Matt Fairchild’s two goals helped propel the Air Force to its conference championship game after the Falcons defeated Bentley 3-0 in an Atlantic Hockey Association semifinal game Friday in Rochester, N.Y.
Andrew Volkening made 26 saves in goal for Air Force (26-10-2), which qualified for to the conference title game for the third consecutive season. In today’s championship game, Air Force will face the winner of Friday’s late semifinal between Rochester Tech and Mercyhurst.
The Falcons’ 26 wins are the most in team history, surpassing the 25-win mark from 1997-72. They are 10-1 all-time in AHA tournament games.
Fairchild’s goal at 10:56 of the second period, off assists from Michael Mayra and Jeff Hajner, broke a scoreless tie and proved to be the game-winner.
“Both teams played a very tight game,” Air Force coach Frank Serratore said. “Both teams were waiting for the other team to make the first mistake. I thought it would be very important to score the first goal and fortunately we got it.”
