TROY, N.Y. – Shane Ott scored 36 seconds into overtime, lifting Niagara to a thrilling 5-4 victory over Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in non-conference hockey action Saturday night.
How it Happened
The Purple Eagles (1-2-1) twice built two-goal leads before RPI (2-1-1) rallied to force overtime. Ott’s game-winner, assisted by Glebs Prohorenkovs, capped off a back-and-forth contest that saw Niagara survive a late Engineers comeback.
Jay Ahearn led Niagara’s offense with two goals, both coming in the first period to give the Purple Eagles an early 2-0 advantage. John Beaton got RPI on the board with a power-play goal late in the opening frame.
Tyler Wallace extended Niagara’s lead to 3-1 with a power-play tally early in the second period. The teams then traded goals, with Tyler Hotson scoring for RPI and Alex Murray finding the back of the net for Niagara to make it 4-2 heading into the third.
The Engineers mounted a comeback in the final period. Rainers Rullers scored at 2:56, and Arvils Bergmanis tied the game at 11:18, setting the stage for Ott’s overtime heroics.
Pierce Charleson made 25 saves for Niagara, while Noah Giesbrecht stopped 38 shots for RPI in the losing effort.
The victory marks Niagara’s first win of the season.
Niagara Notes
• Niagara moves to 5-2-2 all-time against RPI.
• The Purple Eagles have scored a power play goal in each game this season.
• Niagara has scored at least three goals in three of four games.
• The overtime win is Niagara’s first since defeating Canisius in OT on Feb. 6,…
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