Cornell ousts m. hockey from ECAC playoffs in two thrillers

Down 2-1 in the second game of the league quarterfinals with just 15 seconds to play Saturday night, senior center Kirk Lamb attempted to hit senior forward Ethan Doyle with a centering pass in front of the Cornell net. But the puck went a few inches beyond Doyle's stick, and time ran out on the men's hockey team's season.

With the victory in Ithaca, N.Y., the Big Red beat the Tigers in the Eastern College Athletic Conference quarterfinals, two games to zero. Cornell (15-11-5 overall, 13-8-3 ECAC) advances to the ECAC Final Five, while the Tigers (10-16-5, 9-11-4) head home, wondering what could have been. The Big Red, seeded fourth, beat seventh-seeded Princeton 3-2 in overtime Friday and 2-1 Saturday.

Friday's game was scoreless for the first two periods. Both goalies — junior Dave Stathos of the Tigers and Matt Underhill of Cornell — made spectacular saves throughout the night to keep the game tied 0-0. Princeton broke the game open 26 seconds into the final period, when junior defenseman David Schneider collected a pass from sophomore forward George Parros and beat Underhill with a backhand shot.

The Tigers struck again less than two minutes later thanks to senior forward Shane Campbell. He stole the puck at the blueline in Princeton's end and raced toward the Cornell goal. Campbell made a nice move to trick Underhill and finished the play, putting the Tigers up 2-0.

But Princeton's momentum failed to last, as the Big Red's Ryan Vesce scored two power play goals to send the contest into overtime. Lamb picked up a double-minor penalty at 7:44 of the third period, giving Cornell a four-minute extra-man advantage, during which it tied the score. He received two penalties by first incurring a holding call and then being caught for roughing before play could be stopped."I'm a leader of the team," Lamb said after the loss. "I accept responsibility for the power-play goal."

Seven minutes, 25 seconds into the extra period, Cornell's David Kozier backhanded a high shot that beat Stathos and handed the Tigers a disappointing loss.

Princeton, however, played a solid game and thought it had a good chance to bounce back the next night.

"After tonight's performance I'm still confident that our team can win the series," head coach Len Quesnelle '88 said. "We took too many penalties, and that's what cost us."

The next night, the Tigers' inability to come back from a deficit doomed them to a playoff exit. Princeton was outshot 30-16 over the first two periods and fell behind, 2-0, with only Stathos' goaltending keeping them close.

Princeton's best opportunity in the first two periods came with just seconds remaining in the second. Freshman defenseman Matt Maglione one-timed a pass to junior forward Brad Parsons, but Parsons' shot was knocked away by Underhill.

In the third period, Princeton came out with a vengeance, led by its seniors — a group that realized it might be playing in its final college game. The Tigers took 15 shots in the period, but a few bad bounces and Underhill's stinginess in net kept them from sending the game into overtime.

Campbell scored Princeton's only goal of the night when he beat Underhill at 10:15 of the final period, with the assist going to Doyle.

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Freshman forward Sharam Fouladgar-Mercer had a good chance about halfway through the third period on a slap shot, but once again Underhill could not be beaten.

Junior forward Josh Roberts picked up a penalty with 3:13 to play, and Princeton down 2-1. Cornell's Denis Ladouceur was called for roughing during the power play, however, giving the Tigers an extra man for the final 68 seconds.

Princeton then pulled Stathos, so it had a six-on-four advantage, leaving the net empty. The Tigers lobbed a number of shots at Underhill in vain, getting their best chance on Lamb's centering pass, but coming up just a few inches short in the end.