Box Score

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. - After the Mercyhurst University men's hockey team took a 1-0 lead 38 seconds into the second period, Merrimack College scored four consecutive goals and held off the Lakers 5-2 in front of 2,084 fans at the Lawler Arena in North Andover, Massachusetts on Saturday night. The loss dropped Mercyhurst to 1-4 overall on the young season while the Warriors picked up their first win of the year, improving to 1-3 overall.

Special teams played a huge role in what was a penalty-filled contest on Saturday. The teams combined for 20 penalties (10 to each team) and 54 penalty minutes (34 to Merrimack), but it was the Warriors who scored three power play goals, which proved to be the difference in the outcome. Mercyhurst entered Saturday's contest having killed off ten consecutive opponent power play chances.

After a scoreless first period that saw Merrimack outshoot Mercyhurst 10-7, the Lakers, who were looking for the weekend sweep, jumped in front 1-0 on a 4-on-4 goal by junior Matthew Zay. The Glendale, New York native intercepted a pass in the neutral zone, skated down the right wing, and walked in on Merrimack goaltender Rasmus Tirronen. Zay slid a shot between the pads of the Warrior netminder for his second goal of the season.

Both of Zay's goals this year have been unassisted.

The Warriors then scored a pair of goals in a 1:50 span against junior goaltender Jordan Tibbett to take a 2-1 lead after forty minutes. Quinn Gould got Merrimack on the board at the 3:28 mark with his first goal of the season. Tibbett thought he had the puck covered, but Gould kept poking at the Laker goaltender, finally getting the puck to cross the goal line before a whistle had blown. Mike Collins had the lone assist - his first of four helpers on the night.

Then, at 5:28, Dan Kolomatis tallied a power play goal for Merrimack's first lead of the weekend. Collins and Hampus Gustafsson had the assists.

Shots favored Merrimack in the second period, 15-10.

Power play tallies by Justin Hussar and John Gustafsson to start the third period ballooned the Warrior lead to 4-1. Hussar scored at the 1:37 mark of the third period, with just 11 seconds remaining on a freshman Kyle Dutra minor. Gustafsson followed with his first goal of the year at the 4:45 mark after Tibbett was penalized for slashing.

But, the Lakers would not go quietly.

Junior Daniel Bahntge cut the Merrimack lead to 4-2 with his first goal of the season just 25 seconds after Gustafsson put the Warriors ahead by three. Junior Ryan Misiak picked up his second assist of the year on the goal.

Just eight seconds after Bahntge scored, Merrimack's Shawn Bates was assessed a five-minute major for spearing and a game misconduct, giving Mercyhurst a five-minute power play. What could've been a turning point in the game for the Lakers proved to be all-for-not, as Mercyhurst could not score during the five-minute span and only managed one shot on goal by Dutra during the power play.

The Warriors would ice the game at the 16:44 mark on a goal by Vinny Scotti, his first goal of the season.

Tibbett was peppered with 40 shots on goal by the Warriors, but allowed five goals and dropped to 0-3-0 on the season. The junior from Indianapolis, Indiana has allowed 15 goals in eight periods of action this season. Tirronen made 20 saves in his first start of the season for Merrimack. The Warriors outshot the Lakers 40-22.

Merrimack was 3-for-8 on the power play while Mercyhurst went 0-for-8 on the power play, which included a 5-on-3 opportunity in the first period and the five-minute chance in the third.

The Lakers will go back on the road next Friday and Saturday, October 25 and 26, when they travel out of the continental United States to Fairbanks, Alaska to square off with the Alaska Nanooks. Faceoffs both nights are scheduled for 11:07 p.m. ET (7:07 local time).