Box Score

PHILADELPHIA, Pa – The Neumann University Men's ice hockey team celebrates a fantastic Winter Classic win against Penn State University 6-3 at Citizens Bank Park on a cold crisp Wednesday night.

As the snow was falling from the sky, the Knights matched the snow with a flurry of goals to upend the Nittany Lions. The 6,800 spectators brought their competitive spirit as they cheered for their respective teams. For any Knight representative, it was the perfect Knight.

The first period, the Knights dominated play and took a 2-0 lead. Scott Farrell scored the first goal on an assist from Mike Cauley at the 10:30 mark. As the first intermission was drawing near, the Knights scored 10 seconds before the period ended as Jordan Zalba scored the power play goal.

Penn State University scored exactly one minute into the second period. The mighty Knights would regain the two goal cushion complements of Cory Park. Park scored 4:48 into the second period and Marlon Gardner would be the sole provider. The Knights would strike again at even strength from Jeff Bienvenue at the 11:05 mark, assisted by Ryan Dreger. Seven seconds later, the Nittany Lions clawed back a goal to finish the scoring in the second period 4-2.

Zalba was in Winter Wonderland, scoring his second goal of the night at the 2:35 mark into the third period. Power play specialist, Zalba drew assist from Bienvenue and Mike Rey. Penn State did everything to stay in the contest scoring their third and final goal 7:52 into the third. But the Knight would have final say, as they scored an open net goal from Andrew Love with 1:48 remaining in the contest. Scott Elkow and Matt Mazzarolo delivered the assist.

All players suited up and everyone played in the Winter Classic. Neumann showed its stength in numbers, while maintaining a high standard of play. All three goalkeepers played a period each, as Coach Dawes was able to see certain players in a pressure situation.

"It was a great event, one in which the coaching staff and players will never forget," mentioned Coach Dawes. "Our fan base was fantastic, they were so loud and there were so many supporters. All the players work so hard to get an opportunity to make a contribution to the team on a daily basis, so it was nice to everyone get some time on the ice in front of family, friends and fans." 

Neumann will travel to Brockport this Friday for non-conference action before returning home on Tuesday to host Brockport.

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