NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. - Freshman netminder Carsen Chubak made 39 saves in his collegiate debut, helping the Niagara men's hockey team (0-0-2, 0-0-0 AHA) to a 2-2 tie against the visiting UMass-Lowell Riverhawks (0-1-1, 0-1-0 HE) in front of 1,125 fans at Dwyer Arena on Friday night.

With the game tied at two, Chubak was the backbone of a solid Purple Eagles defense, that was outshot 21-7 between the third period and overtime. The rookie made save after save, keeping Niagara in the game.

"Chubak helped shut the door in overtime," Niagara men's hockey coach Dave Burkholder said. "He was very strong for us and gave us confidence."

For the second consecutive game, Niagara struck first. On an abbreviated power-play, senior Paul Zanette skated into the slot and let go of a wrist shot that beat Riverhawks netminder Doug Carr low for his second goal of the season. The Purps maintained a stingy defense for the rest of the period, blocking 15 shots to ensure a 1-0 lead after the opening 20 minutes.

UMass-Lowell struck early in the second period on the man-advantage. Michael Scheu curled out to the front of the net from Chubak's left side and ripped a shot that barely crossed the goal line 68 seconds into the second stanza. Niagara would respond on the man-advantage, when a point shot from senior David Ross was tipped into the net by sophomore Giancarlo Iuorio for the 2-1 lead with 4:13 left in the second period. 

The Riverhawks would respond once again early in the third period, Patrick Cey beat Chubak low to knot the game at two.

Zanette now has two goals in two games, while senior Ryan Annesley picked up his third assist of the season.

The Purps are back in action on Oct. 22, when they begin the first road trip of the season against Union.