WORCESTER, Massachusetts - The American International College ice hockey team fell to the College of the Holy Cross, 2-0, on Thursday, February 22 in an Atlantic Hockey Conference matchup.

FAST FACTS:
Final score: AIC 0, Holy Cross 2
Records: AIC moves to 11-18-4 and 10-13-4 in Atlantic Hockey; Holy Cross is now 13-14-7 and 11-11-6 in conference play.
Location: Hart Center (Worcester, Massachusetts)

STATS LEADERS:
AIC:
Stefano Durante (26 saves)
Johno May (four shots on goal)
Janis Jaks (four shots on goal)

Holy Cross:
Paul Berrafato (31 saves, shutout)
Michael Laffin (one goal)
Johnny Coughlin (one goal)

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Holy Cross got onto the board just 4:17 into the contest with a goal from Michael Laffin.
• AIC had a couple of close calls, when senior alternate captain Andrew DeBrincat hit a post with about 7:10 left in the first period. Sophomore right wing Kyle Stephan had another shot ring off the pipe with about 4:11 left in the second period. Despite the Crusaders holding an advantage on the scoreboard, the Yellow Jackets had the edge in shots on goal after two periods, with a 22-19 lead in that category.
• Johnny Coughlin made it a 2-0 game in the Crusaders' favor at 8:41 of the second period.
• AIC pulled freshman goaltender Stefano Durante with just over three minutes remaining; the Yellow Jackets buzzed near the Holy Cross net, creating 12 shot attempts and forcing Holy Cross goaltender Paul Berrafato to make six saves in that span, but AIC could not score with an extra skater in the final few minutes.

BUZZWORTHY:

• Senior forward Jackson Dudley appeared in his 100^th career game on Thursday.
• Durante, who continues to lead Atlantic Hockey in goals-against average at 2.22, has allowed two or fewer goals in 15 of his 22 appearances this season. He has allowed just four total goals in three starts in the month of February.
• AIC out-attempted the Crusaders 69-45, but Holy Cross, which leads the nation in blocked shots, had 20 blocks on the evening.
• This is the first time Holy Cross has shut out AIC since January 5, 2016.
• Despite Thursday's loss, AIC finishes the regular season with a 3-1 record against the Crusaders, AIC's best regular-season finish against Holy Cross in Division I program history.

COACH'S CORNER:

• "I thought Holy Cross's urgency in the first five minutes put us on our heels a bit and they converted a goal off a missed box out," said AIC head ice hockey coach Eric Lang. "That's all it takes in this league - one missed box out, one missed block or backcheck, and you go home disappointed. We had good stretches of the game that I thought we territorially dominated, but we struggled to get pucks to the net. Credit their team for blocking 20-plus shots tonight. The game had a playoff type feel to it and they really did a good job of not allowing us to get pucks to the net. We attempted almost 70 shots, which usually sets us up for success."
• "It was a game that could have gone either way, much like our first three games this season," Lang said."At the end of the day, their better players outperformed our better players, and that can't happen this time of year. The Holy Cross senior class is a darn good one, and they lead the way for their group and refused to be denied tonight, so credit them big time."

NEXT UP:

• AIC concludes its regular season with a trip to the brand-new Bentley Arena to face Bentley University on Saturday, February 24.
• Puck drop is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

STAY CONNECTED:

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