MANCHESTER, N.H. — For Boston University, 23rd time’s the charm.
Goals by Wilmer Skoog in the second period and Ethan Phillips in the third was all Boston University needed to shut the door on Cornell for a 2-1 win Saturday before a crowd of 7,143 in Manchester, N.H. The Terriers advance to the Frozen Four for the 23rd time in program history and first since 2015.
This is the third time the Terriers (29-10-0) have advanced to the national semifinals out of the Manchester region. Boston University previously won the Manchester regional final in 2009 and 2015 and are a perfect 6-0 in tournament play in Manchester’s downtown civic arena.
Cornell, searching to get back to the Frozen Four for the first time since 2003, saw its season end at 21-11-2.
The Big Red did not go quietly. With goalie Ian Shane pulled for an extra skater, Dalton Bancroft finished off a scrum in front of the BU net to cut the deficit to 2-1 at 59:32. With about 10 seconds to go, Bancroft had a chance to tie it with a shot at an open net, but the puck went wide to the right of the goal.
Amidst an NCAA tournament that before Saturday had seen games outside the Manchester region decided by an aggregate score of 45-4, Cornell and BU played a tight, defensive battle. Skoog broke the 0-0 deadlock when Jeremy Wilmer flicked the puck to a waiting Skoog, who was positioned right in front of the Big Red net to slam it past Shane at 2:13.
BU got what turned out to be a much-needed insurance goal when Phillips, on a breakaway, poked home his own rebound for a 2-0 Terrier lead at 8:26. Matt Brown was credited with the assist.
BU goalie Drew Commesso had 13 saves, while Shane finished with 19. Shane was pulled for an extra skater with 2:11 to go in the game.