FAIRFIELD, Conn. - The Mercyhurst men's hockey team traveled to Sacred Heart for their first series of the month. The Lakers held off the Pioneers for the first period. However, the Sacred Heart offense proved to be too much as they outlasted the Lakers, 5-1. This was Rick Gotkin's 1,300 game and he became just the sixth hockey coach in NCAA history to reach this milestone.  Gotkin is the only active coach among the others with 1,300 games and remains the longest active tenured coach in the nation. 
 
The first period commenced with Charles-Edward Gravel in goal for Mercyhurst (3-22-2, 3-14-2 AHA). He faced an aggressive start from Sacred Heart (14-10-3, 10-6-3 AHA). Despite a flurry of shots from the Pioneers, Gravel remained steadfast, making several key saves to keep the slate clean. The Lakers won multiple faceoffs, including one by Ryan Coughlin at the onset. They struggled to convert these into scoring opportunities as Sacred Heart's defense blocked several attempts. The period concluded with a penalty on Andrew LeBlanc for delaying the game. This granted Sacred Heart a power play opportunity to start the second period. 
 
The Lakers faced a challenging second period after killing the powerplay they faced to start the frame. Despite Mercyhurst's strong efforts in the faceoff circle, consistently winning draws, Sacred Heart pulled ahead. They scored first at 16:06 and later at 5:36. The Lakers had opportunities during power plays but could not convert. The Pioneers added a third goal for at 1:12 before the period ended. 
 
Sacred Heart continued to pile on the pressure. They added two goals throughout the period. The Lakers managed to break through late in the third period with Sean James scoring at even strength, assisted by A. LeBlanc at 3:51. The Pioneer's prevented any further attempts and held firm on defense as this one ended, 5-1. 

Puck drop for game two will take place tomorrow at 3 p.m.