ROCHESTER, N.Y. – Following nearly three months off the ice due to injury, rookie netminder Alexei Masanko (West Milford, N.J./Don Bosco Prep) made an immediate impact for the Manhattanville College men's ice hockey team with 40 stops and his first collegiate shutout as the Valiants defeated Nazareth College 4-0 on the road in United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) play today, Saturday, Jan. 25. Offensively, the Crimson and White were led by sophomores assistant captain Alex Rowella (Ridgefield, Conn./Holy Cross (H.S.)) (two goals) and Niko Happo (Kauniainen, Finland/Haukilahti Upper Secondary School) (three assists).
 
Manhattanville (7-9-1, 4-6 UCHC) and the Golden Flyers (8-7-2, 5-5 UCHC) were dead even after one period of play, with each goalie making 15 saves and neither squad earning a powerplay opportunity. It was in the second period that the Valiants took control of the contest and built up a 3-0 lead heading into the second intermission before taking the four-goal victory.
 
The Crimson and White had three man-advantage opportunities in the second and were able to convert on their second. The biggest goal of the night – and also the eventual game-winner – came at 8:32 into the period and off the stick of junior co-captain Tristan Ramage (Pittsburgh, Pa./Pittsburgh Central Catholic). The blueliner took a pass from Valiant points leader Happo – secondary assist credited to rookie Noah Bradley (Lancaster, Pa./Manheim Township) – and put the puck in the back of the net for his first-career goal in his 55th collegiate contest.
 
Goal number two came just 35 seconds later when Rowella scored his first of the game – assisted by classmate Kyle Miller (Bristol, Conn./Trinity-Pawling) – to make it 2-0. The final score of the period came on the man advantage following a holding call against Nazareth at 12:29. Senior assistant captain Ken McLean (New Rochelle, N.Y./New Rochelle), fresh off his program-record-tying four-goal performance last weekend, was able to notch his NCAA Division II/III-leading ninth powerplay goal of the season – assisted by senior co-captain Ryan Jackson (Montreal, Que./Pomfret School) – to make it 3-0 with less the seven minutes to go in the period. McLean is now also tied for third overall in the D-II/III in goals per game (0.93).
 
As the third period got underway, the final goal of the night came once again off the stick of Rowella, this time on the powerplay – the Valiants finished 2-of-7 on the man-advantage on the day. The Golden Flyers were called for tripping with 5:15 gone in the third and at 5:49, Rowella was able to put the puck away, with Jackson and Happo notching assists once again.
 
Manhattanville returns to the ice tomorrow, Jan. 26, for a big matchup against fifth-ranked Utica College. The Valiants and Pioneers are scheduled for a 3:00 p.m. faceoff in Utica, N.Y. The home squad owns a slim 27-24-5 advantage over the Crimson and White.