Score: Lebanon Valley College 4, Elmira College 1
Records: Lebanon Valley (12-9-2, 10-4-2 UCHC), Elmira (13-9-3, 8-5-3 UCHC)
Location: Hersheypark Arena -- Hershey, Pa.
 
HERSHEY, Pa. -- The Elmira College men's ice hockey team ended the 2017-18 regular season with a 4-1 setback to United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) foe Lebanon Valley College today in Hershey, Pennsylvania. With the loss, the Soaring Eagles concluded the campaign in fifth place in the final UCHC standings with 19 league points.

After 10 scoreless minutes to start tonight's contest, the Dutchmen open the bout's scoring with a goal at the 10:03 mark of the opening period. Brian Hovanec netted his 13th tally of the season with assists from TJ Sneath and Jared Karas.

Karas would put the home team up 2-0 with a goal of his own about seven and a half minutes later. Cole Hepler and Brett Johnson earned assists on the play.

With a 5-on-3 chance at the start of the second period, the Soaring Eagles cut their deficit in half, 2-1, with a goal from Nick Ford '20. Ford used a Ryan Blais '21 pass to beat LVC's starting goalie, Joel Eisenhower, just 20 seconds into the stanza. Anthony Parrucci '20 also got an assist on the play.

Unfortunately for the Purple and Gold, Ford's score was EC's lone of the contest. With third-period goals from Mike Straub and Hovanec, Lebanon Valley had taken a convincing 4-1 advantage.

In goal for the Soaring Eagles, both Jake Sabourin '21 and Gennaro Anzevino '21 saw time. Sabourin started the game, but played just the first period with four saves on the night. Anzevino came in and played 40 minutes of relief. In his time in net, Anzevino stopped 21 shots, allowing the two third-period tallies.
 
NEWS AND NOTES

• Elmira ends the 2017-218 regular season with a 13-9-3 overall record and an 8-5-3 conference mark.
• EC earned the fifth seed in the upcoming UCHC Tournament and will travel to No. 4 Manhattanville for the quarterfinal round on Wednesday, February 21.
• The loss against the Dutchmen snapped an eight-game unbeaten streak for the Soaring Eagles, who went 6-0-2 in that span.
• Lebanon Valley was the only UCHC team to beat Elmira in both ends of the two-game conference series this season.
• In the all-time series against the Dutchmen, EC still boasts a 22-3-0 lead despite the series sweep this season.
• Ford's goal was his team- and league-leading 21st of the season.
• Ford finished the regular season with 40 points, the most by a Soaring Eagle since Darcy Vaillancourt '12 scored 40 as a sophomore in 2009-10.
• Ford is the first Soaring Eagle to score 21-or-more goals in a single season since Rusty Masters '10 netted 22 in 2007-08.
• Blais' assist against Lebanon Valley moved him into a tie for first for the most assists among freshmen in the UCHC, while his 16 points rank sixth among league newcomers.

 
UP NEXT
The Soaring Eagles will begin the UCHC Championship Tournament on Wednesday, February 21, with a road bout against the fourth-seeded Valiants of Manhattanville College. The time of the contest has not yet been determined.