MANCHESTER, N.H.—Saturday marked the end of the Cornell University men’s ice hockey run in the NCAA tournament as the Big Red, the #12 seed, fell to #5 seed Boston University 2-1.
The game was a deadlock through the first period, but Boston’s Wilmer Skoog scored just after the second period began. Boston added another goal in the third period from Ethan Phillips, which was more than Cornell could overcome.
Cornell’s only score was notched with just under 30 seconds left in the game, as freshman Dalton Bancroft netted a goal with assists from senior Travis Mitchell and junior Gabriel Seger.
A win in the game would have sent Cornell to its first Frozen Four since 2003. They had already upset the University of Denver in their first-round matchup. They return to Ithaca with a final record of 21-11-2.
Cornell Athletics quoted head coach Mike Schafer as saying “Congratulations to Boston University. I thought they played an outstanding game. They’re a great hockey team. Jay Pandolfo and their staff have done a tremendous job with those guys all year long.”
Sophomore Ian Shane added 19 saves in goal for Cornell in the loss.
Boston, which is now 29-10 on the year, will go on to play top-ranked Minnesota in the Frozen Four in Tampa Bay. This is Boston’s first trip to the Frozen Four since 2015, according to Cornell Athletics.