GAME ONE TO THE DAWGS

LONG BEACH, N.Y. (LISN) — Collin Roulston scored the overtime winner as the Bellmore/Merrick Bulldogs secured a 3-2 victory over the Long Beach Marines in Game One of the NYIHSHL Championship Series.

It was a hard-fought victory for the Bulldogs, whi may have had home ice advantage on paper, but they found themselves in enemy territory on Monday, playing in front of nearly 500 spectators at Long Beach Municipal Ice Arena–many of whom were cheering for the Marines.

Chase Goldman and Nick Drogan each found the back of the net for Bellmore/ Merrick. Joey Braglia made 15 saves on 17 shots for the Bulldogs.

Patrick Henry and Richie Behr Jr scored for the Marines. Patrick Reilly stopped 30 of 33 shots in a strong effort for Long Beach.

Goldman scored the first goal of the Nassau County Finals to put Bellmore/ Merrick up 1-0 with 1:49 to go in the 1st period. Kyle Wilcha made a long pass to Goldman, who batted it out of midair, and beat Reilly glove side for a breakaway goal.

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Henry responded at 8:47 in the 2nd period to tie the game. The Marines captain redirected a shot from the point by Fernando Cerda III past Braglia.

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With 19 seconds left in the second stansa, Behr found the back of the net to give the Marines a 2-1 lead. Behr beat his man to the outside and sniped five-hole.

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Drogan evened the score at 13:00 of the 3rd period. Liam Barkus carried the puck towards the goal line and made a beautiful backhand pass to Drogan, who beat Henry with a one-timer from the slot.

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Roulston scored the game winning goal in the dying seconds of overtime. The overtime hero forced a turnover in the Long Beach Zone, spun away from pressure to make a sweeping pass to Lucas Lucchi, who fired a shot that was redirected home by the aforementioned Roulston.

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The Marines had the crowd behind them in Long Beach, but now they’ll look to stave off elimination on Wednesday at the Town of Oyster Bay Ice Skating Center, where Bellmore/Merrick supporters are expected to come out in full force.

Last year, the Bulldogs were in the same position the Marines are in now, trying to force a Game 3 against the 2024 Nassau County champion Bethpage Eagles. This time around, Bellmore/Merrick is looking to complete the series sweep, and Bulldogs fans are hoping this is finally their year after back-to-back losses in the County Finals.

Live coverage begins at 7:45 p.m. on the LI Sports Network, your home for the NYIHSHL Championship Series.

Box Score

Goaltending Stats

Three Stars of the Game