Hartford, Conn. – Senior forward Erik Hansen (Deephaven, Minn.) broke a 2-2 tie 14:50 into the third period with the unassisted game-winning tally to lead the visiting Amherst College Lord Jeffs to a 3-2 victory over the Trinity College Bantams in a fast-paced New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) men's ice hockey game this evening at Williams Rink in the Koeppel Community Sports Center this afternoon.  Trinity, ranked No. 11 in the nation, loses for the first time in seven games to fall to 13-4 overall and 8-3 in the NESCAC, while the Lord Jeffs improve to 10-6-1 overall and 8-3 in the league with their first win in three games (1-1-1).  Amherst also earns a regular-season sweep of the Bantams, having won at home, 3-1, in late November. 

Amherst scored first when senior forward Ryan Edwards (Rochester, N.Y.) knocked in a rebound after Trinity senior backstop Ben Coulthard (South Windsor, Conn.) haD saved the initial shot by Lord Jeff senior defenseman Elliot Bostrom (McLean, Va.) with just 18 seconds left in an exciting opening period that included 30 combined shots on goal by the two clubs.

Trinity tied it at 1-1 3:13 into the second stanza during a power play, as junior forward Liam McKillop (New York, N.Y.) threaded a pass through the Amherst back line to first-year forward Ryan Cole (Anchorage, Alaska) who received just before the blue line and deked Lord Jeff sophomore goalie Dave Cunningham (Arlington, Mass.) one-on-one for his 11th goal of the winter.  Amherst answered quickly when Edwards and Bostrom assisted senior forward Andrew Kurlandski (Edmonton, Alberta) on a tally 2:26 later.  The Bantams tied it back up again at 2-2 with another power-play conversion that saw rookie forward Sean Orlando (Ivyland, Pa.) and junior forward Jackson Brewer (Newton, Mass.) quickly advance the puck forward from the Trinity end to Bantam sophomore forward Michael Hawkrigg (Toronto, Ontario) who beat Cunningham with a blast from the right wing.  Trinity peppered Cunningham with 23 shots in the middle frame, while Amherst managed 14 shots for a 40-27 Bantam edge entering the second intermission.

In the final period, Amherst turned the tables with 16 shots on goal against five for Trinity.  Coulthard made one of his 15 third-period stops early in the frame on a hard shot by Amherst sophomore forward Conor Brown (Greely, Ontario) from straight-on five feet away, and the Bantam penalty kill held the visitors at bay for a full three-minute span including one minute down 5x3 in the middle of the third.  Hansen tallied the clincher with 5:10 on the clock during a scramble in front of the Bantam net.  Cole appeared to tie the contest with 3:37 remaining, but his second goal of the night was waved off after a lengthy discussion by the officials.  Trinity finished with a 45-43 shooting edge and held Amherst scoreless on four power plays, while Amherst was penalized nine times for 18 minutes against five penalties for 10 minutes for the Bantams.  Coulthard finished with 40 saves and Cunningham stopped 40 Trinity shots.

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