[youtube_sc url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vElQkFkyCEI]SOUTH BEND, Ind. — It took over 151 minutes and 169 shots on goal to end it, but 12th-seed Massachusetts picked up the first win of a Hockey East first-round series early Saturday morning in record-setting fashion.
Shane Walsh scored 11:42 into the fifth overtime, giving the Minutemen a 4-3 victory over Notre Dame in the longest college hockey game ever recorded.
It beat the previous record-holder, an ECAC Hockey quarterfinal game between Quinnipiac and Union in 2010, by 80 seconds.
It ended at 1:30 a.m. local time, five hours and 55 minutes after the opening faceoff.
At 151:42, it was the equivalent of two and a half full games. And it was just the first game in a best-of-three series.
UMass, Hockey East’s last-place finisher, can earn a spot in the quarterfinals with a win Saturday night or in a deciding third game if the Fighting Irish win Game 2.
Notre Dame goaltender Cal Petersen set the NCAA record for saves in a game with 87, 51 of them coming in overtime.
His counterpart, UMass’ Steve Mastalerz, made 75 saves; the Minutemen outshot the Irish 91-78.
Steven Iacobellis had a hat trick for the Minutemen (11-21-2), who rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the final five minutes of the second period.
Sam Herr and Vince Hinostroza scored to stake Notre Dame (15-17-5) to a 2-0 lead.
Iacobellis scored his first goal on a power play in the second period before Steven Fogarty restored Notre Dame’s two-goal lead.
Walsh assisted on Iacobellis’ second goal, scored with 4:21 left in the second period.
And after a hooking penalty to Notre Dame’s Austin Wuthrich, Iacobellis scored with two seconds remaining in the period to tie the game.
It took more than 111 minutes to get another goal.
[youtube_sc url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7wCf5CflXH0]
