MOON TOWNSHIP, Pa.—Hobart College attackmen Eric Holden and Jason Knox broke Statesmen Division I era records, but Robert Morris University used a late scoring surge to defend its home field 16-15 in overtime. Holden produced four points to raise his season total to 57, eclipsing the season record of 56 set by Mark Williamson '04 in 2004, while Knox fired home a game-high five goals to raise his season total to 33, eclipsing the rookie record of 29 set by junior Justin Scott two years ago.
 
By virtue of Mount St. Mary's 7-6 win over Saint Joseph's, both the Statesmen (10-4, 4-2) and Colonials (7-7, 4-2) clinched a spot in the four-team NEC Tournament before the fourth quarter was complete. The Mountaineers secured the No. 1 seed and will host the semifinals and championship. Hobart will be the No. 2 seed and take on No. 3 seed Sacred Heart. As the No. 4 seed, RMU will take on The Mount.
 
Knox (5g 1a) began the day with 28 goals, one shy of teammate Justin Scott's two-year-old record for goals by a Hobart Division I first-year. He tied the mark with the final goal of the first quarter, cutting Robert Morris' lead to 4-3 after 15 minutes. Fifteen seconds into the second quarter, sophomore Ryan Archer (2g) fired home a goal off an assist from senior Matthew Pedicine to tie the game. Just over two minutes later, Knox scored his 30th goal of the season to break the record and give Hobart the lead.
 
After Hobart's three straight goals, neither team was able to gain much moment for the remainder of the half, going into the locker room tied at 8.
 
While the first half was a back-and-forth affair, the second half featured one run after another. The Statesmen charged out of the gate with three straight goals for an 11-8 lead. Senior Chris Aslanian (2g 1a) got it started with an extra-man goal followed by back-to-back strikes from Knox.
 
RMU countered with a three-goal run of its own with Tyson Gibson (2g 5a), Brad McCulley and Ryan Smith (4g 1a) scoring for the home team to tie the game at 11 with under six minutes to play in the third quarter.
 
Hobart closed out the frame with a four-goal burst to carry a 15-11 lead into the fourth quarter. Knox fired home his 33rd of the year to start the run. With about four minutes remaining, the Colonials were flagged for an illegal body check. The 60 second penalty was non-releasable. First-year Derrek Madonna (1g 1a) cashed in 17 second in and Aslanian added a second extra-man goal with eight seconds left in the penalty for a 14-11 advantage. Thirteen seconds after that, senior Bryan Hancock collected a ricochet off the post and scored to give the Statesmen a four-goal advantage.
 
Robert Morris scored twice in the first six minutes of the fourth quarter to cut its deficit in half. Matt Schmidt made it a one-goal game with 2:18 remaining in regulation and Ryan Smith scored the game-tying goal with 52 seconds to go. The Colonials' comeback picked up more momentum when Hobart was called for a slashing penalty with 30 seconds left in the fourth quarter. RMU elected to hold the ball and avoid a faceoff to start overtime.
Pedicine finished the day 18-of-33 on faceoffs, collecting a game-high 11 ground balls. He now has 150 ground balls on the season, the most since Bill Sipperly '81 had 150 in 1978.
 
In overtime, just after the penalty expired, Smith drew a double team 3 yards off the left post. He threw a pass to Schmidt who rifled home the winner from 10 yards out.
 
Hobart junior goalie Sam Lucchesi made 18 saves in the game, including nine in the fourth quarter. RMU's Alex Heger made nine stops on 22 shots in just over 59 minutes of work.
 
The Northeast Conference semifinals will be played on Thursday, May 2 at The Mount's Waldron Family Stadium. Game times will be announced early in the week.