OWINGS MILLS, MD - The No. 5 Utica University men's ice hockey team had a far from easy time against Stevenson, but the Pioneers made it work in their second overtime game of the year. With just over a minute played in overtime, junior defenseman Jayson Dobay cut in at the right circle, made his defender drop to the ice, and picked the top right corner of the net to lift Utica to a 4-3 win over Stevenson in their United Collegiate Hockey Conference opener on Friday. 

The Pioneers are now 1-2 overall and obtain two standings points, while Stevenson falls to 1-2 with one standings point. The two teams will meet again on Saturday at 3 p.m.

Utica held a 38-25 edge in shots for the matchup, while both powerplays finished the night at 0-for-2 on a sparse night for advantage opportunities.

A multi-point game from captain Dante Zapata set the pace for the Utica offense with a goal and an assist. Eight Pioneers had a point in total, with Remy Parker and Brandon Osmundson adding the other Pioneer goals, while Mic Curran, Justin Allen, Joey Berkopec, Khristian Acosta, and John Moncovich had assists. 

Graeme McCrory led Stevenson with a goal and an assist. 

In goal, Bryan Landsberger had 22 saves to take the win. 

Just over five minutes in, the home team made a daring charge to a 2-0 lead with goals just 29 seconds apart. John Musella scored at 5:03, while Alex Rivet canned a goal of his own at 5:32. The Pioneers responded to tie the game by the end of the stanza, with Brandon Osmundson and Dante Zapata scoring to get the game back to level terms through 20 minutes played. 

The second period also saw both teams connect on a marker apiece, with McCrory scoring for Stevenson, and Parker tying the game for Utica at 17:57. Neither team scored in the third, and the Pioneers scored on their only shot of overtime to take the extra session win.