Jumbos Return to NESCAC Play With 2-1 Victory at Amherst

AMHERST, MA (January 12, 2023) - The Tufts University hockey team jumped into second place in NESCAC with a 2-1 win at Amherst College this evening at Orr Rink.

The victory is the eighth in a row for the Jumbos (8-4-1, 5-2 NESCAC), the longest winning streak at Tufts in 29 years. The 1994-95 squad won a school record 11 straight games. Amherst fell to 8-5 and 4-4 in the league.

Tonight the Jumbos erased a 1-0 deficit with second-period goals by junior Tyler Sedlak on a power play and from sophomore John Mulvihill. Senior goalie Peyton Durand had another strong performance, finishing with 30 saves. The Jumbos were out-shot 31-27 in the game.

Tufts entered the night fourth in NESCAC with 13 points, but with three points for the win they now sit at 16 points. They passed Bowdoin and Hamilton in the standings. The Polar Bears (15.5 pts) won 2-1 in overtime against Wesleyan tonight for two points, and the Continentals (15 pts) were beaten by Connecticut College 5-4. The Jumbos play at Hamilton tomorrow afternoon.

Amherst jumped out to a 1-0 lead tonight just five minutes into a game. On a break, junior Max Thiessen set up senior Tyler Bourque for an open shot that Durand saved. However, junior Ben Kuzma scored on the rebound from the left side.

Down one going into the second, the Jumbos evened the score on a power play. Sedlak found junior Harrison Bazianos charging toward the net on the left side, but Bazianos wasn't able to receive the puck cleanly. He was able to tap it to Dubicki in the left circle who passed over to Sedlak coming into the slot for a goal at 4:54 of the middle stanza.

The game-winning goal by Mulvihill was set up by sophomore Brendan Fennell. He tapped a loose puck past an Amherst defender at the blue line and chased it down near the right circle. Fennell then saw Mulvihill open in the high slot and connected on a pass with Mulvihill setting up his shot and zipping it inside the left post at 10:23 of the period.

Into the third, the Jumbos held the lead by killing two Amherst power plays and withstanding the final 2:15 of the period with the Mammoths playing with an extra man and open net.

Tufts blocked 17 shots in the game, led by four from senior defenseman Jack Hughes. Mammoth junior goalie Connor Leslie finished with 25 saves.