SCHENECTADY, N.Y. — Sophomore goaltender Jake Kupsky made 26 saves and senior captain Mike Vecchione scored at 12:39 of the third period to lift the No. 4/5 Union College men’s hockey team to a 3-1 win against Colgate, Saturday night Messa Rink. The Dutchmen, who registered their first regular season win against Colgate since January 19, 2013, improve to 19-7-2 and 12-3-1 in ECAC Hockey, while the Raiders move to 6-15-5 overall and 4-9-2 in league play.
Kupsky came up big when it mattered most, stopping 23 shots over the final two periods to improve to 2-3-1. Vecchione added an assist for his Division I-leading 16th multi-point game of the season and Spencer Foo also produced a goal and an assist for his 15th multi-point game. Nick DeSimone rounded out the scoring for Union, extending his point streak to four games (2G-3A).
DeSimone’s seventh of the season gave Union a 1-0 lead at 5:23 of the first. Ryan Walker won a race to the puck and chipped a pass off the boards to DeSimone, who beat a screened Colton Point (22 saves) with a wrist shot from the point. The assist pushed Walker’s point streak to four games (2G-2A), while Mark Dufour also picked up an assist on the goal, giving him three points in his last two games (2G-1A).
Colgate answered 3:30 later when Tyler Penner tucked in a backhand at the right post after a bouncing puck found its way onto his stick.
After a scoreless second period, Vecchione potted his third goal of the weekend and 22nd of the season 7:31 into the third to put the Dutchmen back in front. Point denied Foo’s redirect on J.C. Brassard’s shot from the point, but Vecchione collected the loose puck and buried the rebound from the bottom of the left circle.
Foo sealed the win for the Dutchmen with an empty net goal at 19:37. Vecchione, who leads the nation with 46 points (22G-26A), notched his 97th career assist on the goal, placing him first in Union’s Division I era.
Union heads on the road next weekend to take on No. 5/6 Harvard (Feb. 10) and Dartmouth (Feb. 11).
