NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. - The Niagara men's hockey team (9-19-4, 4-10-2 CHA) stormed back late in the third period to tie the game at two, but an early goal in overtime cemented a 3-2 extra session victory for the visiting Alabama-Huntsville Chargers (10-16-2, 6-9-1 CHA) on Sunday afternoon at Dwyer Arena.

Down 2-0 with under five minutes left to play in the third period, the Purple Eagles struck on the man-advantage, when junior David Ross ripped a shot, which fellow junior Paul Zanette would poke past Chargers netminder Cameron Talbot. With just 1:13 left in regulation, rookie Jeff Hannan would slam home a loose puck on the door step to tie the game at two.

Overtime lasted all of 45 seconds, as Neil Ruffini ripped a point blank shot on Niagara netminder Adam Avramenko, which squeaked past his stick for the game-winning goal.

"Tonight we ran into a hot goalie in Cameron Talbot," head coach Dave Burkholder said. "I tip my hat to Talbot as helped the Chargers secure two points tonight."

Niagara came out flying in the first period, outshooting the Chargers by a 13-3 margin, but couldn't put one past  Talbot. The Purple Eagles used a consistent and speedy forecheck to keep Alabama-Huntsville penned in their own end, but went into the first intermission with a scoreless tie.

The second period saw many close calls for the Purple Eagles, when Alabama-Huntsville hit three posts during the period, with the last one clanking off the crossbar and bouncing away from the net with less than 30 seconds left in the period. The Purple Eagles again outshot the Chargers, this time by a 15-7 margin, but headed into the second intermission with goose eggs on the board.

The Chargers took a 2-0 lead with two goals in a span of 4:47, with Ruffini scoring his first of the game off of a faceoff, while Tom Train increased Alabama-Huntsville's lead by throwing a puck on net and getting a little puck luck in the means of a funky bounce.

Senior Chris Moran recorded his 99th career assist on Hannan's goal. Moran now also has 136 points, passing Peter DeSantis (1996-00) for fifth place on Niagara's all-time points list.

The Purple Eagles finish the regular season with a home and home series with the Robert Morris Colonials, starting Friday at 7 p.m. in Pittsburgh.