(FREDERICTON, NB) The UNB Reds scored twice in the third period and held off the Acadia Axemen 4-3 on Saturday.
A goal by Oliver Cooper (Fredericton, NB), at 11:19 of the final period, stood as the winner.
"It seems like the second half is always a completely different season," said Reds forward Stephen Anderson (Morell, PE), named the Subway Player of the Game, "Teams are adding guys and they've had a break, so any guys that are dealing with injuries, everyone comes in fresh."
The visitors opened the scoring at 15:02 of the first period when Ryan Foss (Oakville, ON) capitalized on a turnover beside the UNB net. He beat Reds netminder Rylan Parenteau (Saskatoon, SK) high on the short side for a 1-0 Acadia lead.
Acadia had a chance to extend their lead when they were awarded a penalty shot about a minute later, but Parenteau stopped Axemen newcomer Jordy Stallard (Brandon, MB).
The Reds got on the board early in the second period.
At 2:07, Anderson took a pass in the slot and lifted a backhand past Dawson Carty (Burlington, ON) to tie the score 1-1.
Just 1:11 later, and with the Reds working on the power-play, Cam Brace (Etobicoke, ON) fired a one-timer past Carty to give UNB a 2-1 lead.
At 5:27 of the third period, Foss scored his second of the game to pull Acadia even at 2-2.
A short time later, the Axemen found themselves with almost two full minutes of 5-on-3 power-play.
The Reds not only held, they scored moments after returning to full strength.
Joe Gatenby (Kelowna, BC) emerged from the penalty box, gained possession of the puck in the UNB zone and moved it forward. As he crossed the Acadia blue-line, he moved into the slot and ripped a wrist shot past Carty for a 3-2 UNB lead.
"I felt like I kind of had to make it up to the team," said Gatenby. "I wanted to get a shot on net, so I tried to drag it and get a better angle in the middle, and shoot it. I was lucky it went in."
Cooper's goal came about two-and-a-half minutes later, making the score 4-2.
Acadia's Stephen Harper (Burlington, ON) scored at 15:07 of the third, but that's as close as the Axemen would get.
"The effort was there, for sure," said Foss. "Everyone was battling, we didn't have one guy as a passenger. We just fell short tonight, but it's a good building block for our team."
"It's frustrating because we come out of here tonight with nothing, and I thought we played really well," said Axemen head coach Darren Burns.
Parenteau earned the win in the UNB net, stopping 18 of 21 shots.
Carty took the loss, giving up four goals on 32 shots.
With the win, the Reds are now 17-0-3 and first in the Atlantic University Sport standings.
The Axemen are 5-12-2, tied for sixth.
Up next for Acadia, a Friday home game against Moncton. Face-off is scheduled for 7:00pm.
The Reds visit Dalhousie on Friday. Game time is 7:00pm.
RECAP BY: Andy Campbell/UNB Athletics
PHOTOS BY: James West/for UNB Athletics