HARRISVILLE, R.I. – Junior Colin Brennan (Chester, N.J.) made 38 saves and junior Scott Cuthrell (Waterford, Mich.) scored the game-winning goal midway through the first period as Nichols College defeated Endicott College 4-1 Saturday night in Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) men's ice hockey action at Levy Rink.
 
Freshman Jeffery Baker (Columbia, Md.) picked up two more assists and now leads the team with six points (2-4-6) as the Bison overcame a 39-30 shot differential in favor of the Gulls to remain perfect on the young season. Senior Sean Swansen (Salem, N.H.) and junior Chris Deming (Madison, Ala.) each scored their first goals of the season while sophomore Ben Campbell (Duluth, Minn.) collected a goal and an assist.
 
Nichols led 2-0 after one period behind goals from Deming at 9:07 and Cuthrell at 12:44. Deming broke down the right wing and let go of a wrister that beat Endicott junior Kevin Aldridge (Birmingham, Mich.) high before Cuthrell knocked a rebound out of the air and into the net. Baker had the primary assist on both tallies while sophomore Matthew Menta (Lima, Pa.) had the secondary apple on Cuthrell's marker.
 
The Gulls outshot the Bison 18-7 in the second period and had a pair of power play opportunities, but were unable to sneak one past Brennan, who improved his save percentage on the season to .972. In the third, freshman Vincent Crivello (Rosemere, Quebec) – who was named CCC Rookie of the Week on Monday – fed Swanson in the slot for a goal at 10:08 that made it 3-1.
 
Sophomore Carter Horowitz (Tustin, Calif.) broke the shutout at 15:27 of the third with is first of the season, but Campbell's empty-netter with 37 seconds to go secured the win. Aldridge finished the night with 26 saves. Nichols was 1-for-4 with the man advantage and killed off all three Endicott chances with the extra attacker.
 
All-Time Series
This evening's contest marked the third all-time meeting between Endicott College and Nichols College. The Bison now lead the series, 2-1-0.
 
Quotes
"It was nice to have the start that we did. It's something that we battled through the first two games. Give the credit to the leadership group in there. They said a lot of good things before the game and held each other accountable not just in their words, but in their actions. I'm really proud of all of them, but especially the leadership core." –Nichols head coach Parker Burgess
 
"It's always nice when you play from the front with a lead, but Endicott gave a pretty good push in the second period. We bent a little but didn't break. The coaches didn't have to say all that much. It was the leaders and even the freshmen saying the right things, staying disciplined, and staying composed." –Burgess, on the key to winning the contest
 
"You want to get a quick start, especially against a good team like Endicott. We talked about playing a full 60 minutes and that the first five and last five minutes of every period are the most crucial times of a game. We started well and kept it rolling from there. Each line built off each other." –Nichols junior Scott Cuthrell
 
"It was a good rush up the ice. (Jeffery) Baker took it wide and got off a shot, and I just got lucky. The puck bounced right to me and I swung for it. I wasn't expecting to hit it in." –Cuthrell, on scoring the GWG
 
Next Games
Nichols (3-0-0, 2-0-0 CCC) – Thursday, November 10 @ UNE, 7:00 p.m.
Endicott (0-1-2, 0-1-1 CCC) – Thursday, November 10 vs Salve Regina, 7:00 p.m.