'Saders skate past Falcons.

• Author: Suhoski, Shaun
• Position: Sports

Byline: Shaun Suhoski

WORCESTER -- Sometimes the best offense is a good defense.

And, after skating to overtime stalemates in their last three games against each other, something had to give during Saturday's matchup between Holy Cross and Air Force.

Enter junior Jake Bolton and sophomore Logan Smith. The tandem played solid defensive games -- finishing plus-2 and plus-1 respectively -- while combining for three points and taking six of the Crusaders' 22 shots as Holy Cross won, 3-1, at the Hart Center.

Bolton (goal, assist) scored the first goal and the Crusaders (8-6-5, 7-1-5 AHC) never looked back.

With 5:18 remaining in the first, Smith pinched down on the right point to hold the puck in the offensive zone and pushed it to Matt Vidal behind the net.

Vidal wheeled to the bottom of the right circle before finding Bolton at the point where he stepped in and lifted a wrister through a screen into the net.

"That was just a great play by the boys,'' Bolton said. "I saw Vidal coming up the wall the first time but there wasn't a lane, but I knew he'd cut back because he's really shifty on his feet. I moved over a little bit farther and he laid a great pass right in front of me that I could walk in to.''

The winner came after 12 minutes of up-and-down play in the second period when freshman T.J. Moore lifted home one of the few rebounds left by...