HAMILTON - A raucous atmosphere and an early goal from
Antonio Fernandez weren't enough to give Colgate a win on Friday night, as they fell 5-2 in a hostile rivalry weekend opener at the Class of 1965 Arena.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Friday night's matchup was testy in the opening stretch, with neither team willing to cede any early momentum. The frenzied Class of 1965 Arena crowd didn't have to wait long to explode, though. At 6:35, Antonio Fernandez scored a beautiful long-range goal, assisted by Easton Wainwright, to give the Raiders a 1-0 lead, bringing the crowd to its feet.
Unfortunately for the Raider faithful, the celebrations were over before they could even get going. At 7:34, the visitors responded with a goal of their own, leveling the game through Caton Ryan, whose goal was assisted by Jonathan Castagna.
From there, the defenses settled in, but remained unrelenting, with several fights breaking up a thrilling first period. As the first period drew to a close, Colgate's forwards had some big chances, but several important saves by senior goaltender Andrew Takacs kept the game 1-1.
The score wouldn't stay there for long. Takacs couldn't stop Aiden Long's close effort at 18:01, as the side from Ithaca retook the lead on a goal assisted by Xavier Veilleux and Charlie Major. The Raiders would head to the locker room trailing 2-1 after a hard-fought 20 minutes.
Colgate had an immediate chance to level things as the second period got going, with Cornell's Ryan Walsh serving a five-minute major and game misconduct for cross-checking a referee. However, the Raiders were unable to take advantage of their best chance of the night, and the score remained 2-1 in favor of the opposition.
At 12:03, the visitors added to their lead when Charlie Major scored a power play goal off of assists from Jonathan Castagna and Xavier Veilleux to make it 3-1.Â
The rest of the period passed without another goal, and the Raiders entered the third period in need of a two-goal comeback.
Looking to mount a rally, the Raiders began the third period aggressively, and finally cashed in at 8:29, when Ryan Spinale, assisted by Daniel Panetta and Isaiah Norlin, found the back of the net to draw the game within one.
Holding the momentum, Colgate searched for the tying goal, but were unable to equalize in the coming minutes. That left the door open for the visitors, who made it 4-2 at 17:50 when Charlie Major scored his second goal of the night. Things got worse soon after, as an empty-net goal by George Fegaras at 18:47 gave the opposition a three-goal lead.
Colgate were unable to get any goals back, and suffered a 5-2 loss, dropping the opening matchup of the rivalry weekend.
GAME NOTES
UP NEXT
The Raiders (10-14-3, 7-6-2 ECAC) will look for revenge tomorrow when they face Cornell at 7 p.m. in Ithaca, N.Y. The game will air on ESPN+.
