In a game tighter than anyone expected, the stars came through for St. Bonaventure. So did a player no one expected they’d need.

The top-seeded Bonnies (19-1-2) defeated No. 32 High Point, 5-0, Friday night in the first round of pool play at the AAU College Hockey National Tournament behind goals from every member of SBU’s top line — Mason Meggo, Owen Hughes and Michael Robertson — and 15 saves from sophomore Ian Kemp.

The Bonnies’ third-string goalie, Kemp was pressed into action for the first time this season when backup netminder Cale Patten fell ill this week and was unable to make the trip. Coach Jordan Farnham decided to rest league all-star goalie Kyle Karoleski for games later in the tourney, which requires playing six games in six days to reach the title game.

Despite dominating offensive zone time for most of the night, the game was scoreless until Meggo scored with only 13 seconds left in the first period, just after the Bonnies had killed a 5-on-3 High Point power play.

Still only 1-0 late in the second, Hughes scored on a nifty pass from Robertson to give SBU a 2-0 lead and an opportunity to breathe a little. Nathan Sobko’s redirect on a power play slapshot just a minute into the third effectively ended the game. The Bonnies outshot High Point, 46-15.

Jack Kernitz also scored with just a minute to play for the Bonnies, who play No. 24 Massachusetts Maritime Academy at 9 p.m. Saturday and No. 16 Georgia at 2:15 p.m. Sunday. Georgia beat Mass Maritime, 9-2, Friday afternoon.

The team in each of the eight pools with the most points — teams earn two points for a win and one for a tie — will advance to the quarterfinals on Monday after three days of round-robin pool play. Ties for first in the pools will be broken by head-to-head results, then by fewest goals allowed and then, if still tied, by goal differential.

Quarterfinals, semifinals and title/consolation games are scheduled for Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

The games can be livestreamed at Black Dog Hockey. Packages are available for four-hour increments ($9.99), all of pool play ($29.99), and the entire tournament ($49.99). Fans attending the tournament are encouraged to pre-order all-access passes here.

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About the University: The nation’s first Franciscan university, St. Bonaventure University is a community committed to transforming the lives of our students inside and outside the classroom, inspiring in them a lifelong commitment to service and citizenship. St. Bonaventure was named the #5 regional university value in the North in U.S. News and World Report’s 2022 college rankings edition.