Four different players combined for five goals on Friday night as the Toll Gate boys’ hockey team moved back to .500 with a 5-3 win over PCD/St. Raphael/Wheeler Co-op at Thayer Arena.

However, goals were tough to come by until the third period.

Will Fox found the back of the net at the 3:15 mark of the opening period on assists from Connor Sullivan and Max Fields.

But then PCD clawed its way back. An unassisted goal from Dennis Gastel with 4:18 to go in the first period knotted the score at 1.

In the second period, the Titans dominated possession, logging a lot of time in the attacking zone. Unfortunately, they didn’t have anything to show for it on the scoreboard.

A Fox shot from the slot was turned aside by PCD goaltender Justin Paik just 15 seconds into the second period.

The top line of Sullivan, Fox and Fields continued to create opportunities as the period wore on, too.

At 5:20, Sullivan pressured a PCD defenseman, stole the puck and went in all alone, firing a wrist shot into the body of Paik. Just over two minutes later, Sullivan set up Fox on a 2-on-1, but that opportunity was sent just wide of the mark.

As the chances were piling up with no results, there was a simple message being given on the bench.

“Just stay with it,” Toll Gate head coach Mike Champagne said of his message to the team. “It was 1-1, but they kept shooting and stuck with it. I told them they were playing a man’s game, they were physical, they got pucks in and when they got control of the puck, they made plays.”

Toll Gate’s persistence broke the deadlock in the final minute of the period.

A scramble out in front of the net for a loose puck was finally corralled by Sullivan, who sent a backhand on net that found its way through Paik to give the Titans a 2-1 lead going into the intermission.

In the third period, Toll Gate clicked on all cylinders offensively.

At 5:14 of the final period, Toll Gate won a draw to the left of the cage and sent a shot on goal that wasn’t handled cleanly by Paik. Fields was able to make his way to the front of the net and finish off the puck on the doorstep to up the Titans’ lead to 3-1. Sullivan and captain Nolan O’Brien earned assists on the third tally of the night for Toll Gate.

Second line center Kyle Palumbo found his scoring touch down the stretch, too.

Near the midway point of the third, Palumbo took a pass from James Squire in the high slot, turned around and wristed a shot that beat Paik high to the glove side to give Toll Gate a 4-1 lead.

There was a common trend throughout the game, with Toll Gate’s top two lines winning physical battles and getting pucks to the net. That proved to be the difference ultimately, as PCD couldn’t withstand the pressure for 45 minutes.

“They play with confidence and they’re responsible,” Champagne said of his top two lines. “You get Fox’s line and Connor Sullivan playing the cycle game and just working and working, and it makes it hard on their defense. And then you get Kyle’s line with some speed, energy and real defensive responsibility. Then you can put the third line out there, who’s also responsible, and they catch tired lines and play fresh. It makes a difference.”

Freshman goaltender Austin Sequeira was outstanding between the pipes for the Titans, as well. He made a key save on a 2-on-1 in the first minute of the third period to keep his team out in front.

“He stayed with the puck, a little bit of an athletic save,” Champagne said about that key stop. “He put himself in the position to make it. He’s not a big kid, but he works on his positioning to make himself as big as he can. Then the athleticism shows up and he makes saves like that.”

PCD was able to cut its deficit to two on a short-side snipe by Patrick Flemming shortly after Palumbo’s goal, but Palumbo would register his second goal of the game, an empty-netter, in the final minute to make it 5-2.

PCD’s Griffen Leonard would score with five seconds left to bring the score to 5-3 on a defensive breakdown, but the game was no longer in doubt at that point.

The win brought Toll Gate’s record to 2-2, matching its win total from a season ago.

The Titans looked to carry that momentum on the road Saturday night against undefeated Portsmouth at Portsmouth Abbey. Toll Gate gave the Patriots a good fight, but Portsmouth was able to escape with a 4-2 win.

However, there’s no question that Friday night’s win instilled some confidence in the Titans as they move deeper into their league schedule.

“I think it does a lot,” Champagne said of how the win will impact his team’s confidence. “To come out, stick with the program and get a solid team win against a team that was a playoff team last year and competed the last couple of years, it shows that we’re in the thick of things. Learning how to win is a difficult thing in this league. To show that we’re doing the things to win and have the result after, it’s huge.”