RYE, NY (Feb. 16, 2024) - - King's College men's ice hockey fell 6-0 to United Collegiate Hockey Conference (UCHC) opponent Manhattanville College tonight in the first game of their last regular season series at the Valiants' home rink, Playland Ice Casino. The Monarchs are now 8-16-0 overall and 7-12-0 in UCHC play. 

The Monarchs held tough with the Valiants for a majority of the first period, holding Manhattanville off from scoring its first goal for nearly eight minutes. The Valiants followed up shortly after with a second goal at the 9:18 minute mark to give themselves a 2-0 lead over King's. The Monarchs continued to battle however and prevented Manhattanville from growing its lead for the remainder of the period. 

The Valiants came back onto the ice eager to score after the Monarchs' defense held off for the last 11 minutes of the first period. Manhattanville scored its third goal of the evening just 14 seconds into the second period. Despite their quick start, King's defense played strong for the remainder of the period and held off the Valiants from scoring again. Diego D'Alessandro contributed to the Monarchs' defensive success greatly with 15 saves alone in the second period. 

Despite a strong defensive showing in the second period, Manhattanville broke through in the third period to score three more goals. The Valiants scored their first in less than three minutes to bring the game to 4-0. They were unable to find the back of the net again until the final 10 minutes of play when the Valiants scored their fifth goal at the 10:51 mark and the final game winning goal with just over a minute remaining. Manhattanville ultimately defeated King's 6-0. 

King's hung tight with Manhattanville offensively despite the scoreboard as the Valiants only outshot them 39-34. Ethan Hersant led the Monarchs in faceoffs with 13 wins. Michael Harrel Jr., Mauro D'Alessandro and Teodor Benno Vaage led the Monarchs' defense with two blocks each, while D. D'Alessandro finished the game with 33 saves, which is just five short of his career-best.

King's revisits Playland Ice Casino tomorrow afternoon at 3 pm for its last regular season game and second attempt at UCHC opponent Manhattanville.