Early in the third period, Quinnipiac’s Sam Anas found himself on a breakaway with a chance to give the Bobcats the lead. But Cornell goaltender Mitch Gillam came all the way to the top of the defensive faceoff circle where he made a daring play to keep the game knotted up at four.
A few minutes later, Cornell used the momentum of Gillam’s big play to take the 5-4 lead and force a game three in Hamden on Sunday afternoon.
On the game-winning goal, Cornell’s Trevor Yates controlled the puck with his skate and then beat Quinnipiac goaltender Michael Garteig over his shoulder for his sixth goal of the season.
“I thought Cornell was really good tonight. They competed, they battled,” Quinnipiac head coach Rand Pecknold said. “Their season was on the line. They were better than us, we struggled.”
Yates’ goal was the only goal of the third period after a second period where there were six goals scored between the two teams.
Cornell’s Mitch Vanderlaan started the six-goal second period when he cut the Bobcats’ 3-1 lead to one goal just 57 seconds into the second period.
Later in the second period the scoring really picked up as the two teams traded goals.
Quinnipiac’s K.J. Tiefenwerth scored for the Bobcats to bring their lead back up to two with a goal in front of the net as he was checked from behind.
However, the two-goal lead for the Bobcats would not last long as Cornell’s point-leader Jeff Kubiak struck for the Big Red just 58 seconds after Tiefenwerth’s goal to bring the Big Red within one.
Cornell drew back even when a Quinnipiac turnover found Cornell’s Matt Buckles’ stick in front of the net where Buckles was all alone.
Buckles took the puck and put it past Garteig’s left pad to tie the game up at three.
Quinnipiac’s Chase Priskie captured his second goal of the night when Tommy Schutt found him galloping down the ice and delivered a beautiful tape-to-tape pass.
The freshman defensemen rifled one past Gillam for his fourth goal of the season to put the Bobcats back in control, 4-3.
“I think as a twenty-man unit we just weren’t going, things weren’t clicking,” Priskie said. “You have to have everyone on board to win games, especially to sweep a series and end someone’s season.
The onslaught of goals didn’t stop after Pecknold called a timeout following Priskie’s goal.
Cornell’s captain Christian Hilbrich found the puck on his stick, wrapped around the net and tied the game up at four less than two minutes after Priskie’s goal gave the Bobcats the lead.
Quinnipiac and Cornell will face off in a series-deciding game three tomorrow afternoon at the High Point Solutions Arena with a ticket to Lake Placid for the ECAC semifinals on the line.
“We just have to reload, refocus,” Quinnipiac senior captain Soren Jonzzon said. “We just have to play with more urgency.”
