ASTON, Pa. - The Neumann University men's ice hockey team recorded a much needed two points in the crowded United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) playoff race, with a 5-1 win over King's College on Saturday afternoon. With the victory, the Knights now stand tied for second place in UCHC standings with 14 points, awaiting the results from other conference games this weekend.
 
Five different Knights scored in the convincing win. Nick Minerva and Tommy Dougherty each scored their first collegiate goals, while Liam Board, Ryan Swain and Chris Caldwell also tallied. Goalie Matt Gibney notched his second solid performance in a row, making 14 saves.
 
After fighting back late in last night's tie versus Manhattanville, Neumann carried its momentum over into today's tilt with King's. Outshooting the Monarchs 14-2 in the period, the Knights got on the board at 14:05 mark of the first frame as Minerva ripped home a shot from the point for his first career goal in a Neumann uniform. Despite the heavy edge in shots though, the Monarchs would make a late first period power-play count, scoring with under three minutes left to play to send the game to intermission knotted at 1-1.
 
Undaunted by the late King's goal, Neumann responded with an even better period in the second. The Knights registered the only two goals of the period and dominated the Monarchs with an 18-2 advantage in shots. Board broke the 1-1 deadlock at the 4:33 mark, burying a wrist shot on a short-handed breakaway to put Neumann back in front. Swain then rammed home his own rebound two minutes later to give the Knights a bit of breathing room heading to the third.
 
The Knights continued to add to their lead in the third. Dougherty banged home a rebound on a Chris Ordoobadi shot to put Neumann up by three and then Caldwell capped off the scoring with a silky backhand finish to the roof of the net to seal the comfortable 5-1 win.
 
Neumann (6-12-2, 6-4-2 UCHC) hits the road next Friday, February 2nd for a huge UCHC matchup at Elmira College. Puck-drop is scheduled for 7:00 PM.