CLINTON, N.Y. - The Hamilton men's ice hockey team won its first-ever NESCAC Championship on Sunday afternoon with a 3-0 victory over Tufts at Sage Rink.

The top-seed Continentals (20-6-1) scored twice in the second period and added an empty-net goal in the final minute. Senior goalie Charlie Archer, the NESCAC Defensive Player of the Year, made 32 saves for his fifth shutout of the season and ninth of his career.

Tufts, playing in its second straight NESCAC final, saw its season come to a close with a 12-13-1 mark. The fifth-seeded Jumbos outshot Hamilton 69 to 43 but the Continentals' have the top defense in the league and were able to keep the Jumbos scoreless.

Hamilton took the lead eight minutes into the second period. William Neault's shot from the point was saved by Jumbo junior Gus Bylin, but the puck stayed in the crease and senior Grisha Gotovets pounced on the rebound to give the Continentals a 1-0 advantage.

The Continentals capitalized on a power-play with 3:42 remaining in the second to push its lead to 2-0. On a rush out of their own zone, Hamilton sophomore Devon de Vries skated into the Jumbo end on the right side. He stayed wide and from deep in the circle he zipped a pass onto the stick of sophomore Luke Tchor, the NESCAC Player of the Year, who tapped it in.

The Jumbos pulled Bylin with 2:16 remaining in regulation, but were whistled for a penalty 30 seconds later. On a power-play at five-on-five with Bylin out, Hamilton sophomore Justin Biraben poked the puck off a Tufts stick and junior Ben Zimmerman collected the puck to score into the open net with 39 seconds on the clock.

Hamilton, which becomes the seventh NESCAC school to win a men's ice hockey title, earns the NESCAC's automatic berth into the NCAA Tournament, with the official 14-team field announced tomorrow at 10 a.m at NCAA.com.