WORCESTER, Mass. – The Holy Cross men's ice hockey team defeated AIC, 3-1, Monday night at the Hart Center Rink in their regular season finale. With the win, Holy Cross claimed their first Atlantic Hockey Regular Season Championship since the 2006 season.
 
Holy Cross finishes the regular season with a 20-12-2 (19-5-2 AHA) record, while AIC finishes at 11-21-2 (9-16-1 AHA).
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Sophomore Will Elias got the Crusaders on the board with his fifth goal of the season with 3:16 to play in the period. With the defense focused on senior Liam McLinskey, McLinskey dropped the puck to an open Elias at the far faceoff dot for the one-timer past the unsuspecting goaltender.
• Quick passing on the power play in the second period led to a 2-0 lead with 12:31 to play on a one-timer in the slot by freshman Matt Kursonis. Sophomore Mack Oliphant pulled the defense to the left side of the ice before dropping a pass to McLinskey against the right side boards, who sent one-time pass to Kursonis in the middle for the shot.
• Sophomore Jack Stockfish extended the lead to 3-0 with 13:01 left in the third, taking the puck for a ride around the offensive zone before finding a lane to send a wrist shot over the shoulder of the Yellowjackets' netminder.
• AIC spoiled the shutout with 8:51 to go in regulation, though it proved to be the only time they would find the back of the net.

 
BEYOND THE BOX:

• Senior Thomas Gale recorded 24 saves in the contest. Gale now owns 20 wins on the season, which leads Atlantic Hockey and is the fourth-highest mark in the nation. The last Holy Cross netminder to reach 20+ wins was Tony Quesada, who recorded 22 in the famed 2005-06 season.
• With his three assists tonight, McLinskey moved into a tie for fifth in the nation with 43 points on the season.

 
UP NEXT:

• As the no. 1 overall seed, Holy Cross will await the results of the first round of the Atlantic Hockey Playoffs on Saturday, March 1, to see who they will host during the Atlantic Hockey Quarterfinal Round.
• The best-of-three Quarterfinal round begins on Friday, March 7 at 7 p.m. at the Hart Center, and tickets are available for purchase now!

 
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