Box Score

ERIE, Pa. - Senior Paul Chiasson scored a pair of goals and senior Max Strang stopped 32 shots as the Mercyhurst University men's hockey team earned a split over the weekend with a 4-2 victory against Holy Cross in front of just over 1,000 fans at the Mercyhurst Ice Center on Saturday night. The win improved the Lakers' overall record to 10-8-1 and moved their conference record to 8-4-0. The Crusaders dropped to 11-7-2 overall and 7-4-2 in conference play.

Sophomore Ryan Misiak scored the game-winning goal and added an assist in the victory. He continues to lead the Lakers in scoring and now has five goals and 12 assists for 17 points this season. Senior Grant Blakey and junior Daniel O'Donoghue each added two assists in the win.

Chiasson scored Mercyhurst's first goal of the game at the 4:33 mark of the opening period and then sealed the victory with an empty net goal at the 19:28 mark of the third period. His two goals give him 46 goals and 94 points for his career, inching him closer to a pair of milestones. With six points, Chiasson would become the 15th player in the Division I era at Mercyhurst to register 100 career points. He would also become the first player to accomplish the feat since Scott Pitt and Steve Cameron each got to 100 during the 2010-11 season.

Strang, meanwhile, has now won four consecutive starts to move his record to 7-3-0 on the season and 6-1-0 against Atlantic Hockey opponents. During his four-game winning streak, Strang has allowed eight goals in 146 shots (.945 save percentage), and has posted a 1.98 goals against average.

Like Friday night, Mercyhurst jumped out first when Chiasson scored the opening goal of the game, his fifth goal of the season, with assists going to Blakey and O'Donoghue at 4:33 of the first period. Chiasson received a pass from Blakey in the neutral zone, skated up the left wing, and then snapped a shot from the left-wing circle over the glove hand of Holy Cross netminder, Matt Ginn for the 1-0 advantage.

Sophomore Matthew Zay gave the Lakers a 2-0 lead at the 17:17 mark of the opening period with his fifth goal of the season. Junior Nick Jones took a shot from the point that was handled by Ginn. The rebound, however, went right to the stick of Zay, who deposited the puck into the back of the net. Misiak had the other assist on the goal.

Zay, who had five goals and nine assists for 14 points in 36 games as a freshman last season, has already surpassed his point total from a year ago. With the goal, Zay is tied with O'Donoghue for second on the team in scoring with 15 points this season.

Despite trailing 2-0, Holy Cross outshot Mercyhurst 13-9 in the opening twenty minutes.

The Crusaders got on the board at the 7:45 mark of the second period on the eighth goal of the season from Kyle Fletcher. Adam Schmidt and Brandon Nunn would add the assists, as the Lakers' two-goal lead was cut in half.

But, Mercyhurst regained the two-goal margin at the 12:09 mark of the second period, when Misiak netted his fifth goal of the season. Sophomore Grant Gettinger took a shot from the point that was redirected in front by Misiak, and past Ginn, for a 3-1 Mercyhurst lead. Sophomore Chris Bodo had the other assist.

Holy Cross again outshot the Lakers in the second period, this time by a 12-10 margin.

The Crusaders would get an early goal in the third period to make things interesting down the stretch. Mike McNamara tallied his sixth goal of the season just 3:58 into the third stanza, cutting the Mercyhurst lead to 3-2. Erik Vos and Jake Bolton had the assists.

The Laker defense stiffened and then, with Ginn pulled for an extra skater, Mercyhurst developed a 2-on-1 opportunity. Chiasson was the recipient of a pass from O'Donoghue, and then let a shot go from between the circles into the empty net to seal the win. Blakey would add the other assist.

Holy Cross outshot the Lakers 9-to-5 in the third period and held a 34-to-24 shot advantage for the contest. Strang was the difference, turning aside 32-of-34 Holy Cross shots for his fourth straight win, and seventh of the season. Ginn stopped 20 shots in the loss, dropping to 10-6-2 on the season.

Both teams had just one power play opportunity the entire game and neither team was able to capitalize. Holy Cross had three shots on its attempt while Mercyhurst was limited to one shot on its opportunity.

Mercyhurst will travel to Storrs, Connecticut next Friday and Saturday, January 18 and 19, to take on the Huskies of Connecticut. Mercyhurst is 31-12-2 lifetime against UConn. Faceoffs are scheduled for 7:05 p.m. both nights.