FAIRFIELD, Conn. – After falling behind early, the RMU men's hockey team mounted a late push with two third-period goals but ultimately dropped a 5-2 decision to Sacred Heart on Tuesday night. With the setback, the Colonials move to 4-11-2 overall and 4-4-1 in Atlantic Hockey America (AHA) play.
 
FIRST PERIOD
RMU came out with energy, generating 16 shot attempts over the opening 11 minutes and applying early pressure in the offensive zone. Despite the strong start, Sacred Heart struck first midway through the period to take a 1-0 lead.
 
The Pioneers added another goal late in the frame, capitalizing on sustained zone time to carry a 2-0 advantage into the first intermission.
 
SECOND PERIOD
The second period mirrored the opening stanza, as Sacred Heart scored twice. While a Pioneer goal was waved off due to goaltender interference, SHU quickly responded.
 
Felix Trudeau, Sacred Heart's leading goal scorer, netted his 16th goal of the season to extend the lead to 4-0.
 
THIRD PERIOD
The Colonials showed resilience in the third, breaking through at the midway point. Tanner Klimpke finished off a 3-on-1 rush, taking a feed from Luca Primerano and sniping home his 30th career goal to get RMU on the board.
 
With just over two minutes remaining, Klimpke struck again. After a Sacred Heart shot wrapped around the boards, Klimpke sprung free on a breakaway and calmly buried his second goal of the night, pulling RMU within two and giving the Colonials life late.
 
RMU pulled its netminder with 90 seconds left in search of another goal, but Sacred Heart sealed the outcome with an empty-net tally to secure the 5-2 victory.
 
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE

• Sacred Heart outshot RMU, 33-25. Klimpke led all Colonials with six shots on goal.
• Defensemen Luke van Why and Greg Japchen each posted a team-best plus/minus rating of +1.
• RMU won 32 of 62 faceoffs (51.6 percent), led by sophomore Trent Wilson, who went 10-for-15 at the dot.
• Gabriel Lunn paced the Colonials defensively with a team-high three blocked shots.
• Sacred Heart finished 1-for-3 on the power play, while RMU went 0-for-1.
• Charlie Schenkel made 19 saves over the first 40 minutes in goal, while Lucas Massie stopped nine shots in relief during the third period.

 
CAPTAIN KLIMPKE
With his two-goal performance, Klimpke recorded his fourth career multi-goal game and 13th multi-point effort. He now has three goals and two assists in five career games against Sacred Heart, averaging a point per game against the Pioneers. The junior captain has totaled 31 goals, 30 assists, and 61 points in 80 career games with RMU.
 
UP NEXT
The Colonials return home to host Sacred Heart in the series finale on Saturday, January 3 at 4:00 PM inside Clearview Arena.
 
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