X-Men drop close 3-2 game to Axemen

WOLFVILLE, N.S. - Sam Fioretti's second goal of the night with just over three minutes to play in the game gave the CIS No. 3 Acadia Axemen a 3-2 win over the CIS No. 7 StFX X-Men, snapping a two game losing streak.

The X-Men opened the evening with a goal by Kristoff Kontos (Penetanguishene, Ont.) with just over nine minutes remaining in the first period. Kontos received a great pass from teammate Holden Cook (Oshawa, Ont.) for the easy tap in.

The Axemen responded two minutes later when second year forward Boston Leier (Saskatoon, Sask.) scored his 12th goal of the regular season on a wrist shot that caught the top corner for the tying goal.

With no change in score in the second period, Sam Fioretti (Calgary, Alta.) scored in the opening minute of the final frame, his first of a two goal third period.

Fourth year forward Brad Cuzner (Glace Bay, N.S.) tied the game at two when he stole the puck from Axemen defenseman Geoff Schemitsch (Thornhill, Ont.) in the neutral zone for an unassisted shorthanded goal.

Subway player of the game and first star Fioretti notched the game winner with 3:02 remaining in regulation time when he picked up a loose rebound beside the sprawling Drew Owsley (Lethbridge, Alta.) after teammate Boston Leier had a golden opportunity to score and Owsley made a big initial save.

Outshot 31-25, Owsley received second star honours, while on the other end, a rare start for goaltender Robert Steeves (Moncton, N.B.) resulted in his recognition as the game's third star.

With the win the Axemen improve to 17-4-2 and will head to Halifax this Friday night to take on the host Saint Mary's Huskies (13-7-2) at Scotiabank Centre for the first annual Varsity Showdown at 8:00 pm. The X-Men (15-4-3) will take on the Dalhousie Tigers (6-13-4) at the same venue at 4:00 pm.

Courtesy Acadia Sports Information

The X-Men and Axemen gathered before the game for #BellLetsTalk, promoting #OneTeamForMentalHealth