Last Saturday, the hockey team edged out Lebanon Valley College in a neck-and-neck, 4-3 match, in Hershey, Penn. The Jumbos earned a well-deserved victory after experiencing a second-period LVC comeback, and put an end to the Flying Dutchmen’s six-game winning streak. The Jumbos, now 6-0 in the ECAC Northeast Division (8-4 overall), are looking to continue their winning ways during the next few weeks of tough competition.

The squad came out strong in the first period, rushing to a quick 2-0 league in the first four minutes of play. Freshman phenom and leading point scorer Rob LaQuaglia put one away at 1:38 with the aid of senior Scott Sullivan and sophomore Chad Pessini. Sullivan quickly followed, as he tallied a goal at 3:55 with the help of freshman Mike Carceo and senior Pete Schieffelin. He then added his second goal of the game and ninth of the season on the power play at 17:58 to advance his team to a 3-0 first period lead.

“We played pretty well in the first period,” coach Brian Murphy said. “We really took advantage of some opportunities.”

The Dutchmen cruised through a two-man advantage for 1:04 midway through the second period, capitalizing at 9:55 when Jason Kilcoyne ripped a slap shot that eluded sophomore goaltender Ian Kell. The nation’s second-ranked power play added another goal during a two-man advantage when Chris White found the back of the net at 16:15, helping the Dutchmen to close in on the Jumbos, making the score 3-2.

“We weren’t focused enough in the second,” Murphy said. “We took some penalties and were five-on-three twice. We did a good job five-on-five but they got up on their power play chances.”

The third period opened with a bit of a stalemate, as neither team could cash in on scoring opportunities early in the period. However, the Jumbos let go of a two-minute two-man advantage in the third, as Lebanon Valley tied the score at 7:11, courtesy of Tim DeVuono. Finally, defenseman Schieffelin scored his second goal of the season with 5:21 remaining to give Tufts the lead, 4-3.

“We lost our focus there in the beginning of the third,” sophomore forward Jordan Karp said. “But we were fortunate enough to regain our composure and come out on top in the end.”

The Jumbos were outshot 52-30, yet Kell held strong under the rapid fire of LVC, finishing the contest with 49 saves to his credit. The Dutchmen managed two shots in front in the final 10 seconds, but Kell swatted them both aside.

“Ian just played great,” Murphy said.

Although the Jumbos are not usually an extremely physical squad, they managed to overcome the dirty play that LVC was looking for.

“They were a scrappy team, and we did get a little distracted,” Murphy said. “We don’t play that way. We just fight through it, ignore it, and try to play our game.”

In recent games, the squad has shown many strengths, including mastering its defensive zone. “We’ve done a better job on our power play,” Murphy said. “We’ve been playing smart hockey and really pressuring the puck, especially in our defensive zone.”

Tufts, now the third-ranked ECAC team, will face a rough stretch of games over the next few weeks, including a weekend bout against a top ECAC contender in Fitchburg State College. The Jumbos will take on Curry College, ranked 12th, on Thursday at 8 p.m in Milton, Mass.

“Curry has beaten good teams, and will not be an easy win,” Murphy said. “If we don’t come out and play hard, and do what we do well, we could lose.”

As Murphy’s undefeated ECAC team heads into some tough matches, it aims to maintain its intensity and remain focused on its own, clean style of play.

“Right now, we’re in the driver’s seat,” Murphy said. “Our destiny is kind of up to us at this point.”