STORRS, Conn.-The American International College men's ice hockey team (4-10-3, 1-7-3 AHA) scored first but could not maintain their lead, as they fell by a final of 7-2 for the third consecutive game, this time to the Brown Bears (4-6-4, 0-3-4 ECACHL) in the consolation game of the UConn Hockey Tournament held at the Freitas Ice Forum.

AIC got on the board on the first shift of the game, when Brown junior defenseman Dennis Robertson (Fort St. John, B.C.) turned the puck over in front to junior center Blake Peake (Lethbridge, Alb.), who slid it across to senior right wing Richard Leitner (Los Alamitos, Calif.) for his fifth of the year and third of the weekend just 0:15 into the contest.

Brown struck back at the 12:15 mark of the period, when sophomore left wing Matt Harlow (Bridgewater, Mass.) fired a puck up the boards to classmate and center Massimo Lamacchia (Maple, Ont.), who quickly slid a pass across to a wide open freshman left wing Joe Prescott (Norwell, Mass.) who fired it home from the top of the crease for his first career goal.

At 15:48 of the first period, Leitner was charged with a major penalty for contact to the head and given a game misconduct; the ensuing major power play saw the Bears strike twice to build a 3-1 lead, getting goals out of freshman defenseman Brandon Pfeil (West Vancovuer, B.C.), assisted by Harlow and classmate and right wing Nick Lappin (Geneva, Ill.), at 18:13 and sophomore center Matt Lorito (Oakville, Ont.), assisted by senior left wing Chris Zaires (Aberdeen, N.J.) and junior right wing Michael Juola (Lake Forest, Calif.), at 19:23.

AIC pulled to within one in the second frame at the 7:42 mark of the period, when sophomore right wing Jason Popek (Hamilton, Ont.) lifted a perfect saucer pass to a streaking sophomore center Brandon Fagerheim (Calgary, Alb.) who slammed the puck home for his fourth of the year.

However, that would be as close as AIC would get, as the Bears would score the next four goals. They responded on the next shift, as Prescott tallied his second of the night and season at 8:27 by firing a shot off the post and in, with the assists to Pfeil and junior right wing Garnet Hathaway (Kennebunkport, Me.) to take a 4-2 lead into the second intermission.

In the third, junior center Mark Hourihan (Lynnfield, Mass.) scored from Harlow and Robertson at 12:55, Lappin netted a goal from sophomore left wing Ryan Jacobson (Greenwood Village, Colo.) and Pfeil at 13:59, and Lamacchia finished the scoring from junior defenseman Jake Goldberg (Langhorne, Penn.) and Pfeil at 17:30.

In net for AIC, junior Ryan Kerpan (Saskatoon, Sask.) stopped 35 of 42 shots to fall to 0-1-0 on the year, while senior Anthony Borelli (Grand Island, N.Y.) rejected 25 of 27 shots in the win to improve to 2-1-3 on the season.

AIC returns to action next year, hosting the first of a string of four straight home games when they take on conference rival and 17th-ranked Niagara Purple Eagles in an Atlantic Hockey matchup at the Olympia Ice Center on Friday, January 13 at 7:05 PM.