HERSHEY – After surrendering a two-goal lead to Lebanon Valley College in the second period, the Wilkes men's ice hockey team stormed back in the third to defeat the Flying Dutchmen 4-3 in their UCHC contest Friday night at the historic Hersheypark Arena.
 
The thrilling come-from-behind win boosted the Colonels' record to 12-6-0 on the season. They currently stand at 10-3-0 in UCHC play and third place in the standings. Lebanon Valley fell to 3-15-0 on the campaign and 2-11-0 in conference contests.
 
Wilkes quickly got to work in the first period by cycling the puck around the offensive zone. Daniel Nau (Wake Forest, NC) centered a pass from behind the goal line to Teague Porter (Anchorage, AK), who chipped the puck over to a wide open Max Cocchi (Ludlow, MA/). Cocchi lit the lamp just 3:18 into the contest to put the Colonels up 1-0. Porter and Nau collected assists on Cocchi's third goal of the season.
 
Shortly after the 1-0 marker, Lebanon Valley was assessed a hooking minor that sent Wilkes to the first power play of the night. Although the Colonels could not capitalize on the man advantage, they generated three shots on goal in quick succession to keep the momentum flowing on the road.
 
Neither team found the back of the net for the remainder of the period, sending Wilkes back to the locker room with a 1-0 lead. Wilkes outshot the Flying Dutchmen 23-10 in the first 20 minutes of play.
 
Wilkes picked up right where they left off in the second period, pinning the hosts in their own zone. After a clean win at the dot by Cocchi, Porter ripped a one-timer past the Lebanon Valley goaltender to double the Colonels' lead. Cocchi picked up the lone assist on Porter's third of the season at 3:00 of the period.
 
The Flying Dutchmen found the back of the net at 12:50 of the middle frame. Jered Stevenson was credited with the 2-1 goal while Harris Blackwood tallied an assist.
 
Wilkes headed to the box for a hooking penalty shortly after the goal, sending Lebanon Valley to their first power play of the evening. Just 38 seconds into the man advantage, Blake Tosto knotted the game up at 2-2 with a shot near the far-side faceoff dot. Darion Benchich was awarded an assist on the 13:53 goal.
 
 
Momentum swung in favor of the Flying Dutchmen after the team put up a pair of goals in just over a minute of action. Wilkes goaltender Jack Perna (Sykesville, MD) appeared unphased, stopping four consecutive shots to prevent the hosts from taking the lead.
 
Lebanon Valley headed back to the power play and was relentless inside the Colonel zone. Brenden Yingling secured his team's second odd-strength goal of the game with 7 seconds remaining in the period to put them up 3-2. Blackwood and Tosto assisted on the play at 19:53.
 
After 40 minutes of action, Wilkes still held a slight edge in the shots department, outshooting the Flying Dutchmen 25-19.
 
Both teams were assessed penalties past the midway point of the final frame, resulting in a stretch of four-on-four hockey. Following a crucial block by Mason Vonk (West Olive, MI/), Nate Terski (North Grafton, MA) picked up the puck in transition and sprung Cam Lowe (Lancaster, MA/). Lowe took the puck down the ice, beating a Lebanon Valley defender before cutting left to right and lifting a shot over the goaltender's arm to even the score back up at 3-3. Terski picked up the helper on the goal at 6:18 of the third period.
 
 Lebanon Valley headed to their third power play of the night at 12:07 and looked to cash in their third goal of the game while up a skater. The home team maintained possession for the majority of the two minute penalty, however the Colonel kill was able to keep them off the board thanks to a timely block by Steven Spetz (Oak Ridge, NJ/).
 
Under a minute after the successful penalty kill, Billy Berry (Redding, CT) split a pair of Flying Dutchmen defenders with a great effort play and backhanded a shot that settled on the tape of Jimmy O'Kane (Chicago, IL/Notre Dame Prep), who had crashed the net in search of a rebound. O'Kane tapped the puck home to regain the lead for Wilkes late in the final period. Patrick Roginski (Shelby Twp., MI) and Berry assisted on O'Kane's pivotal 4-3 marker at 14:59.
 
Battling against the clock, Lebanon Valley pulled their goalie and used their timeout to discuss strategy with 16 seconds remaining in regulation.
 
Despite winning the draw, Wilkes was able to clear the puck and bleed out the rest of the time on the clock to complete the late comeback victory.
 
Porter recorded two points (1 G, 1 A) while Christian Blomquist (Wauwatosa, WI/) led the team with five shots. Calrson and Berry both won 10 draws at the dot. On the defensive side, Luke Dobles (Spencerport, NY/) prevented three shots from reaching Perna, who turned aside 22 shots in the win.
 
Blackwood contributed two assists to the scoresheet for Lebanon Valley. Tosto sent five shots in on net while winning 11 faceoffs. Dutchmen goaltender Chris Branch made a total of 31 saves between the pipes.
 
The Colonels wrap up the Hershey road trip on Saturday, January 27 when they take on the Flying Dutchmen at 7:00 p.m.