Hockey Taken Down by Niagara 4-2

Saturday, December 3

West Point, NY

4:00 PM

Army West Point

5-8-2, 4-4-1

Niagara University

9-4-1, 5-4-1

Niagara

Army West Point

Hockey Taken Down by Niagara 4-2

December 03, 2022 | Hockey

Box Score

WEST POINT, N.Y. - Army West Point hockey (5-8-2, 4-4-1 AHA) fell to Niagara (9-4-1, 5-4-1 AHA) by a score of 4-2 on Saturday afternoon to split the two-game set with one win apiece.

Army fell behind 3-0 in the second period, before battling back to make it a one-goal game in the third. Seniors Noah Wilson and Thomas Farrell scored the goals for the Black Knights, while Gavin Abric made 33 saves to keep Army in the game throughout.

After being held scoreless last night, Niagara came out on the front foot from the opening whistle. The Purple Eagles took the lead less than five minutes in, with Casey Carreau lighting the lamp with a shot from the right circle. After each team killed off a penalty, Niagara extended its lead with 5:20 to play in the period.

Jason Pineo cleaned up on the doorstep after the puck had pinballed in front of Abric off multiple skaters to give Niagara the two-goal advantage heading into the second period. 3:25 into the second frame, Niagara pulled ahead by three with a goal from Ryan Naumovski. The game would go quite a few minutes without 5-on-5 play, with Niagara taking a five-minute major while on the power-play, which was quickly answered with another penalty taken by Army.

With Army finally getting a 5-on-4 opportunity from the major, Noah Wilson scored off a rebound from up close after a shot from Michael Sacco gave Wilson the opportunity on the rebound. Army took momentum into third period, after outshooting Niagara 16-14 in a penalty-filled second period.

Gavin Abric kept it a two-goal game with multiple saves early in the third, and Army eventually answered with an even strength goal to cut the lead to one. With 10:53 to play, Anthony Firriolo fed Thomas Farrell who moved to his backhand and fired a perfectly placed shot just over the blocker of Chad Veltri for his third goal of the campaign.

Immediately following a four-on-four spell following the goal, Niagara answered back with a goal to make it a 4-2 game with 8:44 to play. Army's comeback effort fell short, as the Black Knights took another penalty in the closing minutes and were unable to score after pulling Abric with a couple of minutes left to play.

INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

Thomas Farrell assisted on Army's first goal before scoring the second, giving him a three-point weekend and his second multi-point game of the season.
Michael Sacco assisted on both Army goals, giving him three multi-point efforts so far this season.
Noah Wilson scored his third goal of the season to get Army on the board, giving the senior three points across his past five outings.
Anthony Firriolo collected an assist in both games of the series, moving him into a tie for the team-lead with 13 points.
Gavin Abric maade 33 stops in goal for the Black Knights.
John Keranen won 12 of 17 draws in the faceoff circle (70.5%).

Coach's Corner

.@Coach_BRiley reaction to tonight's game and the outlook for next week's series at Mercyhurst #GoArmy pic.twitter.com/LWnrcRbxur
— Army Hockey (@ArmyWP_Hockey) December 4, 2022