Friars Top BU in NCAA Hockey Championship

Boston University goalie Matt O'Connor gave up a tying own goal in the third period, then Brandon Tanev scored with 6:17 left and Providence beat the Terriers 4-3 on Saturday night for its first NCAA hockey title.

It was the third straight year that the NCAA has crowned a first-time champion in hockey.

BU was seeking its sixth championship in a virtual home game when O'Connor easily gloved a puck that was lofted in by Kyle McKenzie from the red line. But he then lost track of the puck, dropping it and allowing it to fall underneath him. He slid backward to protect the net and wound up knocking it in with 8:36 to play.

Tanev scored off a faceoff to give the Friars the lead, and Jon Gilles helped protect it with a diving save against Nick Roberto in the final minutes. Gilles stopped 49 saves for PC (26-13-2), which was the last school to be given an at-large berth in 16-team NCAA Tournament.