NIAGARA UNIV., N.Y. – Behind 26 saves from rookie netminder
Cole Weaver and three-point nights from
Ben Sokay and
Kris Spriggs, the Niagara Purple Eagles put on a show for the Dwyer Arena crowd of 577 on Friday night, skating to a decisive 7-3 victory over the Mercyhurst Lakers.
Game Recap
- Noah Delmas reached the 20-point plateau by opening the scoring for Niagara just 5:22 into the contest. Spriggs and Ryan Cox provided the assists on the goal that set the tone for most of the game.
- With five minutes remaining in the first, Spriggs doubled Niagara's advantage on a feed from Sokay for his fourth goal of the year.
- Sokay scored each of Niagara's next two goals, the first with 12:08 gone in the second, and the next 10:15 into the third. Spriggs and Jordan Wishman had the helpers on the second period strike that made it 3-0. In Niagara's first four markers, Spriggs and Sokay each earned their three points on successive tallies.
- Following Niagara's fourth goal, Mercyhurst pulled starting goalie Garrett Metcalf and opted to skate with an extra forward. The strategy worked at first, as the Lakers pulled one back just over a minute later.
- Continuing to play with no goalie, Eric Cooley restored the four-goal Niagara advantage with a long-distance empty-netter with less than six minutes remaining. 88 seconds later, Cooley got his second of the game with both teams skating at even strength.
- After two Mercyhurst goals just 35 seconds apart, Ludwig Stenlund got the final say by putting away and empty-net goal with 24 seconds left in regulation.
Beyond The Boxscore
- Sokay put together the first multi-point and multi-goal game of his three-year career.
Up Next
- Niagara will look to sweep the Lakers in the series closer at 7 p.m. in Dwyer Arena tomorrow night. The game will feature a postgame open skate session with the players and staff of the Niagara men's hockey team. Fans interested in attending can purchase tickets through Ticketmaster or contact the Niagara University Ticket Office at 716-286-TIXX (8499).
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