Brown’s game-winner lifts Air Force to 4-3 overtime win

U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – Junior Parker Brown scored 53 seconds into overtime to lift Air Force to a 4-3 overtime win over Mercyhurst in an Atlantic Hockey Association game Friday, Feb. 3, at the Academy's Cadet Ice Arena.

Brown's second career overtime game-winner gave the Falcons two points in the standings. Willie Reim and Brandon Koch gave the puck to Brown in his own end. Brown went coast-to-coast, skated through all three Lakers and scored his sixth goal of the season as the Falcons won have now won back-to-back games.

Air Force (9-16-2, 5-11-1 AHA) scored the first goal for the second straight game. Brown set up Will Gavin in the high slot, but Gavin's shot was saved. Senior Brandon Koch put back the rebound for his fifth of the season at 2:40. Mercyhurst (8-16-3, 7-9-3 AHA) scored two goals in a span of 2:04. Steven Agriogianis tied the game at 3:26 with a shot from the goal line that squeezed past Falcon goalie Maiszon Balboa and trickled over the goal line. Carson Briere gave the Lakers a 2-1 lead at 5:30 when Keanan Stewart made a pass from the wall to Briere skating down the middle of the ice. Briere made a couple moves in tight and scored his fourth of the season.

The Falcons tied the game in the first minute of the second period. Clayton Cosentino won a faceoff in the offensive zone and Sam Brennan fired a shot from the center point. Senior Willie Reim redirected the shot at the top of the crease for his seventh of the season just 54 seconds into the middle period. The Lakers regained the lead at the 4:31 mark. Brendon Michaelian forced a turnover at the Laker blue line and skated down the right side. His shot was saved but Guerogui Fedulov put back the rebound for a 3-2 Laker lead.

Freshman Mason McCormick tied the game at 9:35 of the third period. Holt Oliphant set up Sam Brennan for a shot that was saved by Mercyhurst goalie Tyler Harmon. However, Harmon dropped the puck and McCormick punched in the loose puck for his fifth of the season and second in his last two games.

Mercyhurst outshot Air Force, 32-30, in the game. Air Force was 0-for-4 on the power play while MU was 0-for-3. Balboa earned his second career win and second in his last two games making 29 saves. Harmon made 26 for the Lakers.

"We needed to get off to a good start and we did," head coach Frank Serratore said. "The game just didn't seem to be doing our way, but then we found a way to tie the game in the third. I couldn't be happier. I liked our spunk and physicality tonight. You won't see a better goal anywhere than the one Brown scored."

Air Force and Mercyhurst conclude the two-game series on Saturday, Feb. 4, at 5:07 pm MT at the Cadet Ice Arena.

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