UMass-Lowell ended 2014 on a high note Sunday night.
The No. 9 River Hawks defeated the University of Connecticut 3-1 to win the Frozen Holiday Classic at Webster Bank Arena in Bridgeport, Conn. UMass-Lowell earned a spot in the championship game with a 5-1 victory over Sacred Heart on Saturday.
Defenseman Dylan Zink — who was named the tournament’s MVP — got the River Hawks (12-3-3) on the scoreboard with 2:07 left in the first period when he beat Huskies goaltender Rob Nichols with a wrist shot from the right side.
Neither side could score in the second period, but UMass-Lowell’s Michael Colantone and A.J. White each found the net within the last four minutes of the third period to put the game out of reach for UConn (4-9-4).
Huskies forward Cody Sharib got his team on the board with 13 seconds remaining, but River Hawks goalie Kevin Boyle stopped all other 22 shots he faced to earn the win.
UMass-Lowell returns to action in 2015 when it plays RIT on Jan. 2, while UConn will take on UMass Amherst on Jan. 2, too.
AROUND THE LEAGUE
Providence 4, UMass 1:Â The No. 16 Friars (10-6-1) got off to a strong start in game one of the Catamount Cup with the win over the Minutemen (4-13-0). Carrying a one-goal lead into the third period, Providence received a short-handed goal from Brandon Tanev and a power-play goal from Trevor Mingoia to secure the victory.
Notre Dame 3, Miami 2 (OT): The Fighting Irish (9-8-2) fell behind early after the RedHawks netted two consecutive goals in the second period but battled back to cut the lead to one in the third period. That set the stage for Notre Dame forward Jake Evans, who scored the game-tying goal with less than 30 seconds remaining in regulation, then netted the game-winner with 46 seconds left in overtime.
Vermont 4, Air Force 2: The No. 10 Catamounts (14-3-1) struggled early against the Falcons (5-11-2) and were knotted in a tie game heading into the third period. But Vermont forward Brady Shaw broke the deadlock with a power-play goal early in the frame, and Jonathan Turk added an empty-netter to set up their Monday game against Providence in the Catamount Cup finals.
Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@RiverHawkHockey
