Contact: Justin Long
AMHERST, Mass. – Mike Rowbotham '15 scored twice on the power play to help the fifth-ranked Amherst College men's hockey team come from behind for a 5-2 win over Colby College Saturday afternoon at Orr Rink.
The Mules (5-14, 2-12 NESCAC) scored the game's first goal and carried a 2-1 lead into the third period, but the Lord Jeffs (16-3-1, 13-1 NESCAC) accounted for the only four goals of the final 20 minutes.
Jonathan La Rose '12 (12-1-1) stopped 23 shots to help Amherst clinch a home quarterfinal game in the upcoming NESCAC Championship, while Matt Delaney '13 (5-9) finished with 36 saves for the second time in as many days.
Colby got on the board early on a quick counterattack. Matt Rappaport '12 played the puck ahead to Spike Smigelski '13, whose wrist shot from the right circle beat La Rose stick-side 2:28 into the opening period.
Rowbotham tied things up at 11:44 with a beautiful goal while Amherst was on the power play. The Jeffs strung together crisp passes until Rowbotham fired a shot from just outside the right circle, hitting the bottom of the crossbar and getting a favorable bounce to put Amherst on the board.
The Mules regained the lead at 2-1 with 10:57 to play in the second period. Senior forward Chris Buonomo collected a loose puck deep in the Amherst zone and chipped a backhanded attempt that hit the right post and got past La Rose, marking his second goal of the season.
Delaney maintained the lead for Colby by making 15 saves in the first period and 14 in the second, but the floodgates opened early in the third. Andrew Kurlandski '14 tied the game at 2-2 when he collected the puck along the left boards after a Colby turnover and immediately sniped a wrist shot underneath the crossbar at the 2:36 mark.
The eventual game winner was scored by Rowbotham, who again put the finishing touch on an Amherst power play. The Lord Jeff first-year received the puck deep in the right circle and had a tough angle on the net, but he managed to slide a shot through an opening to give Amherst a 3-2 lead with 11:53 remaining.
Mike Moher '13 added a big insurance goal for the hosts when he intercepted a pass deep in Colby's defensive end. As the only Amherst player in sight, Moher skated in all alone and switched to his backhand before sneaking a shot past Delaney, who got a piece of the puck but could not prevent it from trickling over the goal line.
Amherst senior co-captain Eddie Effinger added the finishing touch on an empty-net goal with only 14 seconds on the clock, with fellow co-captain Mike Baran '12 recording the assist.
The Jeffs successfully killed their only two penalties of the game and were 2-for-5 on the power play during a big day for the special teams. Jeremy Deutsch '12 finished with two assists for the Jeffs, while Effinger added an assist to go along with his empty-net goal.
Amherst gained more breathing room in the NESCAC standings after second-place Bowdoin ended in a 2-2 tie at Hamilton today. The Jeffs are in the driver's seat to earn the conference's number one seed for the second time in four years.
Amherst and Colby will both resume conference play next weekend. The Mules will host Trinity College Friday at 7 p.m., while the Lord Jeffs will host Tufts Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
