Williamstown, MA — In a packed Chap, the Williams College Ephs (5-9-0) hosted the high flying No. 3 SUNY Plattsburgh Cardinals (13-3-0) for a marquee matchup. After a grinding, penalty-filled effort from the Ephs to maintain a narrow one goal lead,
Jamie Cates would knock home a goal late in the third to secure a 2-1 victory for Williams.
Hungry to string together three wins for the first time this season, the Ephs had their work cut out for them against a top three team in the nation. With only 17 skaters available just three minutes into the contest, the Ephs knew they needed to buckle in for a long game. They would hold off an early surge from the visitors, including a couple man-advantages. It would be at the end of one of these power plays that
Jamie Cates would pick up a puck as it exited the zone. He turned up ice on a 3-on-1 break where the puck was fired backdoor to
Nicholas Rashkovsky who buried home the chance to open the scoring. Now in the lead, the Ephs had extra incentive to battle out against the very offensive Cardinals team.
Cal Sandquist would be immense in goal, making several key saves late on to ensure a one goal lead at the end of the first period.
The second period proved to be even more of a grind for the Ephs. More penalties plagued the home team, including a 5-on-3, which needed to be killed off before the Ephs could attempt a response. Several big blocked shots during the penalty kill resulted in Ephs' momentum midway through the frame. The press was short-lived, however, as Plattsburgh poured on the pressure for the remainder of the period. The Ephs continued to play a stellar defensive game, an effort that was rewarded with a 1-0 lead heading into the final period.
A penalty after the buzzer for the second period meant that the Ephs began the third short handed. Their bulletproof defense finally conceded a goal just a minute into the frame, tying the game at 1-1. This Ephs team has crumbled against a few ranked teams in the third period, so they were determined to flip the script. Their defensive prowess continued, blocking shots and clearing pucks when needed. Finally, against the flow of the play, a face off would take place in the Plattsburgh zone. An Ephs' face off win put the puck on
Nicholas Rashkovsky's stick who fired it at the net. A bounce off the back wall ricocheted in front where it was swatted home by
Jamie Cates to take a 2-1 lead. The final eight minutes of hockey were a one-sided affair. Plattsburgh would throw everything at the Ephs net and would have been level had it not been for a lunging effort from
Logan Valkama to save a sure goal. A team effort through and through, the final buzzer came with huge relief from the Williams team who gave it their all.
After the win, Coach Kangas said, "Tonight was a huge win, obviously. This team has earned every point and their effort today was a true display of that. Plattsburgh is ranked where they are for a reason, they are a very good hockey team. Today we challenged them and stuck to our game, and really just grinded it out. The boys should be very proud of their effort this weekend".
The Ephs head back to conference play next week as they play host to Bowdoin College Friday at 7pm.
