HOOKSETT, N.H. - First-year Aj Sacco (Middleton, Mass./Islanders Hockey Club) scored twice, sophomore Evan Plunkett (Charlotte, N.C./Holderness School) made 40 saves, and the Saint Michael's College men's ice hockey team clinched a bye into a Northeast 10 Conference Championship home semifinal by virtue of downing Southern New Hampshire University, 2-1, on Friday evening at the Ice Den Arena.
 
With one regular-season game remaining, the Purple Knights are alone in second in the NE10, three points clear of third-place Saint Anselm College. Even if the Hawks tie Saint Michael's in the final standings come Saturday, the Purple and Gold won the four-game regular-season series, 3-1, to capture the key tiebreaker.
 
RECORDS

• Saint Michael's (16-10-3, 11-6-2 NE10), Southern New Hampshire (8-16-1, 4-14-1 NE10)

SAINT MICHAEL'S LEADERS

• Sacco, 2 goals
• Plunkett, 40 saves
• Senior Quinn McCarthy (Melrose, Mass./Holderness School), 1 assist
• Sophomore Cole Douglas (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shady Side Academy), 1 assist
• Sophomore Jack Tuite (Shrub Oak, N.Y./Springfield Jr. Pics), 1 assist
• First-year Evan Dresser (Everett, Mass./Belmont Hill School), 1 assist
• Junior Ty Bloom (Helena, Mont./Helena Bighorns), 11-for-18 faceoffs
• Senior Nick Wracker (Columbia, S.C./Northeast Generals), 9-for-18 faceoffs

OPPONENT LEADERS

• Senior Kurt Watson, 1 goal
• Junior Collin Berke, 22 saves

GAME FACTS

• With tomorrow's series finale pending, Saint Michael's has already won the season series from Southern New Hampshire thanks to capturing three one-goal wins.
• The Purple Knights have allowed two goals or fewer 19 times in 29 games. Six of their last eight wins came by a single goal.
• Plunkett registered his 27th career win, already tying for fourth in program history with Bill Heney '92 and Tim Decker '20.
• The reigning NE10 Rookie of the Week, Sacco has four goals and two assists in the last three games. He tallied the game-winning goal for the third straight contest to tie Michel Dupont's '98 29-year-old school record for winners in a season (5). He is tied for the NE10 lead with two Assumption University players.
• McCarthy picked up his 92nd career point while dishing out his sixth assist during a current four-game point streak.

THE ACTION

• Plunkett made 19 saves in a shutout first period, and Sacco struck for the only goal with 52 seconds left, going to Berke's glove side from the slot after two Penmen blocked Tuite's pass, leaving the puck sitting still between the circles for Sacco to pounce on. Dresser also assisted.
• Sacco made it 2-0 at 12:07 of the second period, taking a loose puck in the right circle toward net before juking Berke to finish blocker side. McCarthy and Douglas lent assists.
• Southern New Hampshire broke Plunkett's shutout bid with 2:47 left in regulation during a third period in which it held a 14-4 advantage in shots, as Watson redirected a teammate's pass out front while laying on the ice and his team playing with a 6-on-5 advantage.
• With Berke again pulled for an extra skater, this time once 38 seconds remained, Saint Michael's took possession in its own end before dumping off the far boards and pinning the Penmen deep in their zone until the final buzzer sounded.

NEXT SAINT MICHAEL'S GAME

• Saturday at Southern New Hampshire, 2:40 p.m.
• Saint Michael's closes the regular season with that contest before hosting an NE10 Championship semifinal next Saturday, with final details pending.