WORCESTER, Massachusetts - The American International College ice hockey team posted a 4-2 win over College of the Holy Cross in Atlantic Hockey Conference play on Saturday, January 6, for a weekend sweep of the Crusaders.

FAST FACTS:
Final score: AIC 4, Holy Cross 2
Records: AIC moves to 8-12-2 and 7-8-2 in Atlantic Hockey, while Holy Cross is now 7-8-7 and 6-4-6 in conference play.
Location: Hart Center (Worcester, Massachusetts)

STATS LEADERS:
AIC:
Darius Davidson (one goal)
Jared Pike (one goal)
Brennan Kapcheck (one goal, three blocked shots)
Kyle Stephan (one goal, one assist)
Stefano Durante (23 saves)

Holy Cross:
Scott Pooley (one goal, one assist)
Dalton Skelley (one goal)
Paul Berrafato (32 saves)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• For the second consecutive night, AIC jumped out to an early lead with a dominant first period, with freshman left wing Darius Davidson kicking things off with a power-play goal 5:56 into the frame.
• AIC's lead grew to 2-0 by 10:59 of the first on a goal from sophomore left wing Jared Pike, who notched his sixth of the year off an assist from sophomore right wing Kyle Stephan.
• The Yellow Jackets outshot the Crusaders 15-5 in the opening stanza, but Holy Cross did manage to cut the score in half with 56 seconds left in the period to make it a 2-1 game.
• Freshman defenseman Brennan Kapcheck added to AIC's lead at the 11:51 mark of the second period, making it a 3-1 game with AIC on a 4-on-3 advantage.
• AIC's shot advantage after two frames was 23-10 over the Crusaders, but Holy Cross made things much closer in the third, outshooting the Yellow Jackets 15-13 in the final period. On a 6-on-4 opportunity with 1:18 remaining, Scott Pooley put the Crusaders back within one goal.
• However, Stephan notched an empty-netter to seal the 4-2 win for AIC with three seconds to go.

BUZZWORTHY:

• This is the first time in Division I program history that AIC has swept Holy Cross in a weekend series.
• Additionally, this is the first time since the 2012-13 season that AIC has swept multiple weekend series in a single season; the Yellow Jackets also swept Sacred Heart University on November 10 and 11.
• With a goal in both games against Holy Cross, Davidson doubled his goal total on the season during the weekend, now at four total goals on the year. He earned the first star in Saturday evening's contest.
• AIC has already matched its win total - eight - from the 2016-17 season.

COACH'S CORNER:

• "Our weekend started this week in practice - I thought we had as good a week of practice and guys competing and battling right up until our last Thursday skate," said AIC ice hockey head coach Eric Lang. "Sometimes it translates and sometimes it doesn't, but it certainly translatedI'm just happy for the group, to be honest, we've really been working at it."

PLAYERS' CORNER:

• "I think it's just proof in the pudding that we're a legit team, and our coaching staff and all our players are buying in," Pike said. "I think it's a big deal for us, and it shows that we can hang with anyone."
• "I think our d zone's been a lot better," Kapcheck said. "We're working harder, we're getting the puck out. That's kind of been helping us on our offenseI think the whole team has put the effort in to get the win this weekend."

NEXT UP:

• AIC continues its five-game road stretch with a pair of games in Buffalo, New York, against Canisius College on January 12 and 13.
• Both games are set to begin at 7:30 p.m.

STAY CONNECTED:

• For more updates about the AIC ice hockey team, follow @AIC_Hockey on Twitter and Instagram, and like AIC Hockey on Facebook. For updates on all AIC Yellow Jackets teams, follow @AICAthletics on Twitter and Instagram, and like AIC Yellow Jackets on Facebook.