Utica University forward Eric Vitale (21) celebrates with John Gutt (28) after Gutt scored the first goal of the game during the first period of the UCHC championship game against SUNY Geneseo College at the Adirondack Bank Center in Utica on Saturday. The Pioneers won 4-1.
Utica University’s Nicholas Rogers, right, and Geneseo’s Nick Kovacs, left, vie for the puck during the UCHC championship game at the Adirondack Bank Center in Utica on Saturday. The Pioneers won, and Rogers scored the eventual game winner.
Sports writer
Utica University forward Eric Vitale (21) celebrates with John Gutt (28) after Gutt scored the first goal of the game during the first period of the UCHC championship game against SUNY Geneseo College at the Adirondack Bank Center in Utica on Saturday. The Pioneers won 4-1.
Utica University’s Nicholas Rogers, right, and Geneseo’s Nick Kovacs, left, vie for the puck during the UCHC championship game at the Adirondack Bank Center in Utica on Saturday. The Pioneers won, and Rogers scored the eventual game winner.
Utica University won its sixth UCHC title on Saturday and Hamilton College lost in the semifinals of the NESCAC playoffs as the top seed on Sunday. And both men’s hockey teams earned spots in the Division III national championship tournament. Both will host first-round games.
Mid-season transfer Nicholas Rogers earned tournament MVP honors due in no small part to his late-game heroics in the title game.
After SUNY Geneseo’s late equalizer, Rogers cut through the Ice Knights’ defense to score for a 2-1 lead on a wrap-around goal two minutes later.
The Pioneers added a pair of empty-net goals to secure a 4-1 victory.
John Gutt scored for the Pioneers in the first period. Gutt corralled a puck on the rebound, and slid it past the outstretched pads of Geneseo goalie Jacob Torgner to make it 1-0. And it stayed that way until Filip Wiberg knotted things at 1-1 with 7:22 left in regulation.
After Rogers’ go-ahead goal, the Pioneers added insurance goals by Drake Morse and Aidan Hughes.
Kyle Curtin made nine saves in net for Utica.
The Pioneers improved to 19-7-1 on the season. Utica remains fourth in the latest NCAA Power Index rankings.
In addition to the junior Rogers’ MVP honors, four Pioneers were named to the all-tournament team.
Curtin was honored in goal. Utica defenseman Alex German as well as Gutt and Hughes also made the team.
Wiberg and Geneseo defenseman Dakota Zarudny were also named to the team.
Williams College upset Hamilton 5-4 in overtime to win the NESCAC.
Williams jumped out to a 2-0 lead with a goal from Jackson Krill (who had a hat trick in the game) then a power-play goal from Brady Welsch 12:33 into the game.
Hamilton then ran off three straight goals to take a 3-2 lead. Clarence Beltz scored with 1:50 left in the first then Lucas Constantine scored with 10.4 seconds left before the first intermission.
Liam Varmecky gave the Continentals their first lead 1:29 into the second.
But Williams rallied with another Krill goal and Welsh’s second power-play goal to lead 4-3 with 2:27 elapsed in the third.
Noah Leibl’s goal for Hamilton just over halfway through the third tied it and forced overtime. There, Krill completed his hat trick with the game-winning goal just over five minutes into overtime.
Hamilton ends the season third in the NPI rankings with a record of 19-5-2.
The road to the Division III national title runs through Utica again this year.
Last year the Nexus Center hosted the semifinals and title game. This year, the Adirondack Bank Center next door will be the site for those games, March 27 and 29, respectively.
Utica is on the side of the bracket where undefeated, three-time defending national champion Hobart has the first-round bye. The Pioneers will host Williams (12-13-2), the team that beat Hamilton for the NESCAC crown. That game will be at 7 p.m. on Saturday at the Adirondack Bank Center.
Hamilton’s side of the bracket has Endicott (21-3-3) as the lone team with a bye in the first round. The Continentals host Middle Atlantic Conference champion Neumann University (17-8-2) at 7 p.m. on Saturday at Hamilton’s Russell Sage Rink. This will be the first time Hamilton hosts a men’s hockey national playoff game.
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