Auburn, ME – Aaron Higgins matched the jersey number on his back, scoring with 24 seconds left to stun UMass-Amherst 6-5, Friday night at Norway Savings Bank Arena. CMCC men's hockey survived a wild tilt with the Minutemen, as the Mustangs blew a three-goal lead in the third period before winning it in the final minute.

Higgins scored twice to bring his goal haul for the season to 19 tallies in just 14 games. Cody Ivey picked up three assists including a helper on the game-winner, and captain Zach Mitton scored his first of the season in his return from injury.

Central Maine jumped out to a 3-0 lead after the first period with a fantastic start. Will Galligan picked off a pass on the right wing and buried a shot 4:30 into the game. Ivey chipped a puck up the boards for Higgins midway through the frame. The Falmouth, ME native raced onto it, shot the puck, got his own rebound, and batted the puck out of midair to make it 2-0. Emmit Sullivan then sniped a wrister from the left circle over goaltender Michael Gilerman's shoulder with 2:04 remaining.

UMass-Amherst got on the board with a power play goal 3:49 into the second from Sam Canniff. Defenseman Mitton then canceled that out four minutes later with a power play strike of his own. The second-year captain out of Falmouth High School took a face-off win from Dylan Blue before picking the top corner through a screen to make it 4-1 heading into the third period.

That lead proved anything but secure despite CMCC's 39-25 edge in shots on goal. The Minutemen mustered a comeback with 22 shots in the final 20 minutes. Thomas Julian took a backdoor feed in the right circle before rifling home a power play goal at the 3:46 mark. Zachary Conway then scored just under a minute later on a shorthanded breakaway to make it 4-3.

Jordy Knoren spent his timeout to give his team a moment to regroup, and it seemed to do the trick. Michael Belleau briefly restored order with the Mustangs second power play goal of the game 7:41 into the period. The Lewiston, ME native's rebound effort from below the goal line bounced off the netminder and in to make it 5-3 and give the alternate captain his sixth goal of the season.

But a two-goal lead being the most dangerous in hockey is a cliché for a reason. Julian scored a second time to cut the deficit to one with 6:34 remaining, before setting up the tying goal in the final minute of the game to make it 5-5. The forward took a pass from Shane Prusak at the point before firing from the right circle. His shot appeared to be heading wide before catching the legs of Evan Phaneuf and deflecting into the net.

Norway Savings Bank Arena sat deflated as it appeared the game would be heading to overtime with all the momentum on UMass-Amherst's side of the ice. That changed instantaneously with one rush up the ice.

Ivey deflected the puck over to Colby Pawson who carried it out of his own zone for a three-on-two. The sophomore from Messalonskee High School snapped a shot that handcuffed the goaltender, spilling the rebound into the crease. As Gilerman attempted to cover it, Higgins reached his stick out across the blue paint and tapped the puck in with his backhand, before cruising to the glass to celebrate in his trademark style.

"Pawson was going down the ice and I was praying, 'just put it on net'," Higgins said after the game. "I came in hard and just tapped it in. It was a great feeling. That team pushed us to the limit. We stayed strong together, played good defense, and we got the win."

Central Maine improves to 11-4-0 on the year while handing UMass-Amherst just its second loss of the season. CMCC currently sits 19^th in the ACHA D3 rankings and have a chance to climb heading into their next game when they take on 10^th ranked Colby College. The Mustangs and Mules face-off in Waterville on Sunday, November 17^th with puck drop scheduled for 2:00 pm.