ITHACA, N.Y.— The Colgate men's hockey team defeated Cornell 2-1 at Lynah Rink on Sunday to complete a 2-1 comeback in the quarterfinals series and advance to the semifinals.

Mitch Benson had a solid performance in net with 36 saves, nearly pitching a shutout before giving up a goal in the final seconds of the game.

Ross Mitton sealed the deal for Colgate when he picked up the puck and got free on a breakaway. Mitton put a move on the goalie before flipping a backhand shot into the net to make it 2-0 with 8:12 remaining in the third. 

Cornell put heavy pressure on Colgate at the end of the game after pulling its goalie. The Big Red had multiple chances at goal that were either blocked or saved by Benson. Cornell finally prevailed with seven seconds remaining when Ben Berard scored off a rebound in a scrum in front of the net to make it 2-1.

The Raiders' first goal came with 8:55 remaining in the second. Josh McKechney won a tough faceoff draw in the right circle and made a difficult pass across to Matt Verboon for a shot that he tapped past the Big Red's goalie.

Colgate had its first power play opportunity just under nine minutes into the second after Cornell was called for hitting from behind, although it was unable to get anything going.

The Raiders picked up a big penalty kill at the end of the period after Anthony Stark was called for tripping with 2:02 remaining. The Big Red peppered Benson with shots, but he stood strong, denying them several times. The senior made 17 saves in the middle frame.

Neither side was able to find an advantage in the first. The Big Red fired 10 shots to just three for the Raiders. Colgate killed off a Cornell penalty with 2:40 remaining in the period after Griffin Lunn got called for slashing.

The Big Red finished the game with the upper hand in shots at 37-14. 

FROM THE SOURCE
Head Coach Don Vaughan

"I am so happy for our guys especially our seniors and fifth-year guys, Paul and Josh. Where we have come from in their first year to now has a lot to do with their leadership and commitment to doing things the right way. The challenge was to get better every day. It is a process and this group bought into it.

Mitch Benson has been a rock in goal for us. He has overcome a lot in his time at Colgate and has been totally committed to being the best he can be and right now he is so on his game. We now have our work cut out for us next weekend but we will prepare like we always do and leave it all on the ice. See you in Lake Placid."

UP NEXT
The Raiders take on Quinnipiac in the ECAC Hockey semifinals in Lake Placid at 4 p.m. on Friday. Tickets for the game can be purchased HERE.