by junior Matt Shatsky that was blocked.
• Air Force tied the game with a power play goal at the 9:21 mark of the second period.
• With 27.8 seconds remaining in the middle frame, freshman Jack Stockfish regained the lead with a power play strike. Senior Tyler Ghirardosi wrestled the puck along the boards to senior Matt Guerra, who was able to find an open Stockfish for the one-time shot for the lead going into the break.
• The Falcons tied the game back up with 6:47 remaining in the third period.
• Wrestling the puck into the offensive zone, Stockfish sent a quick pass to McLinskey that the defense poked away, though Stockfish was able to kick the puck to Ghirardosi in the middle of the ice for the one-time wrist shot, sending it bar-down over the Air Force netminder's shoulder with five minutes remaining.
•  With 2:39 remaining in the period, Air Force pulled their goaltender in favor of the extra attacker. 35 seconds later, Ghirardosi and Stockfish forced an Air Force turnover in the defensive zone, passing the puck to McLinskey for the long shot into the empty net.
• After winning the next faceoff, Air Force pulled their netminder again. A minute later, on the ensuing faceoff, Stockfish won the draw back to Ghirardosi, who sent the long shot into the open net for the final goal.

 
BEYOND THE BOX:

• Senior Jason Grande recorded 31 saves in the win, while Air Force's Guy Blessing made 29 saves in the loss.
• Stockfish finished the weekend with seven points (2g-5a), while Ghirardosi recorded six over the two games (4g-2a).
• The Crusaders extended their win streak to five games and have outscored opponents 26-12 over the stretch.

 
UP NEXT:

• Holy Cross will take a week off before returning to the Hart Center Rink to host Sacred Heart on Feb. 16 at 7 p.m.

 
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