Nick Hamm’s first career goal proved to be the game winner, and four different Army players scored to lead the Black Knights to a 4-2 victory over visiting American International in front of 1,910 fans at Tate Rink Saturday night.
With the win, Army (8-9-0, 6-7-0 MAAC) completed a weekend sweep of the Yellow Jackets and extended its season-high winning streak to three straight.
Hamm’s magic moment came with 4:17 left in the second period and broke a 2-2 tie. The freshman defenseman’s shot beat AIC goalie Chad Davis just inside the far post.
Justin Fagan tacked on an insurance marker in the third period for his second of the season. Brad Roberts picked up his third consecutive win in net for the Black Knights. He stopped 27 shots to improve his record to 7-9-0 on the year. Davis made 34 saves in a losing effort for AIC (4-9-2, 3-7-1 MAAC).
The visiting Yellow Jackets drew first blood when left winger Ryan Robin scored 2:53 into the contest. However, it did not take long for Army to get the equalizer as Jon Boyle registered his second goal in as many nights just over one minute later.
Chris Garceau gave the home crowd something to cheer about on the power play when he lifted the Black Knights to a 2-1 lead at 6:35 of the opening stanza. Nick Dancey tied things up for AIC at the 17-minute mark, and that is how the first period ended.
Nic Serre and Chris Casey had two assists each to pace Army’s attack. The Black Knights outshot their counterparts by a 38-29 margin and held the Yellow Jackets scoreless on five power-play opportunities.
