WILKES BARRE, Pa. -- In a teeter-totter United College Hockey Conference (UCHC) matchup, the Elmira College men's ice hockey team fell on the road Saturday afternoon to Wilkes University, 5-3. The Soaring Eagles dropped to 1-2-1 (1-1-0 UCHC) on the year, while the Colonels improved to 2-1-0 (2-0-0 UCHC).
 
Special teams played a large factor in this afternoon's contest, as half of today's goals were scored either on the power play or shorthanded. Elmira went 1-for-6 with the extra skater, while Wilkes was 2-for-6 with a shorthanded tally.
 
Elmira held the edge in shots on goal, 40-33, but Wilkes held a hefty advantage in the faceoff circle, winning 52-of-90 attempts.
 
The Soaring Eagles controlled the opening period by scoring back-to-back goals in a 2:10 span. Connor Powell '20 opened the game by netting a power-play goal at 8:27 on assists from Nick Ford '20 and Matthew Cuce '20. It was Powell's second goal in as many games and his second consecutive game-opening goal.
 
Spencer MacLean '20 doubled the Elmira lead at 10:37 with an even-strength tally, his second of the season. Cuce, Elmira's newest 100-point club member, was involved in the scoring play and was credited with his fourth assist of the 2019-20 campaign.
 
Elmira marched into the first intermission with the two-goal advantage, but Wilkes flipped the script in the second stanza with three special-teams goals to take a 3-2 lead.
 
A pair of penalties on Elmira at the end of the first period placed the Colonels on a 5-on-3 power play, one that produced their first goal of the game from Tyler Barrow just 30 seconds into the second period. Then, a trio of penalties split 2-1 in favor of Wilkes saw Nick Fea level the game at 2-2 with a 4-on-3 power-play goal at 5:36.
 
Donald Flynn of Wilkes was called for a tripping penalty at 6:14, but Elmira was unable to capitalize with the extra-skater, as Phil Erickson netted a shorthanded goal at 6:50 to give the Colonels their first lead of the game.
 
The penalty-laded second period continued, as Elmira and Wilkes both went on the power play two additional times, but neither side was able to find the back of the cage.
 
In the third period, Wilkes clung to its one-goal lead, but Elmira's relentlessness paid dividends late in the period.
 
With 5:27 left on the clock, second-year forward Marty Kapoian '22 logged his first goal of the 2019-20 season to even the contest at 3-3. His game-tying goal was assisted by rookie Tommy Donnelly '23, who was credited with the first assist of his collegiate career, and Andrew Pucci '20.
 
It looked as though all the momentum was with Elmira, but Billy Berry found the game-winning goal, unassisted, for Wilkes at 17:50. Flynn scored an insurance goal on an empty net at 19:16 to put today's game out of reach, as the Purple and Gold dropped a hard-fought contest on the road, 5-3.
 
News and Notes

• Ford extended his point streak to four games.
• Cuce produced his second consecutive multi-point and multi-assist performance.
• Powell is riding a three-game point streak and has game-opening goals in back-to-back contests.
• MacLean has scored goals in back-to-back games.
• Pucci has logged assists in consecutive games.
• Kapoian scored his first goal of the season.
• Donnelly was credited with his first career assist.
• Logan Bateman '23 made 28 saves in his second collegiate start.

Up Next
Elmira returns to the ice on Friday, November 15, when the Soaring Eagles host Neumann University in UCHC action at 7:00 p.m. The contest is part of Elmira College's 38th Annual Athletics Alumni Weekend.