Box Score WILLIAMSTOWN - Sophomore Tyler Scroggins scored the game-winning goal on a powerplay in the third period and later added an empty-netter to ice the win as the Tufts University men's hockey team earned a 4-2 NESCAC victory at Williams College on Friday night.
Scroggins has now scored in seven straight games for the Jumbos. With his first multiple-point game of the stretch tonight, he now has five goals and three assists for eight points since January 6. The Jumbos scored on two of their five power plays in the game while improving to 4-11-2 overall and 3-7-1 in the league.
Williams, led by two goals from Marcus Mollica, lost its third straight to drop to 10-7 and 6-5 in the league.
The host Ephs scored just 1:15 into the game to take a 1-0 lead, and then killed two Jumbo power plays over the remainder of the period to take that one-goal margin to the dressing room.
The Jumbos turned the game around with a pair of goals just 37 seconds apart early in the second period. Both were scored by defensemen as sophomore Cooper Stahl netted his first of the season at 6:49 on a power play. Classmate Jordan Haney then gave the Jumbos a 2-1 lead at 7:26.
Tufts took it to the Ephs in the middle stanza with a 16-8 shots advantage. However, the hosts were able to net an equalizer as Mollica scored his second of the game with just 29 seconds remaining until intermission and it was 2-2. The strike came on a Williams power play, their lone extra-man goal in five attempts tonight.
Tufts senior goalie Nik Nugnes made 10 of his 25 saves in the third period to blank the Ephs and help the Jumbos take the win. Scroggins scored the go-ahead goal at 7:33, just eight seconds into an extra-man opportunity. Senior Brian Brown had an assist. The Jumbos maintained the edge until Scroggins scored with Williams goalie Michael Pinios pulled at 19:35 of the third.
Tufts finished with a 32-27 advantage in shots. Pinios made 28 saves in the Williams net, including 14 in the second period.
The Jumbos travel on to Middlebury College for a 3 p.m. start tomorrow. Williams hosts Connecticut College at 3 p.m. on Saturday.
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