OMAHA, Neb. - Jack Musa scored a tie-breaking goal with 58.2 seconds left to give No. 13 UMass a 5-4 victory over Omaha Hockey Friday night on Kemp Ice at Baxter Arena.
Omaha scored three-straight to take a lead before UMass rallied by scoring twice in the final nine minutes.
Tied 4-4, Musa gathered a loose puck on UMass' end of the ice and was able to put away a breakaway goal on the other end.
Omaha head coach Mike Gabinet said losing in the final minute was heartbreaking, but he saw positives from his young team that trailed by two goals in the second period.
"In this game, you got to dig in and keep getting better," Gabinet said. "This was the most complete game we've played."
The Minutemen (5-1) came into Omaha (1-2) averaging four goals per game and they struck early Friday.
Omaha grabbed the lead less than two minutes into the game when freshman Luke Woodworth took advantage of a one-on-one opportunity, delivering a shot over the left shoulder of UMass goalie Michael Hrabal into the top corner of the net.
But UMass tied it with 16:30 left in the period on Mikey DeAngelo's goal. Four minutes later, the Minutemen took advantage of a 5-on-3 power play as Larry Keenan's goal made it 2-1.
Omaha goalie Simon Latkoczy made 18 saves in the first period before the lead went to 3-1 five minutes into the second period as Owen Mehlenbacher scored on a shot from the blue line
The Mavs, though, had a response. Omaha scored two goals in the next nine minutes to even the game at 3-3 through two periods.
First, Maxime Pellerin scored after Aidan de La Gorgendiere put a shot on net from near the blue line. Omaha tied it with 6:23 left in the period as Tyler Rollwagen scored a power-play goal, converting a shot on goal by Jacob Guévin.
The Mavs kept momentum on its side to start the third. Hrabal was forced to make four saves in the opening minutes of the period before Pellerin scored his second of the night with 17:31 left. A flurry of Omaha shots ended when Pellerin, who was positioned at the side of the net, scored on a rebound.
Omada held the lead for almost nine minutes before UMass tied it with 8:41 left as Cam O'Neill scored on a rebound of his own. That set the stage for Musa's last-minute goal.
Latkoczy finished with 31 saves for Omaha, while Griffin Ludtke had two assists.
Omaha and No. 13 UMass complete the series at 7 p.m. Saturday at Baxter Arena.
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