Air Force secured a 5-2 victory over Holy Cross in an Atlantic Hockey America matchup on Saturday, January 17, at the Hart Center in Worcester, Massachusetts. This win allowed Air Force to claim four out of six possible points from Holy Cross, who currently holds second place in the conference. The result also ended a 15-game losing streak for Air Force against the Crusaders and marked their first win at Holy Cross since 2016.
Air Force (11-11-2 overall, 7-8-1 AHA) opened scoring late in the first period when Brendan Gibbons netted his fifth goal of the season. Shortly after returning from a penalty, Gibbons received a pass following a turnover forced by Jake Peterson and was set up by Hayden Nichol. His shot from the right circle gave Air Force a 1-0 lead with just under five minutes remaining in the opening period. Goaltender Dominik Wasik made two crucial saves in the closing seconds to maintain that advantage.
Holy Cross tied the game early in the second period with Quinn McCall redirecting a shot past Wasik. Less than two minutes later, Sam Stitz restored Air Force’s lead off assists from Nick Remissong and Will Staring. A potential tying goal for Holy Cross was overturned after an Air Force coaches’ challenge determined it had been kicked into the net.
The Crusaders did manage to equalize again on a power play goal by Matthew Kursonis midway through the period. However, Air Force responded after Gibbons drew a major penalty; Nolan Cunningham scored his first power play goal of the series with help from Chris Hedden and Nick Sajevic, putting Air Force back ahead.
In the third period, special teams continued to be key for Air Force as they added another power play goal when Stitz finished off a pass from Will Dawson for his second tally of the night. Later, while shorthanded, Hedden capitalized on a rebound following Holt Oliphant’s attempt to extend their lead to three goals.
Head coach Frank Serratore commented on his team’s performance: “We played a terrific game,” head coach Frank Serratore said. “Our power play came through for us tonight and we needed it The better team won tonight and I’m so proud of the guys. We haven’t beaten them in so long this feels good. This was a massive win to get that Holy Cross monkey off our back and beat a good team on the road. I thought we played a great 60 minutes and now we go into our bye week with a good taste in our mouth.”
Air Force finished with more shots on goal than Holy Cross (37-28) and converted twice on seven power play opportunities compared to one successful chance out of six for Holy Cross. Wasik stopped 26 shots while Danick Leroux recorded 32 saves for Holy Cross. Stitz matched his career high with two goals and extended his point streak to four games.
With this win, Air Force will have some time off before returning home for their next series against Sacred Heart scheduled for January 30-31 at Cadet Ice Arena.
