ASTON, Pa. - The Neumann University men's ice hockey took home a thrilling victory on Friday evening with a 3-2 win over United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) rival Stevenson University.

Richie Brusco tallied twice in the win, while Joe Mitchell also found the back of the net. Mike Cosentino made his seventh straight start in goal, stopping 29 shots for his fourth win of the season. 

With both teams fighting for the sixth and final playoff spot in the UCHC standings, the game felt almost like a postseason battle. Each team scrapped and clawed for every inch in a contest that featured 29 penalties. 

Continuing its trend of excellent early starts, Neumann struck first for the seventh time in eight games. Brusco took a pass from Eric Madison on the right side boards and wired home a short side snipe to give the Knights a 1-0 lead at the 2:37 mark. Despite five power plays between the two teams after the opening goal in the first frame though, neither team could capitalize and the game moved to intermission with the hosts holding a one-goal advantage.

Neumann did not waste time doubling its lead in the second stanza. Thomas Mansbridge gained  the Stevenson zone, circled the Mustangs net and threw a perfect pass back across the cage for a wide open Brusco, who wristed home his second goal of the game to double the Knights lead just 34 seconds into the period. Much like the first period, both teams spent significant time in the penalty box, but neither team could light the lamp on the man advantage. Stevenson had a great opportunity late in the period, but an outstanding glove save by Cosentino with just under three minutes left to play in the frame kept the Neumann lead at 2-0 heading to the third.

Down by a pair heading into the final 20 minutes, Stevenson made a strong push to start the period. The Mustangs finally broke through on the power play at the 4:58 mark to cut Neumann's lead in half. Neumann would respond back almost right away though after generating a power play of its own. After taking a pass from Tommy Dougherty in the high slot, Mitchell wired  a laser of a wrist shot to the top corner of the net to give the Knights a 3-1 advantage.

Stevenson made a late charge to try to get back into the game, but Cosentino was at his best to keep Neumann in front. The Mustangs did get one goal back with five minutes left to play, however that was as close as they would get. The visitors pulled their goalie for an extra attacker and had several chances to tie the game up, but Cosentino stood on his head late and preserved the 3-2 victory for the Knights.

With the win, Neumann (4-13-4, 3-7-4 UCHC) is now just one point out of a playoff spot. The Knights will look to keep their momentum rolling tomorrow for their final regular season home game of the season versus Chatham University at 4:00 PM. Prior to the game, the Knights will honor their three seniors Connor Annett, Joe Mitchell and Chris Ordoobadi on Senior Day.