HANOVER, N.H. - Trevor van Riemsdyk (Middletown, N.J.) scored at 2:08 of overtime to lift the second-ranked University of New Hampshire men's hockey team to Monday afternoon's 3-2 overtime win against non-conference foe Bemidji State in the final round of the Ledyard National Bank Classic at Dartmouth College.
UNH improves to 12-3-2 overall, while Bemidji State is now 5-10-3. Today's game was the first ever meeting between the two schools. The Wildcats snap a two-game skid and finish out 2012 12-3-2 overall.
van Riemsdyk finished with a goal and an assist, while Jay Camper (Rocky River, Ohio; 1g, 1a) and Matt Willows (Congers, N.Y.; 2a) each registered multi-point efforts.
Camper won a faceoff back to Willows in the center slot, who slid the puck to van Riemsdyk on the left point for the game-winning one-timer at 2:08 over the overtime period. The Wildcats had the only two shots in the OT and had the better of play in the extra time.
With UNH leading 2-1 in the third, Bemidji tied the game at 9:05 as Jordan George scored after a flurry in front the UNH net led to an open net for the easy tap in. Aaron McLeod and Brance Orban assisted on the goal.
Bemidji broke the ice just over two minutes in a Markus Gerbrandt scored on the rebound of a Brad Robbins shot at 2:12 to give the Beavers a 1-0 lead. The Wildcats would have the better of pressure throughout the remaining 18 minutes finally breaking through on the power play at 15:25 as Grayson Downing (Abbottsford, British Columbia) scored with assists from van Riemsdyk and Kevin Goumas (Long Beach, N.Y.). UNH held an 11-4 shot advantage thanks in part to a pair of power play opportunities.
The Wildcats took the lead as Camper netted his first goal of the season on a nifty tic-tac-toe sequence, which Camper buried from the right slot. Willows and Justin Agosta (East Meadow, N.Y.) assisted on the go-ahead goal at 8:36 of the second. UNH held a 12-7 shot edge and killed off a Bemidji State penalty during the period.
New Hampshire finished with a commanding 36-20 shot advantage. The Beavers were 0-1 on the power play, while UNH was 1-4 in its extra-man opportunities.
Casey DeSmith (Rochester, N.H.) stopped 18 shots including eight in the third period to improve to 11-3-2 overall, while Andrew Walsh made 33 saves with double figures in all three regulation periods and falls to 4-6-2 on the season.
UNH returns to action Saturday, Jan. 5 against Rensselaer. Puck drops at 7 p.m. at the Whittemore Center Arena. The game will be broadcast live on WBIN-TV with nationally coverage on FOX College Sports Atlantic. Tickets to the Rensselaer game and all UNH home events are available online at UNHWildcats.com.