BEVERLY, Mass. – The No. 13/13 nationally ranked Endicott men's ice hockey team defeated Amherst, 6-2, in non-conference action on Monday afternoon at the Raymond J. Bourque Arena.
Endicott jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first period less than seven minutes into the matchup via goals from James Winkler (York, Maine), Ross Olsson (Billerica, Mass.), and Jack Kilty (Medway, Mass.) at 2:45, 3:06, and 6:54, respectively.
Winkler's tally highlighted the trio of goals as the junior forward collected a wide open pass at center ice from Jonathan Waring (Farmington Hills, Mich.), gained the offensive zone, dangled an Amherst defender in the slot, and rifled home his seventh goal of the season high glove side for the 1-0 advantage.
From the 6:54 mark of the first period on, both teams traded goals to put the score at 4-2 before Endicott finally iced the game in the third with markers from Daniel Kucerovy (Bethel Park, Pa.) and Tommy Besinger (Milton, Mass.) at 17:52 and 18:12.
Meanwhile, in goal, Conor O'Brien (Pinellas Park, Fla.) stopped a career-high 46 shots to improve to 5-2-1 on the season.
BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
- The Gulls are 2-0-0 in the all-time series against Amherst.
- O'Brien's 46 saves ranks tied for third all-time in a single game in program history.
- Today's game was the first for Endicott in 25 days. Conversely, it was the first game for the Mammoth in 23 days.
- Endicott is 5-1-1 at home this season.
WHAT'S NEXT
No. 13/13/ Endicott (8-3-1) takes on Buffalo State in the Northfields Savings Bank Holiday Tournament in Northfield, Vermont on Friday, January 4 at 4 PM. Amherst (3-4-2) hosts Bowdoin on Friday, January 4 at 7 PM.
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(Photo Credit - David Le '10)