ERIE, Pa. - Air Force's Zach Yoder scored the game-winner 3 minutes, 44 seconds into overtime to lift the Falcons to a 5-4 victory over Mercyhurst in front of 649 fans Friday night.  Mercyhurst's Kane Elliot found the back of the net early in the third period to even the game but the Lakers were unable to get to reserve goalie Shane Starrett in the end.

Mercyhurst (6-5-0, 4-1-0 AHA) chased starting goalie Billy Christopoulus from the game just 12 minutes, 02 seconds into a wild and fast opening stanza for both teams.  Air Force (2-4-1, 1-1-1 AHA) struck first just over a minute into the game before Mercyhurst fired back with three unanswered goals for a 3-1 lead when Christopoulus exited.  Jack Riley opened the scoring for Mercyhurst with a power play goal at 2:57 (assist Lester Lancaster) before Jonathan Charbonneau added another power play goal at 5:14 (assists Philippe Drouin, Lester Lancaster).  Kyle Dutra then tallied the Lakers' shorthanded goal at 12:02.

Air Force cut the lead to 3-2 after the opening period, then added two more unanswered goals in the second to give the Falcons a 4-3 lead heading into the third period.

Penalties added up in the third period, including a game misconduct to an Air Force player and an interference penalty to another Falcon just a few minutes following.  The Lakers feverishly worked the advantage but Starrett came on strong for the Falcons, turning away 24 shots on goal in the period.

The same two teams return to action tomorrow, November 7, at the Mercyhurst Ice Center.  Face-off is set for 7 p.m.

An added incentive to the Nov. 7 contest is head coach Rick Gotkin's quest for 500 victories.  He currently stands at 499-357-76 for his career and would become just the 23rd coach to reach the milestone in the history of college hockey at any division. 

Following the Air Force series, the Lakers take to the road for five games and don't return home until Jan. 3, 2016.