Jan. 13, 2006

Box Score

Storrs, Conn. - Mercyhurst rallied from a 2-0 first period deficit to defeat Connecticut 6-3 Friday night in an Atlantic Hockey matchup before nearly 600 fans in Storrs, Conn. The win snapped a brief two-game losing streak as the Lakers improved to 12-8-0 overall and 11-4-0 in the conference. UConn lost its fifth straight game and fell to 7-12-1 and 6-9-0.

Connecticut scored twice in the first period within a span of 29 seconds. Junior forward Matt Scherer gave the Huskies a 1-0 lead at 14:34 with his 6th of the year and freshman forward Ryan Hawkins followed at 15:03 with his first collegiate lamplighter. Both came at the expense of Mercyhurst freshman goalie Tyler Small.

The Lakers got the offense going early in the second when senior defenseman Conrad Martin scored his first of the season at 1:53. Junior defenseman Jamie Hunt tied the game at 2-2 with his seventh marker of the season at 7:59 and senior defenseman Preston Briggs gave the Lakers their first lead with his first goal of the campaign at 11:04. UConn knotted the contest for the last time when junior forward Trevor Stewart found the back of the net at 14:27. Mercyhurst sophomore forward Ryan Toomey then converted a rare penalty shot at 15:59 and the Lakers went to the dressing room with a 4-3 lead after forty minutes. Toomey's sixth lamplighter of the season would prove to be his first game-winner of the season.

Mercyhurst put the game away in the third by cashing two of just seven shots. Senior forward Dave Borrelli scored his team-leading 12th goal of the year at 13:34 to give Small some breathing room and then finished both UConn and the scoring with a shorthanded, empty-net marker at 18:57. All the damage came against Connecticut junior goaltender Scott Tomes.

Freshman forward Brett Robinson joined both Borrelli and Hunt with a two-point game. Meanwhile, senior forward and team captain Scott Reynolds collected an assist and now has 98 career points.

Toomey's penalty shot was the second in as many Fridays during a Mercyhurst game. Army scored on a penalty shot in a 5-0 win at West Point a week ago.

Connecticut had a 43-33 advantage in shots as Small and his defense settled down after a 29-second lapse late in the first period. The Lakers failed on their only power play chance while UConn finished 0 of 4.

Mercyhurst has now won five straight games against the Huskies and improved to 19-5-1 all time. Mercyhurst will look for a weekend sweep when the teams meet again Saturday night at 7:05.