Hamilton College's Evan Buitenhuis '18 made 28 saves for his third straight shutout in a 0-0 overtime tie against Williams College in NESCAC men's hockey action at Williams' Lansing Chapman Rink on Sunday afternoon.

Buitenhuis paces Division III in save percentage (.956) and goals against average (1.22). Buitenhuis and Anthony Tirabassi '20 have anchored the Continentals' defense all season, guiding Hamilton to second in the nation in both scoring defense at 1.67 goals allowed per game and penalty kill at 91 percent. Hamilton killed six penalties against the Ephs.

Hamilton (15-6-3 overall) finishes the regular season in a tie for third place in the conference standings with a 9-6-3 NESCAC record and earned the fourth seed for the 2018 NESCAC Men's Hockey Championship. The Continentals will host fifth-seeded Wesleyan University at Russell Sage Rink in a NESCAC quarterfinal on Saturday, Feb. 24 at 4 p.m.

Williams (13-10-1, 9-8-1 NESCAC) finishes seventh in the standings and will travel to second-seeded Connecticut College for a quarterfinal on Saturday. Stephen Morrissey made 23 saves during his Senior Game for his first shutout of the season and second of his Ephs' career.

In an action-packed final 25 minutes, both teams had a pair of prime opportunities to score. Daniel Woolfenden struck first for the Ephs 7:04 into the third period. Colby Cretella kept the puck in Hamilton's zone, skated to the high slot and passed back to Woolfenden for a one-timer. The shot tipped into the air and Buitenhuis got just a piece of the puck to deflect it over the back of the net.

Jon Beniers '21 started a charge for Hamilton two minutes later. Beniers sped into the Williams zone along the left side of the ice and centered a pass to a charging Sterling Bray '20 for a shot on Morrissey. Morrissey kicked the puck out to the point where Josh Labonte '21 wound up for a slapper before he moved around a diving Eph attempting to block the shot. Labonte fired a snap shot through traffic into the glove of Morrissey.

The Continentals were on the attack again with four minutes remaining in the third period. Teddy Simson '21 dug the puck out of the corner and passed to Jon Stickel '19 just outside the crease for a one-timer into Morrissey's pads. The rebound bounced out to Blayne Oliver '20 at the point but Oliver's slap shot was deflected behind the net. Stickel collected the loose puck, passed behind him to Simson, and Simson attempted to wrap around the goal but failed to tuck the puck inside the left post. The rebound popped out front for a shot attempt by Cameron Radziwon '20, but again the Ephs' senior goaltender made the stop.

The home team turned it up another level in overtime, especially in the final minute when they fired off five shots. Brandon Willett '18 went to the penalty box with 22 seconds remaining to give Williams a 5-on-4 advantage. The Ephs won the faceoff to the left of Buitenhuis and proceeded to criss-cross the zone with the puck that concluded with Jack McCool wide open at the back door for a one-timer that Buitenhuis swatted away and the Hamilton defense blocked the secondary attempt to close out the game.