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Rams hand Falcons loss in regular-season finale

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Jonathan Guth | Ãå±±½ûµØ Connellsville’s Logan Hause (70) puts himself in position to score the Falcons’ opening goal during Thursday’s game against Ringgold in Division 2 PIHL play at CFS Bank Event Center in Rostraver Township. Teammate Larry Barrofio battles the Rams’ Nolan Mosco for space in front of the net, as Ringgold goalie Mason Ribnicky keeps a close eye on the play.

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Jonathan Guth | Ãå±±½ûµØ Connellsville’s Connor Basinger and Ringgold’s Caelan Ritenour battle in the Rams’ zone during Thursday’s game in Division 2 PIHL play at CFS Bank Event Center in Rostraver Township.

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Jonathan Guth | Ãå±±½ûµØ Connellsville’s Logan Hause plays behind the net during Thursday’s game in Division 2 PIHL play at CFS Bank Event Center in Rostraver Township.

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Landon Vaccaro scored with his team on the penalty kill and Ringgold held off Connellsville for a 4-2 victory on Thursday night in Division 2 PIHL hockey play at CFS Bank Event Center in Rostraver Township.

Both teams finished the regular season with 44 points, and will turn their attention to the Division 2 playoffs. The schedule for the postseason has not been released.

The Falcons lost to Neshannock, 4-3, in last year’s playoffs.

Vaccaro’s goal, which turned out to be the game winner, came with five minutes remaining in the third period. The tally was his second of the game, as he scored in the second to provide his team with a 2-1 advantage.

Benito Pesi added an empty-net goal for the Rams with 16 seconds remaining in the final frame. Bruce Santina assisted on Pesi’s tally.

Connellsville has rarely been outshot this season, but with it missing several of its top players, the Falcons were outshot, 33-21, including a 7-5 edge in the first period.

Despite Ringgold maintaining most of its time in the Connellsville zone, the Falcons broke through in the first period when Logan Hause scored in front of the net for a 1-0 lead with 6:13 remaining in the frame. Larry Barrofio and Liam King had the assists on the event-strength tally.

The Rams had a 17-7 advantage in shots on goal during the second period, and two went in behind Connellsville goalie Nick Daniels-Nimick for a 2-1 advantage before the Falcons tied the game late in the second on Sam Denny’s even-strength goal.

Santina scored a 5-on-5 tally to tie the game at 1-1 with 14:37 left in the frame and Vaccaro’s first goal with 3:17 remaining in the second. Nicholas Mahalko had the lone assist on Santina’s tally, and Mahalko and Brady Lippert set up Vaccaro’s opening tally.

Denny’s goal came with 1:04 remaining in the second. He was assisted by TJ Snyder.

Both teams were 0-for-4 on the power play.

Daniels-Nimick made 27 saves and Ringgold goalie Mason Ribnicky stopped 20 shots.

Connellsville finished second in the Gold Division of Division 2 with a record of 14-5-0-0-1. Morgantown, who was the Division 2 playoff champion last season, won the division with 48 points and a record of 15-3-1-1-0. The Falcons handed the Mohigans two of their three losses in regulation. Connellsville won 3-2 on Oct. 30 and 8-1 on Nov. 20.

Denny led the Falcons in scoring this season with 26 points. He had 14 goals and 12 assists. Matty Smith had 22 points and Connor Basinger 18.

Mason Mazak was the team’s fourth-leading scorer with 16 points. Hause and King tied for fifth on the club in scoring with 13.

Daniels-Nimick was 13-5 this season with a goals-against-average of 2.01 and a save percentage of .909.