GENEVA, N.Y.—Despite scoring twice over the final 11 minutes of the third period, third-seeded Babson College was unable to overcome a two-goal second-period deficit and fell to second-seeded Hobart College, 3-2, in a New England Hockey Conference (NEHC) Tournament semifinal on Saturday night at the Cooler.

Babson, which entered the night with a six-game unbeaten streak and was making its ninth semifinal appearance in the last 10 years, closes the season at 15-9-3 overall. Hobart, which is ranked ninth in the USCHO.com poll and 10th by D3hockey.com, improves to 17-5-5 and extends its unbeaten streak to 10 games.

Junior Matt Brazel (Hingham, Mass.) and first-year Nick Rosa (Birmingham, Mich.) each had a goal for the Beavers. Seniors Charlie Ackerman (Bradenton, Fla.) and Josh Casper (Lake Forest, Ill.) and first-year Patrick Flynn (Framingham, Mass.) all finished with an assist, while junior netminder Matt Pompa (Palm City, Fla.) made 20 saves.

Sophomore Zach Sternbach (Loudonville, N.Y.) had a goal and an assist and classmate Lawson MacDougall (Williamstown, Ontario) chipped in with a pair of assists for the Statesmen. Junior Jonas Toupal (Vcelna, Czech Republic) and sophomore Will Harrison (Springfield, Virginia) also scored, while senior goaltender Frank Oplinger (Sewickly, Pa.) turned away 23 shots in the win.

Following a scoreless first period that featured terrific saves by both Pompa and Oplinger, Hobart jumped in front 1-0 when Sternbach tipped home Toupal's shot from the left wing in traffic just 20 seconds into the second. Oplinger slide to his left to make a pad save on senior Matt McMorrow (Pearl River, N.Y.) eight minutes into the frame and the Statesmen rewarded his work just seconds later as MacDougal broke into the zone and left the puck for Toupal, who ripped a shot from the left circle just under the bar for a 2-0 advantage at 8:11 of the middle period.

Babson, which saw Oplinger make four saves in addition to having three other shots blocked on a power play late in the second, finally broke through with a power play goal by Rosa at 9:18 of the third. Flynn's shot from the left circle was blocked, but he put the rebound on net where it was redirected by Rosa at the top of the crease for his 10th goal of the season.

The Beavers were held without a shot on their power play following an elbowing penalty on Hobart at the 15:01 mark, and the hosts appeared to put the game away on Harrison's empty net tally to make it 3-1 with 2:20 left. Babson again cut the deficit to just one on Brazel's blast from the top of the right face-off circle with 1:08 remaining.

The Green and White pulled Pompa again with 45 seconds to go, but Flynn's shot in the waning seconds was blocked, helping the Statesmen hold on.

Hobart will now taking on top-seeded Norwich in the NEHC Tournament final next Saturday.

GAME NOTES
• The Beavers, who had gone 1-0-2 against Hobart during the regular season, are 10-3-3 all-time against the Statesmen.
• Each of Babson's last six conference tournament losses going back to 2011 have come by a single goal.
• Ackerman, who is one of 11 seniors on the roster, finished his career with a point for the fifth consecutive game.
• With his third-period goal, Brazel has produced three goals and seven assists for 10 points in six postseason contests.