ITHACA, N.Y. — Cornell men's hockey freshman forward
Charlie Major scored his first collegiate goal 2:58 into overtime, sparking the No. 12-ranked Big Red (5-2-3, 3-2-2 ECAC Hockey) to avenge a 2-0 deficit and post a 3-2 victory over Colgate (7-8-2, 4-2-1 ECAC Hockey) in front of a sold-out crowd of 4,267 at Lynah Rink on Friday night.
Major also recorded his first multi-point game of his collegiate career, assisting on sophomore forward
Ryan Walsh's game-tying power-play goal near the halfway point of the third period.
Joining Major and Walsh in the scoring column for Cornell was senior forward
Jack O'Leary, who has scored in consecutive games and extended his point streak to three games.
Brett Chorske scored Colgate's first goal to extend his point streak to 11 games, the longest active streak in Division I hockey. Ryan Spinale tallied the other marker for the visiting Raiders, who also received a 28-save performance in goal from Andrew Takacs. Tommy Bergsland assisted on both Colgate goals to notch the lone multi-point night for the visitors.
Cornell netminder
Ian Shane made eight saves between the pipes in the victory.
The first period featured only nine combined shots on goal, with Colgate striking first on a wrist shot from the mid-slot by Chorske nearly seven minutes into the contest. Max Nagel set up Chorske after he received a chipped pass at the near-half wall by Bergsland.
Controlling nearly the rest of the first period, Cornell out-shot Colgate by a 4-1 margin, including holding the Raiders without a shot on goal for over 13 minutes.
Colgate eventually took a two-goal lead with 6:52 left in the second period when Spinale redirected a shot from the point by Michael Neumeier with three seconds left on one of the Raiders' two power-play chances.
After conceding the second goal of the night, Cornell's defense locked in for the remainder of the contest, out-shooting Colgate by a 21-3 margin.
The Big Red eventually cut the Raiders lead in half with 46.5 seconds remaining in the middle frame on a tap-in one-timer by
O'Leary at the far post. Castagna set up
O'Leary's goal with a nifty back-handed pass from the bottom of the near faceoff circle. Senior defenseman
Hank Kempf also earned a helper on the goal.
Cornell's defense held Colgate to just two shots on goal throughout the third period, partially due to the Big Red dominating puck possession.
Walsh tied the game up with 10:40 left in regulation, roofing a wrist shot from the base of the left faceoff circle following quick passes from Major and sophomore defenseman George Fegaras.
Facing his first shot on goal in 20-plus minutes, Shane stopped Nagel on a pseudo-breakaway chance on a long outlet pass by Bergsland late in the third period to preserve the score at 2-all.
In overtime, Major avenged his own giveaway in the neutral zone as he came from behind to get a stick on a shot by Alex DiPaolo, which led to a 2-on-0 opportunity. Senior forward
Ondrej Psenicka skated down the left side of the ice, setting up Major for a quick one-timer that gave Cornell the overtime victory.
GAME NOTES
• Friday was the 169th meeting between Cornell and Colgate
, as the Big Red upped its lead in the series over the Raiders to 90-62-17. With the victory, Cornell is unbeaten in 21 of its last 27 games against Colgate (16-6-5).
• The Big Red's overtime victory was its first over Colgate since defeating the Raiders, 3-2, on Nov. 14, 2015, at Starr Rink in Hamilton. Then-freshman Anthony Angello scored the OT winner for Cornell, which also served as the last time a Big Red freshman forward had scored an overtime-winning goal. It was Cornell's first overtime win at Lynah Rink over Colgate since a 2-1 triumph on Jan. 30, 2015.
• Major became the first Cornell freshman to score an overtime-winning goal since defenseman
Ben Robertson did so against Arizona State this past Jan. 12 in Tempe, Ariz.
• Cornell has scored in 48 consecutive games against Colgate, dating back to the Raiders' last shutout of the Big Red on Jan. 30, 2004. During the span, the Big Red has averaged 2.75 goals per contest and has netted multiple goals in 42 games during its goal-scoring streak versus the Raiders.
• The Big Red also extended its streak of not being shut out to 47 games, the sixth-longest active streak in Division I hockey.
LONGEST ACTIVE GOAL-SCORING STREAKS
Division I Programs
1. 87 games, Boston University
2. 82 games, Colgate
3. 75 games, Minnesota
4. 67 games, Arizona State
5. 59 games, Denver
6. 47 games, Cornell
7. 42 games, Wisconsin
• Avenging its two-goal deficit, Cornell registered its first win after trailing by two goals since defeating Dartmouth, 6-3, on March 22, 2024, after it trailed 3-1 heading into the third period of the 2024 ECAC Hockey Championship semifinals in Lake Placid, N.Y.
• O'Leary and Walsh's goals extended both player's point streak to three games, matching their career highs for the fifth time.
• Along with his power-play goal, Walsh went 15-of-23 at the faceoff circle, matching his single-game high in draws won for the fifth time this season.
UP NEXT
Cornell and Colgate will conclude its home-and-home series on Saturday, Dec. 7, when the programs meet again in Hamilton, N.Y., at the Class of 1965 Arena. Puck drop is scheduled for 7 p.m., and game action will be broadcast on ESPN+.
The Big Red has a 5-1-1 record at the Class of 1965 Arena, where it has scored three-plus goals in five of the seven games played there. Overall, Cornell is 11-3-2 over its last 16 games played in Hamilton.
Saturday's contest with Colgate will begin Cornell's seven-game road trip, which will resume on Friday, Jan. 3, in Tempe, Ariz., when the Big Red plays UMass (7-6-2) in the first game of the Desert Hockey Classic, hosted by Arizona State. After its game with UMass, the Big Red will play either Robert Morris or the host Sun Devils — whichever has the same result as the Big Red — the following day.
