Box Score (PDF)
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ITHACA, N.Y. — In the matter of seconds, the sellout crowd at Lynah Rink went from aghast to exuberant. A pass between defensemen narrowly missed a Princeton forward primed for a breakaway, then Cornell sophomore
Holden Anderson buried his first collegiate goal to power the Big Red to a 4-2 victory Saturday night.
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The win sends Cornell (10-10-3, 8-7-1 ECAC Hockey) into sixth place in the league standings with six games remaining for all of the circuit's 12 teams.
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The winning goal came 5 minutes, 33 seconds into the third period after a pass from senior defenseman
Joakim Ryan came perilously close to being picked off and turned up ice. Anderson then stepped into space toward the top of the right circle and fired a shot that knuckled past the screen of sophomore forward
Jeff Kubiak and by the blocker of Princeton goalie Colton Phinney.
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The goal alleviated the angst of a 2-2 tie against ECAC Hockey's last-place team, which pulled even late in the second period on Kyle Rankin's second goal of the game. The first time the Big Red played Princeton (3-17-2, 1-14-1) this season, it peppered the Tigers net but couldn't score until the final moments of the game. Cornell didn't have the same problem in the rematch, scoring twice in the opening six minutes of the game.
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Senior forward
Madison Dias opened the scoring with his second goal of the year at the 2:11 mark. Senior forward
John McCarron won the puck back to senior defenseman
Jacob MacDonald on a faceoff to the right of goalie
Mitch Gillam. MacDonald broke out of the zone on the left side and found Dias behind his defenseman cutting up the middle. Dias snapped a shot over Phinney's glove to give the home side a 1-0 lead.
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After Rankin tipped in a shot from Quin Pompi to pull the visitors even at the 4:12, Cornell grabbed the lead a little more than a minute later on junior forward
Christian Hilbrich's team-leading eighth goal of the season. Hilbrich took a pass from sophomore forward
Eric Freschi in the neutral zone, then dished off to senior forward
Cole Bardreau before beating his defender up the middle and taking a return pass for a partial breakaway. Hilbrich swept a shot through Phinney's legs to restore the home side's lead. Bardreau had two assists on the night, pushing his team-high total to 12.
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Sophomore goalie
Mitch Gillam made 17 saves for the victory, including a pair of game-savers after Anderson's goal put the Big Red ahead in the third period.
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On the power play, Princeton set up Kyle Rankin for a one-timer from the right circle, but Gillam kicked his left pad out to make the save with 11:05 to play. Then, with just 1:32 left in the third, Tucker Brockett set up Matt Nelson on the door step, but Gillam swallowed up the shot from the top of the crease to preserve the lead.
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Before the ensuing faceoff, Princeton called timeout and pulled Phinney. Bardreau won the draw to Gillam's left and after sophomore forward
Eric Freschi weaved through numerous defenders in the neutral zone, he took a shot at the empty net that banked off the post. Sophomore forward
Jake Weidner cleaned up from the slot, cashing in his third goal of the season to close out the scoring.
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Cornell plays four of its last six games on the road, including an Ivy League trip next weekend. The Big Red starts off at 7 p.m. Friday at Dartmouth before making a visit to Harvard at 7 p.m. Saturday.
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