There was only one game in Atlantic Hockey this past weekend, but boy, was it a good way – particularly if you’re a fan of the RIT Tigers. The Tigers snapped a five-game losing streak and captured their first win in over a month with an 8-4 victory over the Niagara Purple Eagles on Saturday.

It was a back-and-forth game this past weekend between the Tigers and the Purple Eagles. Jake Hamacher put the Tigers up 1-0 just 1:29 into the game for his first of two goals on the night. RIT would hold that lead until 15:21 into the first period, when Nick Farmer tied it up.

Hamacher regained the lead for RIT just 15 seconds later, but Niagara wouldn’t give up that easily, tying it on a shorthanded tally by Alex Truscott with under two minutes to play in the opening frame.

Andrew Petrucci and Abbott Girduckis scored 1:13 apart early in the second period to put the Tigers up 4-2, but even that lead was only safe for so long. Ludwig Stenlund made it a one-goal game with a power-play goal near the midway point of the game.

From there, it really was RIT’s game to lose. The Tigers scored four goals in the third period, including three empty-netters, en route to the big win. Gabe Valenzuela, Erik Brown, Alden Dupuis and Will Calverley all scored in the final period. Both Dupuis and Calverley scored shorthanded.

Niko Kovachis added a goal for Niagara late in the third, but it wasn’t enough to power the Purple Eagles to a comeback.

Both teams are now done for the calendar year, with Niagara rounding out 2018 on a two-game losing streak. But there’s still plenty of Atlantic Hockey action to come in the final weekend of the year, including a series between Robert Morris and AIC.

There’s also non-conference action to watch for Canisius (Union), Mercyhurst (Ohio State), Air Force (Bemidji State), Army (Dartmouth & Brown) and Bentley (New Hampshire). Holy Cross also takes on the USNTDP on January 1.

Here are the Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Air Force
2. AIC
3. Niagara
4. Army
5. Mercyhurst
6. Robert Morris
7. RIT
8. Sacred Heart
9. Canisius
10. Bentley
11. Holy Cross

The Sacred Heart Pioneers captured a pair of wins over the RIT Tigers this weekend. Elsewhere, Robert Morris and Holy Cross, and Air Force and Mercyhurst, split their respective series. Niagara then split their weekend with Colgate in non-conference action.

AIC, Army, Canisius and Bentley were all inactive this week.

Mike Lee scored the game-winner for Sacred Heart on Friday, as the Pioneers beat the Tigers 4-3 in overtime. Lee also scored in regulation, while Marcel Godbout and Jason Cotton also scored. Ryan Kruper, Adam Brubacher and Alden Dupuis scored for RIT. Josh Benson made 27 saves in the win.

The Pioneers then took a 6-4 win over the Tigers in the rematch Saturday, powered by a trio of third-period goals. The Tigers took an early lead and went up 2-0 on goals by Brubacher and Shawn Cameron, with both goals coming on the man advantage. Sacred Heart got on the board with a shorthanded goal from Matt Tugnutt later in the first period.

Brubacher scored his second of the night, again on the power play. But the Pioneers scored twice in a span of 2:31, with goals coming from Nick Boyagian and Marc Johnstone, to tie the game before the second period was over. Bryston Traptow regained the lead for the Tigers in the back-and-forth game early in the third, but Ruslan Rakhmatov and Austin McIlmurray scored later in the third, with Matt Tugnutt also adding a goal, for the 6-4 win.

Robert Morris shut out Holy Cross 2-0 on Friday, but the teams flipped positions on Saturday with the Crusaders taking the win. Luke Lynch and Michael Coyne had the goals for the Colonials Friday, with Francis Marotte notching a 36-save shutout.

The next night, Michael Laffin notched both goals for the Crusaders in their 2-0 win. Erik Gordon made 26 saves in the shutout victory.

Elsewhere, Air Force shut out Mercyhurst 2-0 Friday before falling to the Lakers 4-1 Saturday. Kyle Haak and Trevor Stone were credited with goals in Friday’s win, while goaltender Billy Christopoulos made 18 saves in the shutout.

The following night, Joseph Duszak registered a pair of goals in Mercyhurst’s victory. Jeremy Wu and Joshua Lammon also scored, with half of the Lakers goals coming shorthanded. Haak had his second goal of the weekend for the lone goal for the Falcons. Garrett Metcalf made 33 saves.

Finally, the Purple Eagles beat Colgate 4-2 on Friday before falling 2-0 Saturday.

Justin Kendall put Niagara up with 34 seconds remaining in the first period. Colgate tied the game, then took the lead, early in the second period. Johnny Curran tied the game for Niagara late in the second with a power-play goal before Reed Robinson gave the Purple Eagles the edge early in the third. Eric Cooley also added a goal in the win.

Here are the Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Air Force
2. AIC
3. Niagara
4. Army
5. Mercyhurst
6. Robert Morris
7. Sacred Heart
8. Canisius
9. RIT
10. Bentley
11. Holy Cross

There is only one Atlantic Hockey game next weekend, with RIT hosting Niagara.

This week in Atlantic Hockey, AIC, Air Force and Mercyhurst all swept their respective series over Holy Cross, RIT and Bentley. Army and Canisius split their series, as did Robert Morris and Sacred Heart. Finally, Niagara dropped a pair of non-conference games.

The Yellow Jackets snagged a 4-3 win over Holy Cross in a mid-week matchup on Tuesday to open their series. Tobias Fladeby scored twice, including the game-winner, while Joel Kocur and Hugo Reinhardt also scored for AIC. Errka Vanska, Ryan Leibold and Neil Robinson scored for the Crusaders. Zackarias Skog registered 13 saves in the win.

AIC then captured a 4-2 win over the Crusaders in the rematch over the weekend. Kyle Stephan, Luka Maver, Blake Christensen and Jared Pike all scored for the Yellow Jackets in their second win of the week. Jack Surowiec and Matt Barry had the goals for Holy Cross. Skog registered 24 saves in his second victory of the week – both of which have helped propel AIC up in the Atlantic Hockey standings, where they now sit second.

Air Force outscored RIT 6-1 over the course of two games this weekend. Although RIT struck first in Friday’s game, the Falcons scored the next three, including one on the man advantage. Kieran Durgan, Evan Feno and Matt Pulver registered goals in Friday’s win, with Dan Willett scoring the lone goal of the weekend for the Tigers.

Feno then added a pair of goals on Saturday, with Evan Giesler also scoring for the Falcons in the 3-0 win. Billy Christopoulos had 48 saves over the course of the two wins, pushing Air Force up to the top of Atlantic Hockey.

Elsewhere, the Lakers nabbed two wins over Bentley, starting with a 5-3 victory Friday powered by a hat trick from Derek Barach. Joshua Lammon and Steven Ipri also scored for the Lakers, who registered a pair of power-play goals. Brendan Hamblet, Drew Callin and Matt Lombardozzi scored in the first period for Bentley, but they couldn’t maintain their momentum and fell.

In the rematch, the Lakers took an early 2-0 lead on two more goals from Barach, but couldn’t hold on Michael Zuffante and Tanner Jago scored on the power-play for Bentley, and it wasn’t until 16:39 of the third period that Mercyhurst would take the lead. Brendan Riley had the game-winning goal for the Lakers.

Army and Canisius split their weekend, with the Black Knights taking a 5-4 win Friday and the Griffs rallying for a 4-2 win Saturday. Daniel Haider, Dominic Franco, Dalton MacAfee, Zach Evancho and Mason Krueger all scored for Army in the win Friday. Nick Hutchison scored a pair for Canisius, while captain Ian Edmondson and Austin Alger also scored.

Dylan McLaughlin had a pair of goals Saturday, while Edmondson and Alger also registered goals. Tucker DeYoung and Trevor Fidler had the goals for Army, but Canisius was powered by a 31-save performance from goaltender Blake Weyrick in the win.

Robert Morris and Sacred Heart split their weekend series. Austin Magera had the game-winning goal for Sacred Heart in Friday’s win; Matt Tugnutt also scored. Saturday’s game required overtime to solve, with Michael Louria notching the game-winner for Robert Morris. Alex Tonge, Jordan Kaplan and Luke Lynch also registered goals over the weekend.

Finally, the Niagara Purple Eagles dropped a pair of games to non-conference for Western Michigan, falling by scores of 3-2 and 7-3. Justin Kendall and Eric Cooley scored for the Purple Eagles, while Noah Delmas had three goals over the course of the weekend.

Here are the Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Air Force
2. AIC
3. Niagara
4. Army
5. Mercyhurst
6. Robert Morris
7. Canisius
8. RIT
9. Bentley
10. Sacred Heart
11. Holy Cross

In Atlantic Hockey conference action, Sacred Heart visited Canisius for a weekend series. The teams tied on Friday before the Griffs pulled off a win Saturday.

Jason Cotton opened the scoring early for the Pioneers Friday, but Canisius scored three straight goals to put themselves in a winning position. Kevin Obssuth, Dylan McLaughlin and Nick Hutchison all scored for the Griffs. But a pair of quick goals in the second period – just 39 seconds apart – tied the game. Zach De Concilys and Todd Goehring had the additional goals.

The teams remained locked and ended the game in a 3-3 tie. Josh Benson had 24 saves, while Blake Weyrick had 23. The teams rematched on Saturday, but this time, a very late shorthanded goal gave Canisius the edge.

Jordan Kaplan and Marcel Godbout scored in the first period for Sacred Heart, but the Pioneers’ effort fell apart from there. Grant Meyer got the Griffs on the board late in the first, and McLaughlin tied the game early in the third. Casey Jerry then scored shorthanded with just 1:46 remaining to win the game.

Brett Magnus had 21 saves, while Weyrick registered 25 saves in the win.

Elsewhere, Robert Morris topped Mercyhurst twice this weekend. Powered by goals from Aidan Spellacy, Jacob Coleman and Eric Israel, the Colonials pulled off a 3-1 win Friday over the Lakers. Joshua Lammon had the lone goal for Mercyhurst, while Stefano Cantali made 22 saves in the loss. Francis Marotte had 31 saves in the victory.

The Colonials then won Saturday’s game by an impressive six-goal margin, defeating the Lakers 7-1. Special teams were especially effective, as the Colonials had three power-play goals and two shorthanded tallies.

Justin Addamo led the team with a pair of goals; Daniel Mantenuto, Nick Prkusic, Kip Hoffmann, Kyle Horsman and Michael Coyne also scored for the Colonials. Joshua Lammon had the lone goal for the Lakers once again.

This time, Marotte made 24 saves. Cantali played the first twenty minutes of the game for the Lakers, allowing four goals on 20 shots. Colin DeAugustine played the final 20 minutes in goal, allowing three goals on 12 shots faced in the loss.

Niagara and Army also split their weekend series. The Purple Eagles captured a 3-1 win Friday. Ryan Cox, Dylan Mills and Niko Kovachis all scored for Niagara, while Mason Krueger had the only goal for Army in the loss. Jared Dempsey made 27 saves, while Brian Wilson had 26 saves.

The Black Knights beat Niagara 5-1 Saturday, powered by a hat trick from Dominic Franco. Colin Bilek had the other two goals for Army, while Zach Evancho registered three assists. Army had three of their five goals on the man advantage. Jared Brandt had the lone goal for the Purple Eagles in Saturday’s loss.

Dempsey made 16 saves, while Wilson had 24 saves.

Bentley also topped Holy Cross 4-2. Michael Zuffante, Luke Orysiuk, Alexey Solovyev and Ryner Gorowsky all scored for the Falcons. Jack Surowiec and Mitch Collett potted goals for the Crusaders.

Aidan Pelino stopped 23 of 25 shots faced for the Falcons, while Erik Gordon had 13 saves.

In non-conference action, the Crusaders tied Merrimack 2-2. Michael Laffin and Johnny Coughlin had the goals for Holy Cross, while Mitch Collett assisted on both goals. The Crusaders went 1-for-3 on the man advantage, and Gordon had 26 saves.

The Falcons also beat Boston College. Tanner Jago, Will Garin, Matt Lombardozzi and Jake Kauppila all scored for Bentley in the 4-2 win, and the Falcons went 2-for-6 on the man advantage.

Pelino had 22 saves.

Finally, the RIT Tigers fell 4-3 to non-conference opponent Northeastern.

Brody Valette, Adam Brubacher and Alden Dupuis scored for RIT. Logan Drackett stopped 23 of 27 shots faced in the loss.

Here are the current Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Niagara
2. Army
3. Air Force
4. AIC
5. RIT
6. Robert Morris
7. Bentley
8. Canisius
9. Mercyhurst
10. Sacred Heart
11. Holy Cross

While the Robert Morris Colonials got a week off from game action, the other Atlantic Hockey teams were all in action at least once over the past week. Some, like AIC, fared better than others, like Canisius. Here’s a look at the week behind us.

First up: let’s talk about the AIC Yellow Jackets, who swept their weekend series over Air Force with a pair of shutouts. The Yellow Jackets put up five goals Friday and added four on Saturday, both afternoon contests, while holding the Falcons off the scoresheet.

Tobias Fladeby and Luka Maver each had a pair of goals in Friday’s win; Martin Mellberg also added a goal. Zackarias Skog stopped all 20 shots faced in the win – his second career collegiate shutout – while Zach LaRocque took the loss for Air Force.

Both teams went with the same goaltenders for the rematch on Saturday, and once again, Skog made 20 saves in the shutout victory. Fladeby scored his third goal of the weekend, while Patrik Demel, Darius Davidson and captain Shawn McBridge also scored for the Yellow Jackets.

With the losses, Air Force’s five-game winning streak finally came to an end.

Mercyhurst also grabbed a pair of wins this weekend, besting Sacred Heart twice. The teams exchanged goals Friday en route to a 3-2 overtime win for the Lakers. Joseph Duszak had the game-winning goal, while Steven Ipri, James Anderson and Derek Barach also scored for Mercyhurst. Vito Bavaro had a pair of goals, while Austin McIlmurray also scored for the Pioneers.

James Anderson then scored twice to power the Lakers to a 3-0 win the following night. Tommaso Bucci also scored for Mercyhurst, who tallied twice in the final 1:16 of play. Garrett Metcalf stopped 30 shots for the shutout win.

Elsewhere, Army West Point and Bentley split their weekend series. The Black Knights narrowly edged the Falcons 3-2 in the first game, on power-play goals by Brendan Soucie and Zach Evancho and a shorthanded tally by Souci. Michael Zuffante and Drew Callin scored for the Falcons.

The next night, Bentley put up four goals on the Falcons en route to a 4-2 win. Zuffante scored once again for his team, while Jonathan Desbiens, Alexey Solovjev and Luke Santerno also tallied for the Falcons. Colin Bilek and Dominic Franco scored for the Black Knights.

Finally, the Niagara Purple Eagles swept their series over the Canisius Golden Griffins, who lost all three games they played this week.

Niagara scored twice on the power play in Thursday’s game. Dylan Mills registered a pair of goals, while Noah Delmas, Ludwig Stenlund and Johnny Curran also scored for Niagara. Brian Wilson made 27 saves for the Purple Eagles. In his return to the net, Blake Weyrick had 24 saves in the 5-2 loss.

The Purple Eagles continued their dominance on home ice Saturday, topping Canisius by a score of 9-6. Reed Robinson had a hat trick for Niagara, who also received goals from Stenlund (2), Delmas, Chris Harpur, Eric Cooley and Kris Spriggs. Twelve different Niagara players registered at least a point in the big win.

Logan Gestro, J.D. Pogue, Keith Obssuth, Mitch Martan, Austin Alger and Nick Hutchison all scored for the Griffs, who are now on a three-game losing streak after falling to RIT earlier in the week.

The Tigers, meanwhile, only had one game this week, but used it to extend their winning streak to three games. Gabe Valenzuela and Will Calverley scored for the Tigers, who got two goals in exactly three minutes in the second period. Logan Drackett made 25 saves in his first collegiate shutout.

Holy Cross fell to No. 4 UMass 3-1 in their lone game of the week. Jack Surowiec had the only goal for the Crusaders, while Erik Gordon had 36 saves in net.

Here are the Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Air Force
2. Niagara
3. Army
4. AIC
5. RIT
6. Mercyhurst
7. Bentley
8. Canisius
9. Robert Morris
10. Sacred Heart
11. Holy Cross

Air Force and RIT both captured a pair of wins this past weekend in Atlantic Hockey action, while Sacred Heart split its first conference action against Army West Point. Elsewhere, Holy Cross and Niagara split one game of their series and tied the other, and  Canisius beat ECAC opponent Clarkson.

Finally, Robert Morris dropped a pair of games to Penn State. AIC also went winless this weekend against RIT, while Bentley fell twice to Air Force. Mercyhurst won their lone game of the weekend, a non-conference matchup with St. Lawrence.

The Purple Eagles’ 6-3 win Friday was powered by five straight goals. Though they found themselves down 2-0 12:22 into the game, Niagara went on to score five times in a span of 17:48 (from 19:02 of the first to 16:46 of the second) to put themselves in a good position to secure a win. Kris Spriggs registered a pair of goals, while Noah Delmas, Jared Brandt, Jon Hill and Johnny Curran also scored.

In the rematch, Niagara got on the board first with a shorthanded tally, but this time, it was Holy Cross who would score three straight goals. Spencer Trapp tied the game on the power play, with Kevin Darrar and Logan Ferguson adding goals later in the second frame. Niagara received goals from Nick Farmer, Reed Robinson and Luke Edgerton to push the Crusaders to a tie.

Air Force put up eight goals in two nights to capture a pair of wins over the Bentley Falcons. Evan Feno scored twice, and Evan Giesler and Walker Sommer added goals, en route to a 4-2 win Friday. Bentley got on the board first Saturday on a goal by Brendan Hamblet, but Air Force scored four unanswered goals to capture another win.

Giesler added another goal, with Kyle Haak, Matt Pulver and Kieran Durgan also scoring. Zach Larocque had to make only 12 saves in the win.

On Friday night, the Sacred Heart Pioneers scored every way: even-strength, power-play and shorthanded – to steal a 4-2 win over Army West Point. Ryan Steele, Marc Johnstone, Austin Mcllmurray and Jason Cotton all scored for the Pioneers, while Brendan Soucie and Trevor Fidler tallied for Army.

Army rallied back the following night for a 4-1 win. Dominic Franco had a pair of goals, with Zach Evancho and Tipper Higgins also scoring. Marcel Godbout had the lone goal for Sacred Heart. Dalton MacAfee also had a pair of assists.

Elsewhere, RIT overpowered AIC in consecutive nights. Alden Dupuis scored shorthanded to put the Tigers up in the first period Friday night. The Yellow Jackets tied the game early in the third on a goal by Hugo Reinhardt, but Darren Brady scored less than three minutes later to regain the RIT lead, and the Tigers held on.

The following night, the Tigers found themselves up 4-0 early in the second period before AIC finally got on the board. The Tigers would add one more later in the second period before allowing the Yellow Jackets to get one more with just four seconds left in regulation. Erik Brown and Jake Hamacher each had a pair of goals, while Abbott Girduckis added a goal in the win.

In non-conference action, Robert Morris dropped 7-2 and 11-6 decisions to the number-eight ranked Penn State. Alex Tonge and Grant Hebert both scored in the first loss. Saturday night, the Colonials were keeping pace with the Nittany Lions, trading goals in the first period and early into the second. Halfway through the middle frame, Penn State took charge and scored seven straight goals to take a commanding lead.

Tonge registered a hat trick in Saturday’s loss. Luke Lynch, Nick Prkusic and Aidan Spellacy also scored.

Finally, Canisius beat Clarkson by a score of 6-3, thanks to four power-play goals. Though the Golden Knights got out to a quick 2-0 lead, the Griffs scored five straight to take an important lead halfway through the game. Dylan McLaughlin had a pair of goals, while Cameron Heath, Lee Lapid, Austin Alger and Nick Hutchison also scored.

Here are the current Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Air Force
2. Army
3. Niagara
4. RIT
5. AIC
6. Canisius
7. Robert Morris
8. Bentley
9. Sacred Heart
10. Mercyhurst
11. Holy Cross

It was an exciting weekend in Atlantic Hockey, as the Air Force Falcons recorded their first sweep at the Army West Point Black Knights since 2004, and RiT’s Erik Brown became the all-time goal scoring leader for his team’s D-I history.

Air Force topped Army twice, with a 4-2 victory in each game. The Falcons received goals from Matt Pulver, Zack Mirageas, Brady Tomlak and Trevor Stone in Friday night’s win. Stone and Tomlak also scored in Saturday’s win, with Kyle Haak and Kieran Durgan adding goals. Billy Christopoulos made 47 saves over the course of the weekend to help Air Force to the victories.

Army’s goals on the weekend came from Dominic Franco, Trevor Fidler, Marshal Plunkett and Daniel Haider. Both goals in Friday’s game came on the power play.

Mercyhurst topped RIT 4-3 on Friday. The Lakers took a 2-0 lead on goals by Wes Baker, but the Tigers tied it with a pair of goals in the second period from Jake Hamacher and Abbott Girduckis. Tommasi Bucci gave the Lakers the lead, and Baker completed the hat trick to make it 4-2. Jordan Peacock got one back for the Tigers, but the Lakers pulled off the win.

The teams then skated to a 2-2 tie on Saturday. Erik Brown scored the 56th goal of his collegiate career with 30 seconds left in regulation to tie the game. Brown’s goal made him RIT”s all-time leading scorer in the program’s Division-I history.

Jake Hamacher also scored for the Tigers. Mercyhurst got goals from Joseph Duszak and Taylor Best.

Elsewhere, Niagara and Robert Morris split their weekend series. The Colonials pulled off a 3-1 win Friday, with goals from Kyle Horsman, Daniel Mantenuto  and Luke Lynch. Nick Farmer scored the lone goal for the Purple Eagles.

Niagara rebounded for a 4-2 win the following night. Alex Truscott, Eric Cooley, Ryan Cox and Justin Kendall all scored for the Purple Eagles. Nick Lalonde had a pair of goals for the Colonials in the loss.

Sacred Heart and Bentley split their weekend series, while Canisius and AIC did the same.

The Pioneers topped the Falcons 3-2 Friday before dropping a decision by the same score Saturday. Sacred Heart scored on even-strength (Ryan Steele), the man advantage (Jason Cotton) and shorthanded (Austin Madera) in Friday’s win.

Dylan Pitera and Jake Kauppila scored for Bentley on Saturday, with Drew Callin tallying the game-winning goal in overtime.

Canisius topped AIC 4-2 on Friday before falling to the Yellow Jackets 6-1 Saturday.

The Griffs got goals from Mitchell Martan, Matt Hoover and two from Dylan McLaughlin on Friday night, including one that made Sportscenter’s Top 10. Luka Maver and Darius Davidson scored for the Yellow Jackets in the loss.

The Yellow Jackets poured on the offense Saturday night. Kyle Stephan had a pair of goals, with Maver, Tobias Flabby, Chris Theodore and Davidson also scoring. McLaughlin had the lone goal for Canisius, his third of the weekend.

In non-conference action, Holy Cross fell 3-0 to nationally-ranked Providence on Saturday.

This coming weekend will see conference play between Holy Cross and Niagara; Bentley and Air Force; Sacred Heart and Army; and AIC and RIT. Robert Morris faces a pair of games against Penn State, while Mercyhurst visits St. Lawrence. Canisius also hosts Clarkson Saturday before visiting RIT next Tuesday.

Here are the current Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Air Force
2. Army
3. AIC
4. Canisius
5. Niagara
6. Bentley
7. Robert Morris
8. RIT
9. Mercyhurst
10. Sacred Heart
11. Holy Cross

With all teams except Sacred Heart in action, it was a busy weekend for Atlantic Hockey. The Pioneers are still awaiting their first conference action, while the Mercyhurst Lakers, who fell twice to Army West Point this week, are still looking for their first conference win.

The Black Knights were the only team to come out of this weekend with a pair of wins, but other teams found success elsewhere. Niagara and Air Force split their series, while Robert Morris and RIT did the same. Bentley also pulled off a 7-4 win over Holy Cross, which bumped the Crusaders down four spots in the standings and pulled the Falcons up two spots.

On Friday, Army scored five unanswered goals en route to a 5-1 over Mercyhurst. Five different players scored for the Black Knights, with Dalton MacAfee and Mason Krueger each registering a goal and assist.

The Black Knights then rallied back from a two-goal deficit on Saturday, picking up a 3-2 overtime win over the Lakers. Dalton Hunter and Matthew Whittaker scored to put Mercyhurst up by a pair, but the Black Knights came back in the third. Zach Evancho scored on the power play just 55 seconds in, and Michael Wilson tied it with 11 seconds left in the game. Wilson then scored the game-winning goal on the man advantage 1:37 into OT.

For the Purple Eagles, Brian Wilson had a 39-save shutout to propel his team to a 5-o victory over the Falcons on Thursday. Niagara received goals from five different players, including Alex Truscott, who had a two-point night.

When the teams met for the second game of the series, it took until the middle frame for anyone to get on the board. Walker Sommer and Kieran Durgan put Air Force up 2-0 with under six minutes to play in regulation. Although Justin Kendall was able to get Niagara on the board, the Falcons held on for the win.

Elsewhere, Bentley scored three power-play goals en route to a 7-4 win over Holy Cross this weekend. Jonathan Desbiens, Jakov Novak and Will Garin each had a pair of goals, with both of Novak’s tallies coming on the power play. Dylan Pitera also scored for the Falcons, while Luke Santerno registered four assists. For the Crusaders, Frank Boie had two goals, with Matt Barry and Logan Milliken adding the other tallies.

In Pittsburgh, the Colonials split their weekend series with the Tigers. Robert Morris scored three goals in the second period of Friday’s game to snag a 3-0 win, thanks to tallies by Geoff Lawson, Eric Israel and Daniel Mantenuto. Francis Marotte stopped all 25 shots faced in the shutout.

The teams returned to action Saturday, when Gabe Valenzuela scored the game-winning goal for the Tigers in overtime. Abbott Girduckis also scored for RIT, while Nick Lalonde had the lone goal for the Colonials. All three tallies came with the man advantage. Logan Drackett had 32 saves in the win.

In non-conference action, AIC faced a tough, nationally-ranked Quinnipiac team for a pair of games. The Yellow Jackets managed to score three goals on the 20th-ranked team in the country over the weekend, but fell by scores of 4-1 and 9-2. Shawn McBridge, Jared Pike and Blake Christensen had the goals for AIC.

Bentley also dropped a game to UMass Lowell 4-2, while Canisius fell to Clarkson 4-1. Tanner Jago and Connor Brassard scored for the Falcons, while Aidan Pelino had 23 saves. For the Griffs, Jimmy Mazza had the lone goal, while Blake Weyrick stopped 15 of 18 shots faced.

This coming weekend, all 11 Atlantic Hockey teams will be in action, with series between Niagara and Robert Morris; RIT and Mercyhurst; Air Force and Army; Sacred Heart and Bentley; and AIC and Canisius. Holy Cross faces a single game against nationally-ranked Providence.

Here are the current Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Army
2. AIC
3. Canisius
4. Air Force
5. Niagara
6. Bentley
7. Robert Morris
8. RIT
9. Holy Cross
10. Sacred Heart
11. Mercyhurst

Atlantic Hockey teams faced a mixed bag of results this past weekend against non-conference opponents. On the plus side, the RIT Tigers, powered by an Erik Brown hat trick, topped Colgate, and Sacred Heart tied #5 in the nation Providence, a significant feat for the Pioneers. Mercyhurst also split their series with Ferris State, including a win Saturday. But elsewhere, Niagara fell twice to Penn State and were outscored 12-3 on the weekend, and Holy Cross fell to St. Lawrence and Clarkson.

In conference action, the AIC Yellow Jackets took a win and a tie away from their midweek series against the Bentley Falcons. Both games went to overtime. Martin Mellberg registered his third point of the night with the game-winning goal on Tuesday; Blake Christensen, Hugo Reinhardt, Joel Kocur and Jared Pike also scored for AIC. The teams tied 4-4 on Thursday.

Elsewhere, Army West Point tied their Friday night match with Robert Morris 2-2, then beat the Colonials 5-2 Saturday. Eric Butte, Zach Evancho, Mason Krueger, Colin Biley and Dominic Franco all scored for the Black Knights in the win. The Black Knights were missing Michael Wilson, who was suspended as a result of a contact to the head major and game misconduct received in the prior match.

The Lakers, meanwhile, came off with a win against Ferris State in the Saturday night rematch. Dalton Hunter had a pair of goals for Mercyhurst, while Stefano Cantali had 28 saves.

RIT beat Colgate 6-1 on Saturday night at Blue Cross Arena in front of 10,556 fans. Erik Brown registered the hat trick, while Shawn Cameron added a pair of goals. Gabe Valenzuela also scored for the Tigers. Abbott Girduckis potted three assists. The Tigers scored on two of five power play opportunities.

Finally, Air Force and Canisius split their weekend series. The Falcons won 7-3 on Friday powered by a four-goal third period and a hat trick from Evan Feno. Kieran Durgan also added a pair of goals. The Griffs were without Jimmy Mazza Saturday due to suspension, but they rallied back for a 2-0 win, giving netminder Blake Weyrick his first collegiate victory and first collegiate shutout (34 saves).

Conference action in the week ahead includes Holy Cross and Bentley facing off; a series between RIT and Robert Morris; a pair of games between Army West Point and Mercyhurst, and two meetings between Niagara and Air Force. In non-conference action, AIC faces Quinnipiac twice; Canisius visits Clarkson, and Bentley hosts UMass Lowell.

Here are the current Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. AIC
2. Canisius
3. Army
4. Air Force
5. Holy Cross
6. Niagara
7. Robert Morris
8. Bentley
9. RIT
10. Sacred Heart
11. Mercyhurst

Another Atlantic Hockey season is underway, with a lot of questions at the helm. Can Air Force build off their championship success in the postseason to fight their way to the top during the regular season? Will Mercyhurst be the best team in Atlantic Hockey? Can teams like Sacred Heart, Bentley and Niagara find ways to improve this season and move up in the standings?

As of October 15, only four teams have been in conference action so far in Atlantic Hockey; Canisius, Holy Cross, Niagara and AIC have all played a pair of conference games, and have each gone 1-1.

The Golden Griffins and Crusaders split a pair of games this weekend in Worcester. Holy Cross came off Friday night with a 4-2 win behind a pair of goals from Mitch Collett; Peter Crinella and Neil Robinson also scored in the win. Tommy Nixon stopped 28 shots. The teams battled hard in their Saturday night rematch, with Canisius narrowly edging Holy Cross 7-6 thanks to four goals in the third period.

Alternate captain Dylan McLaughlin had a goal and two assists, while Tucker Weppner had 20 saves in his first NCAA Division I collegiate victory. Sophomore forward Austin Alger made his debut for Canisius this past weekend after being granted a waiver by the NCAA. He is a transfer from Miami (Ohio).

Elsewhere, Niagara and AIC split a pair of games. The Purple Eagles won 4-3 in overtime on Friday, but the Yellow Jackets snagged a 3-1 victory Saturday. Ludwig Stenlund had a pair of goals Friday, including the overtime game-winner, while Dylan Mills registered three assists for Niagara.

On Saturday, the teams exchanged power play goals before the Yellow Jackets pulled ahead thanks to a goal late in the second period by Darius Davidson. Kyle Stephan added an insurance goal in the third, and Stefano Durante registered 13 saves.

In non-conference action, Mercyhurst fell to Miami (Ohio) (3-0) and tied 6-6 with the University of Notre Dame in the Icebreaker Tournament. (Since it was a tournament game, it went to a shootout, which Notre Dame won). Air Force fell to Denver 4-1, then Colorado College 6-1. UConn topped Army, but the Black Knights came back with a 3-2 win Saturday over Merrimack.

Bentley dropped a 1-0 decision to Merrimack, while RIT split the weekend with UMass Lowell, falling 2-1 Friday before winning 5-4 in overtime Saturday. Finally, Sacred Heart lost both games against Northeastern, while Robert Morris split their weekend series with Bowling Green.

Lots of action in the week ahead, with Bentley and AIC facing off for a series on Tuesday & Thursday. Army and Robert Morris meet for a pair of games, as do Air Force and Canisius. Non-conference opponents include Penn State (Niagara), St. Lawrence (Holy Cross), Ferris State (Mercyhurst), Colgate (RIT) and Clarkson (Holy Cross).

Here are the current Atlantic Hockey standings:

1. Canisius
2. Holy Cross
3. Niagara
4. AIC
5. RIT
6. Army
7. Mercyhurst
8. Robert Morris
9. Sacred Heart
10. Bentley
11. Air Force