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ITHACA, N.Y. -- How important is scoring depth? It saved the day for the men's hockey team Saturday, spurring a three-goal second period rally in a 3-2 victory over Clarkson in front of a sold-out crowd at Lynah Rink. Freshman Matt Buckles notched his second goal of the year, junior defenseman Jacob MacDonald scored his first collegiate goal, then the red-hot sophomore forward Christian Hilbrich scored the winner for the 12th-ranked Big Red.
 
Senior goaltender Andy Iles' strong play would prove to be vital for Cornell (10-4-5, 6-3-4 ECACH), which extended its unbeaten streak to seven games -- tied for fourth-longest in the country. Iles shook of a pair of early goals against to finish the night with 23 saves.
 
Clarkson (15-9-2, 8-4 ECAC Hockey) came out flying in the opening frame, outshooting the Big Red by a 14-6 margin and taking a two-goal lead after 20 minutes. Linemates Pat Megannety and Ben Sexton would combine on two separate occasions to give the 13th-ranked Golden Knights a two-goal lead.
 
The first tally came off an unforced turnover at the Big Red blue line. Sexton found Megannety entering the zone with speed, and he cut a shot from the top of the right circle past Iles' blocker. The duo would team up again at the end of the period when Megannety won a draw cleanly straight back to the tape of Sexton. The Boston Bruins draft pick snapped a shot stick-side on Iles, giving the Golden Knights a 2-0 lead after the first period. It was the second time this season the Big Red surrendered two goals in the opening frame -- the first coming a day earlier against St. Lawrence.

Cornell wasn't without its chances in the first, but Brian Ferlin and Kirill Gotovets could do little more than fill the Lynah stands with sounds of iron after clanking hard shots off the post to Clarkson goalie Greg Lewis' glove side.
 
The Big Red regrouped in the first intermission and slowly worked its way back into the game. Consecutive shifts from the Dustin Mowrey and Eric Freschi lines were spent primarily in the Clarkson zone before the visitors countered with an odd-man rush that was foiled by Iles' save on Jeff DiNallo. Kirill Gotovets sent the Big Red up ice with a diagonal pass to freshman Jeff Kubiak, who entered the Golden Knights' zone on the right side and kept possession while wheeling behind the net. As he cycled the puck to freshman Jake Weidner behind Lewis' right post, the puck squirted past a Clarkson defenseman out to the top of the crease. Buckles then showed tremendous poise to outwait the lunging Lewis, flipping a shot over the sprawling goalie to cut the Big Red's deficit to one goal.
 
Cornell needed just another 81 seconds to tie the game and ignite the Lynah Rink crowd -- and it came from an unlikely source. Playing in his 60th career game, MacDonald scored his first collegiate goal on a play that showcased how his offensive instincts belie his point total. He started a controlled breakout from behind the Big Red net, which led to Rodger Craig setting up Madison Dias for a shot from the top of the left circle. While Dias' shot sailed wide of the far post, MacDonald alertly beat the Clarkson winger to the right-wing halfwall to keep possession before dishing off to Freschi toward the top of the circle. The freshman center sent a slapper toward goal that Lewis kicked straight back out with his right leg. MacDonald swooped in from the corner and cashed in the rebound, tying the game at 2.

The winning strike then came from the team's hottest scorer, with Hilbrich scoring his fifth goal in a five-game span with 4:30 left in the second period. The play started with a wayward Clarkson centering pass at the tail end of a power play, which went 200 feet back into the left corner of the Golden Knights' zone. Big Red leading scorer Brian Ferlin emerged from the penalty box and immediately applied pressure on the forecheck, reading Perry's spinning backhand into the corner. Ferlin got a stick to it before the Clarkson defenseman, which sent the puck toward Mowrey in the circle. He tapped a pass to Hilbrich breaking alone down the slot, and -- like Buckles earlier in the period -- the sophomore winger waited for Lewis to sprawl to the ice before using his long reach to tuck the puck into the net and give the Big Red its first lead of the night.

Cornell would put the clamp down in the third period, holding Clarkson to just six shots on goal -- but the Golden Knights still had a few chances to equalize thwarted by Iles. Allan McPherson snapped a shot from the left circle that rattled Iles' mask with 9:51 to play, then Iles flashed out his left pad amidst traffic to foil Jarrett Burton's offering from the slot with 3:07 to play.

The Big Red appeared to have the game salted away when it drew a penalty with 2:33 remaining, until McPherson was sent away on an apparent breakaway 30 seconds later. But junior defenseman and Hobey Baker Award nominee Joakim Ryan sprinted back and established inside position to break up the opportunity.

Iles moved into sole possession of fourth place in program history with his 51st career victory. Both Mowrey and Ferlin extended their team-best point-scoring streaks to six games.
 
Cornell will hit the road for its next three games, starting with a New England Ivy League swing next weekend. The Big Red visits defending national champion Yale at 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 31, then makes the short jaunt to the east for a matchup with Brown at 7 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 1.