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Canisius University Athletics

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Members of the Canisius hockey team celebrate after scoring a goal against Holy Cross on Nov. 3 at LECOM Harborcenter
Joe Lehrman
3
Holy Cross HCC 4-3-1, 1-3-1
5
Winner Canisius CAN 1-4-0, 1-0-0
Holy Cross HCC
4-3-1, 1-3-1
3
Final
5
Canisius CAN
1-4-0, 1-0-0
Winner
Score By Periods
Team 1 2 3 F
Holy Cross HCC 0 1 2 3
Canisius CAN 1 2 2 5

Game Recap: Ice Hockey |

Hockey Victorious in Home Debut with 5-3 Win Versus Holy Cross

Senior Griffin Loughran and freshman Matteo Giampa tallied three points apiece to pace Canisius in a 5-3 victory over Holy Cross in Atlantic Hockey Association action Friday at LECOM Harborcenter.
 
Loughran scored two goals and added an assist while Giampa notched one goal and chipped in two helpers to lead the Golden Griffins (1-4-0, 1-0-0 AHA), who picked up their first win of the season in their 2023-24 home debut.
 
Senior Jackson Decker and sophomore Killian Kiecker-Olson also scored for Canisius while freshman goaltender Ethan Robertson made 29 saves to earn his first collegiate victory.
 
Ty Gagno, Alec Cicero and Liam McLinsky all found the back of the net for the Crusaders (4-3-1, 1-3-1 AHA). Jason Grande made 28 saves in goal for the visitors.

Decker staked Canisius to a 1-0 lead at the 15:36 mark of the first period when his shot from the top of the point found its way through traffic and past Grande. The teams traded goals just 40 seconds apart during the early stages of the second period. Holy Cross tied the game at 1-1 with 5:55 elapsed in the middle frame when Gagno beat Robertson with a wrist shot inside the right post from the middle of the slot.
 
Kiecker-Olson put Canisius back in front on the next shift, jamming home his own rebound from just off the right post to put the Griffs back in front, 2-1. Loughran doubled the Canisius advantage at the 15:50 mark of the second period, putting the puck past the blocker of Grande after fellow senior Cody Schiavon's initial attempt from the point hit the end boards and bounced back in front of the Crusaders goal. Loughran notched his second goal of the evening with a power-play tally just past the midway point of the third as Giampa's initial attempt deflected off a Holy Cross defender and Loughran before popping over the shoulder of Grande to give the Griffs a 4-1 cushion. Holy Cross attempt to climb back into the contest, striking twice late in the third to pull within one. Cicero started the comeback bid when he scored on the power play at the 13:05 mark of the final frame while McLinsky made it a one-goal game with less than two minutes to play in regulation to trim the deficit to 4-3.
 
Giampa spoiled the Crusaders' comeback bid, however, notching an empty-net goal with 13 seconds to play to determine the final two-goal margin of victory.   POSTGAME COMMENTS   GAME NOTES
• Holy Cross out-shot Canisius, 33-32, in the contest, highlighted by an 11-8 edge in the third period.
• Canisius was 1-for-4 on the power play while Holy Cross was 1-for-3 with the man advantage.
• Canisius scored five or more goals in a game for the 37th time under head coach Trevor Large and improved to 35-2-0 when doing so with Friday's victory.
• The Griffs carried a lead into the third period for the first time this season and improved to 67-6-1 under Large when leading in a game after 40 minutes.
• Loughran matched his career high in points with his three-point outing on Friday, equaling his personal best for points in a game for the seventh time in his career.
• Loughran scored multiple goals in a game for the fourth time in his career and the first time since a two-goal performance against Air Force while at Michigan State (Oct. 9, 2021).
• Giampa tallied multiple points in a game for the second straight contest as he also registered multiple assists in a game for the first time in his career.
• Freshman Jackson Nieuwendyk recorded his first collegiate point, picking up the primary assist on Decker's first-period tally.
• Freshman Trey Funk notched his first career point in the second period, tallying the secondary helper on Kiecker-Olson's even-strength goal.
 
UP NEXT
The teams complete their weekend series Saturday with a 7 p.m. contest at LECOM Harborcneter.
 
The Griffs will be unveiling their 2023 Atlantic Hockey Association Championship banner in a pregame ceremony.
 
There will also be free 2023 AHA Championship T-Shirts for the first 300 students in attendance.
 
SUPPORT YOUR GRIFFS
Support the Canisius hockey team in conjunction with the "More Than A Game" campaign. Your donation to the hockey program helps our student-athletes continue to be champions in the community, in the classroom and in competition. To donate, CLICK HERE.
 
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