Middlebury and Amherst settled in a 3-3 tie after 65 minutes of action at Kenyon Arena on Saturday afternoon. The Panthers (6-1-3, 3-0-3) extend their unbeaten streak to seven games (5-0-2), while the Lord Jeffs boast a six-game (5-0-1) unbeaten streak of their own.
Amherst took a 1-0 lead 5:57 into the game as Mike Baran gained some room in the slot and quickly scored through the five-hole for a power play goal. Middlebury just missed tying the game minutes later, as a great feed from Martin Drolet to John Sullivan was stopped by Cole Anderson.
Middlebury took advantage of a brief five-on-three power play in the second period, as a shot from Charles Nerbak was saved before Nick Resor finished on the rebound. With the game tied at 1-1, three goals were scored over the next 53 seconds, leaving the Lord Jeffs with a 3-2 lead. Amherst regained the lead at 3:34 with a nice move by Matthew Rhone, scoring with a quick backhander. Middlebury tied the game 20 seconds later when Charlie Townsend scored driving from the left wing with a shot to the short side. Eddie Effinger scored on a quick wrap-around through the five-hole at the 4:27 mark, giving Amherst a 3-2 advantage.
Trailing 3-2 early in the third period, Middlebury tied the game just 1:00 into the session. Ken Suchoski won a face-off back to Trevor Pollock, who quickly snapped a shot past Anderson to tie the game at 3-3. The goal was the first of his career for Pollock. Each team had some chances to take the lead in the remainder of the period, but neither did, forcing the game into overtime.
Middlebury held a slim 3-1 lead in shots through the extra session, with Jeremy Deutsch having the best chance to score for the Jeffs 3:10 in. Cutting to the goal, Deutsch carried the puck on the left wing before Middlebury netminder Max Kennedy cut off the angle and knocked the shot away. The Panthers ended the game with a 30-20 advantage in shots, as John Yanchek (six saves) and Kennedy (11 saves) combined time for the Panthers. Anderson made 27 stops between the pipes for the Lord Jeffs.
Box Score
