Hockey Uses Six-Goal Second Period to Beat Dartmouth at Home, 8-3

Sunday, October 30

West Point, NY

2:00 PM

Army West Point

1-5-1

Dartmouth College

0-2-0

Dartmouth

Army West Point

Hockey Uses Six-Goal Second Period to Beat Dartmouth at Home, 8-3

October 30, 2022 | Hockey

Box Score

WEST POINT, N.Y. - Army West Point hockey (1-5-1, 0-3-0 AHA) used six goals in the second period to take down Dartmouth (0-2-0, 0-1-0 ECAC) 8-3 on Sunday afternoon at Tate Rink.

Michael Sacco led the way with a pair of goals and an assist, including a shorthanded tally while Thomas Farrell also collected three points on the afternoon. Gavin Abric registered a season-high 37 saves while holding Dartmouth to just one goal through the first 50+ minutes of play.

Army was able to score first for the first time this season, by way of a two-on-one breakaway with Reese Farrell and Michael Sacco. Farrell played Sacco over on the right circle, with the sophomore beating Cooper Black in goal to give te Black Knights a lead.

Headed to the power play later in the period, Max Itagaki and Anthony Firriolo traded passes before Firriolo fired a wrist shot into the cage for his first goal of the season. Abric made 11 saves in the first frame, with Dartmouth's best chances coming very early on as the Cadets took a 2-0 lead into the second period.

The Big Green responded immediately out of the locker room, stunning Army with a goal less than thirty seconds into the period. At the 2:45 mark, Stephen Willey poked the puck off a Dartmouth skater's stick in the Army attacking zone, finding Trevor Smith with a head of steam towards goal. Smith took the one-on-one opportunity with the Dartmouth netminder and fired in his first collegiate goal to restore the two-goal advantage.

Just getting started in the period, Noah Wilson got in on the action with a wrist shot at the 6:14 mark to extend Army's lead and give the Army defenseman his third career goal. Dartmouth would have an opportunity to climb back into the game with a power play midway through the period, but hopes of a comeback quickly faded when Michael Sacco scored his second shorthanded goal of the season to give Army a commanding 5-1 lead. Thomas Farrell flicked a pass to Sacco on the break, and with Ricky Lyle on his left, Sacco took the honors himself and fired a shot into the top left corner.

With all the momentum on their home ice, Army continued to pour in the goals. Off a faceoff in the Dartmouth zone, Jake Felker won the draw with Lucas Kanta immediately firing a one-time shot for his second goal in as many games. At the 17:43 mark, Thomas Farrell would net his first goal of the campaign to make it a 7-1 game. After Firriolo poked the puck to Sacco, Sacco skated into the Big Green zone before laying off a perfect pass to the trailing Army captain who found the finish with a high-velocity wrist shot.

Adding one more for good measure, Wilson skated in on the right hand-side before offloading to Ricky Lyle who lifted a back-handed finish into the top of the cage. Army took a commanding seven-goal lead into the third period. Nursing the big lead in the final period, Dartmouth added a pair of goals to bring the final score to 8-3.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

Michael Sacco had a career-high three points with two goals and an assist. Sacco scored his second shorthanded goal of the season, joining Davis Burnside of Ohio State as the only players to score multiple goals while on the penalty kill this season.
Gavin Abric made a season-high 37 saves to pick up his first win of the season.
Lucas Kanta has scored in back-to-back games after lighting the lamp against Dartmouth and AIC.
Max Itagaki extended his point streak to four games with a primary helper on Firriolo's power-play goal.
Thomas Farrell scored his first goal of the season and skated to a +4 rating, a season-high for any Cadet this season. Farrell added a pair of assists to tab a career-high three points.
Anthony Firriolo scored his first goal of the campaign while recording his third multi-point effort of the season. Firriolo leads all Black Knights with eight points this season.
Noah Wilson scored the game-winning goal for Army while registering his second career multi-point game.
Ricky Lyle logged his first multi-point game of the season, scoring his first goal as part of Army's second period surge.
Trevor Smith recorded his first career goal with Stephen Willey providing the assist for his first collegiate point.
Army's six goals in the second period marked the fifth time in Atlantic Hockey history that a team has scored six in a single period, with the record of seven been set twice.

Coach's Corner

?? @Coach_BRiley on Army bouncing back for an 8-3 victory over Dartmouth at Tate Rink#GoArmy pic.twitter.com/rP0iFCYZou
— Army Hockey (@ArmyWP_Hockey) October 30, 2022

Cadet's Corner

?? Mikey Sacco on the team's effort and contributions from plebes after Army's win over Dartmouth#GoArmy pic.twitter.com/CVFf3MFg5S
— Army Hockey (@ArmyWP_Hockey) October 30, 2022

Up Next
Army will host Lindenwood for a two-game non-conference series at Tate Rink next weekend. Puck will drop at 7:00 on Friday, November 4th with a 4:00 start on Saturday, November 5th.

For complete coverage of Army West Point hockey follow the Black Knights on Twitter & Instagram @ArmyWP_Hockey and at www.goarmywestpoint.com.