Cornell men’s hockey closed out its southern New England road trip with a strong performance Saturday evening at Meehan Auditorium, defeating Brown 4-2 behind a pair of second-period goals from freshman Gio DiGiulian. The victory marked Cornell’s fourth consecutive season sweeping the trip and continued the Big Red’s recent surge.
DiGiulian scored twice in the middle frame, breaking a 1-1 tie and giving Cornell control. His second goal came in the final seconds of the period and stood as the game-winner. Freshman defenseman Xavier Veilleux turned in a standout night with a goal and two assists, while junior forwards Jake Kraft and Jonathan Castagna each contributed two assists. Cornell improved to 16-5-0 overall and 11-3-0 in ECAC Hockey play, winning for the 10th time in its last 11 games.
Brown opened the scoring early in the first period, but Cornell answered quickly as freshman Aiden Long finished a setup from Veilleux to even the game. After DiGiulian’s two goals in the second, Veilleux added a power-play tally early in the third to extend the lead. Brown pulled within two late with an extra-attacker goal, but Cornell closed out the win despite extended pressure.
The result also marked the 250th career head coaching victory for Casey Jones, making him one of a small group of active Division I coaches to reach that milestone.
Cornell continues ECAC play next weekend with its home-and-home series against Colgate, beginning Friday, February 6, with a 7:30 p.m. puck drop in Hamilton, New York, before returning home Saturday, February 7, at 7 p.m. at Lynah Rink.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].