LOWELL, Mass. – Senior Nate Sucese (Fairport, N.Y.) sent the game to overtime scoring on the power-play with just 23.3 seconds remaining in regulation, but seventh-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions dropped the contest to No. 15 UMass-Lowell, 3-2, in overtime on Saturday night during non-conference action from Tsongas Center as part of the inaugural Turkey Leg Classic.
Penn State falls to 11-4-0 on the year with the loss while the River Hawks improve to 9-3-4 with the victory.
HOW IT HAPPENED
- UML opened the scoring late in the first period as Anthony Baxter laced a shot from the point through traffic and over the glove of PSU senior net-minder Peyton Jones (Langhorne, Pa.) for the 1-0 edge at 18:14 of the frame.
- Penn State evened the score early in the second period during 4-on-4 action as junior Alex Limoges (Winchester, Va.) found classmate Evan Barratt (Bristol, Pa.) on the welcome mat from behind the net at 3:27 of the stanza.
- The River Hawks regained the lead just under two minutes later as Andre Lee got behind the defense and roofed the puck over Jones' glove for the 2-1 advantage at 5:16 of the middle frame.
- The Nittany Lions tied the contest onthe power-play with the goalie pulled late in the third period as Sucese redirected a point shot from junior Cole Hults (Stoughton, Wis.) that snuck past River Hawk goalie Tyler Wall for the 2-2 score with just 23.3 second remaining.
- UMass-Lowell netted the golden goal midway through the extra session as Chase Blackmun blasted a shot from the slot during the power-play for the 3-2 final at 2:43 of the period.
GOALTENDING
Jones drops to 10-3-0 on the year with the setback after making 15 saves while Wall improves to 9-2-4 after stopping 34 shots in the victory.
NOTES
- Penn State held commanding 36-18 edge in shots on goal while going 1-for-6 on the power-play. UML went 1-for-4 with the man-advantage.
- Penn State has now scored at least one power-play goal in seven-straight games and eight-of-nine.
- Folkes extends his now career-best point-streak to seven games with a secondary assist on Barratt's goal.
- Barratt and Limoges have now each extended their season-long point streaks to seven games while Barratt has a goal in three-straight games.
- The extra attacker goal for Penn State was its first since November 3, 2018 against Arizona State, also scored by Sucese.
NEXT UP
- Penn State remains on the road and returns to Big Ten action with a pair of games against Michigan at Yost Ice Arena next Friday and Saturday evening.
- Friday's contest will be broadcast nationally on FS1 at 8:30 p.m. with Saturday's series finale scheduled for 7:30 p.m.
For more information on the 2019-20 season presented by the Penn State Bookstore: the Official Bookstore of Penn State Athletics, visit the men's hockey page at GoPSUsports.com or call 1-800-NITTANY Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.