REISTERSTOWN, MD. — The Manhattanville College men’s ice hockey team rode sophomore goaltender Mac Vail (East Elmhurst, N.Y./Philadelphia Jr. Flyers (EHL)) to their second straight victory in his second-career start in net for the Valiants Friday night, Nov. 16. Manhattanville defeated United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) and Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) foe Stevenson University, 3-2, on the road.
The Valiants (2-1-2, 2-1-2 UCHC) had a balanced attack in the defensive battle against the Mustangs (3-2, 2-2 UCHC), as the two squads combined for just 45 shots on net. Vail made 17 stops on 19 shots for the win, while Manhattanville converted on three of its 26 shots on the Mustang net.
Stevenson took the game’s first lead just over six minutes into the first period. The Mustangs scored on a powerplay following senior co-captain Capser Dyrssen’s tripping penalty and were able to sneak one past Vail for the 1-0 lead. They would take that lead into the first intermission and it stayed that way until Stevenson’s Mark Bowen was given two minutes in the box for kneeing, leading to a Valiants one-man advantage. Just 00:18 later, senior assistant captain Matt Lippa (Richmond Hill, Ont./Oakville Blades (OJHL)) scored his second of the season at 13:55, with help from classmates Oscar Arfelt (Stockholm, Sweden/Connecticut Oilers (EHL)) and Axel Walltott (Stockholm, Sweden/Varmdo HC J20 (SWE)) to tie it up at 1-1.
With time winding down in the second, junior Ryan Jackson (Montreal, Que./Hawkesbury Hawks (CCHL)) got called for charging to give the Mustangs another powerplay with two minutes left until the second intermission. Stevenson converted on the man-advantage to take the 2-1 lead, and the Valiants were destined to head into the lockeroom trailing by one. But, with just 00:27 left in the period, the Mustangs’ Jarrod Vroman was called for cross-checking and senior co-captain Eric Berglund (Sollentuna, Sweden/Islanders Hockey Club (USPHL)) put one past the Stevenson goalie at 19:49 for his first goal of the season, with assists coming from Lippa and Arfelt. The game was knotted at 2-2 heading into a decisive third period.
Despite exchanging a few more powerplay opportunities, neither team was able to convert until almost the halfway point of the period. At 9:55, senior Marco Ferraro (Toronto, Ont./St. Michael’s Buzzers (OJHL)) scored his team-leading third goal of the season, with the assist from Dyrssen, for the game’s only 5-on-5 goal to put Manhattanville up 3-2. The Valiants, led by eight more saves from Vail, were able to fend off the Mustangs for the remainder of the game to pick up their third win of the season.
Overall, the two teams combined for 20 penalties, with each team collecting 10 and converting on two apiece.
Manhattanville returns to action immediately as it travels to Pittsburgh, Pa., tomorrow, Saturday, Nov. 17, for a 7:10 p.m. matchup with another UCHC opponent in Chatham University. The Cougars are off to a slow start, sitting at 1-3 on the early season, as the Valiants look for their third consecutive victory.
