Mandia led the way with two goals and four assists. Zach Rivest made 14 saves to preserve the win.
The Eagles, playing in their fourth game in eight days, fell behind on a goal in the fifth minute of the game. Mandia answered with an unassisted goal from the left side midway through the first period. Michael Hofmeister then gave the Eagles a lead they would not relinquish on a pass from Mandia with five and a half minutes to play in the period.
Eastern picked up their third goal of the game in the waning second of the third period on a strong shot from Matt Colello off a pass from Michael Ryan. The goal is the first of his collegiate career for the first year from Naperville, IL.
Up 3-1, the Eagles showed patience in the third period and were able to work for good shots. Ryan scored three minutes into the period on another Mandia pass. The Eagles then appeared to put the game away witha pair of goals in the eleventh minute of the half. Mandia picked up his second of the day on another elusive run, and then set up Ben O'Donnell thirty seconds later.
The Eagles took a 6-1 lead into the break and seemed to have the game well in hand, but the Panthers, who are on a southern swing for their Spring Break, rallied with a pair of goals in the third period to cut into the Eastern advantage. The damage could have been far worse had it not been for several standout saves from Rivest who made five total saves inthe period. Plymouth State held a 12-1 advantage in shots for the third period.
The visitors closed the gap to 6-4 with just over nine minutes to play on a goal from Steve Engel. O'Donnell answered with his 13th of the year on a great pass from Mandia just two minutes later. The play came immediately after a huge hit from Andrew Minnick caused a turnover deep in the Plymouth State Zone.
The Eastern defense held their ground until the 59 minute of the contest when the visitors again slipped a ball past Rivest on a tight shot just inside the far post from the left side. The Eagles held the 7-5 margin for their first win of the 2008 campaign. Plymouth State falls to 1-1 on the year.
The Eastern coaching staff was encouraged by the progress of their team and is looking forward to getting back into conference play.
Engel led the visitors with a pair of goals. Billy Morgan and Kevin Hayes split time in goal for the visitors.
The Eagles return to action next Wednesday with an important home PAC game against Centenary College.
Box Score
