ADRIAN, Mich.--Sophomore Rex Moe scored two goals in the third period as nationally-ranked Adrian rallied for a thrilling 4-3 victory over visiting Trine in the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association Harris Cup Semifinals on Saturday evening, putting the Bulldogs' winning streak to a dozen and sending them into the conference championship game next Saturday. 

THE BASICS
= Final Score: Adrian College 4, Trine University 3

= Location: Weston Rink at Arrington Ice Arena; Adrian, Mich.

= Updated Records: Adrian Bulldogs, 20-5-3 overall (No. 1 NCHA-South Seed); Trine Thunder, 13-12-3 overall (No. 3 NCHA-South Seed)

= NCAA Division III National Rankings: Adrian is No. 6 (212 points) by U.S. College Hockey Online and No. 5 in the PairWise

TOP 'DAWGS
= Freshman Alessio Luciani led Adrian with three points--all on assists.

= Senior Dino Balsamo led Adrian's dominance in the face-off circle by winning 24 of 36 draws and he scored a goal. 

= Junior goalie Cameron Gray improved to 17-4-1 on the season after making 16 stops.

= Sophomore Trevor Coykendall was 7-for-10 on face-offs.

THE OPPOSITION
= Brendan Prappas led the Thunder with two assists.

= Brett Young made 45 saves on 49 shots against.  

HOW IT HAPPENED 
= Adrian peppered Trine's goal with 49 shots to 19 for the Thunder.

= Trailing 3-2 in the third period, Adrian tied it 5:48 in when sophomore Grant Baetsen fed Moe with a left wing centering pass for a one-timer into the back of the net. Then 3 minutes and 16 seconds later, the Bulldogs reclaimed the lead for good as Moe scored his 11th of the season on a feed from Luciani.

= After the teams skated to a 1-1 tie after the first period, the second began with Adrian taking a 2-1 lead on Balsamo's team-best 19th goal of the season on the power play just 31 seconds in. The Thunder tied it 2-2 on a goal from Garrett Hallford and assist by Prappas at 3:54. Then with Adrian on the power play later in the second, Carmine Taffo scored shorthanded when he pounced on Prappas' initial shot and poked the puck between Gray's pads for it to trickle over the goal line. The visitors first lead came at 11:48, 3-2.

= Sophomore Sam Ruffin scored at 9:27 of the first period before Justin Meers answered for Trine 1:37 later.   

= Adrian killed off a key penalty in the later stages of regulation as Trine worked a 5-on-3 for 1:08 after pulling Young for an extra attacker. But the Bulldogs preserved the win by not allowing a shot on goal during that stretch.

BEYOND THE BOX SCORE
= The Bulldogs are 33-6 lifetime in the conference playoffs.

= Adrian owns a 12-game winning streak--the team's longest since reeling off 16 during the 2017-18 campaign.

= The Bulldogs won 44 of 76 draws against the Thunder.

= Adrian is 9-0 lifetime against the Thunder, who were swept during the season 4-0.

UP NEXT
= Adrian will host three-time defending NCHA tournament champion St. Norbert next Saturday. Stay tuned to AdrianBulldogs.com and socials for official ticket information and updates.

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