Gorham, Maine (February 25, 2026) — The UMass Boston Beacons men's ice hockey team advanced in the Little East Conference tournament with a gritty 3–2 road win over the University of Southern Maine on Wednesday night. The victory marks a historic milestone for the Beacons in their first season competing in the Little East Conference.
Despite being outshot 20–8 in the opening period, UMass Boston struck first late in the frame when senior Jude Kurtas (Hillsborough, N.J.) found the back of the net.
Southern Maine answered quickly in the second period. Owen Drummey evened the score less than two minutes in, and Ethan MacDuff followed with a power-play goal shortly after to give the Huskies a 2–1 lead. The Beacons responded late in the period as Kurtas netted his second of the night with under five minutes remaining, finishing a play set up by Chris Repmann (Middletown, N.J.) to send the game into the third tied at 2–2.
The deadlock held deep into the final frame until Repmann delivered the decisive moment. With just under five minutes to play, he buried the game-winning goal off a feed from Jazz Krivtsov (Santa Clarita, Calif.), punching UMass Boston's ticket to the conference semifinals. Connor McDonough and the Beacons' defense held firm in the closing minutes to seal the victory.
Kurtas led the offense with two goals and a plus-three rating, while Repmann finished with a goal and an assist. Jack Mortson (Detroit, Mich.) contributed a strong two-way performance, tying for the team lead with five shots and winning 14 faceoffs. Krivtsov added the assist on the game-winner to cap a solid all-around effort.
McDonough was outstanding in net, stopping 38 shots for a .950 save percentage, including 20 saves in the first period alone. UMass Boston was outshot 40–28 but went 2-for-7 on the power play. The penalty kill limited Southern Maine to one goal on four opportunities.
Up Next
UMass Boston travels to face top-seeded Norwich University in the Little East Conference semifinals on Saturday, Feb. 28 at 7 p.m.
