The top-seeded East Greenwich/Toll Gate boys hockey co-op pulled off a 4-3 win over defending champion Portsmouth in overtime of the Division II Championship on Sunday afternoon.

Tied 3-3 after three periods, the Avengers wasted little time getting the win as Jack Kiernan put away the game-winner just 35 seconds into overtime. He also scored the game-winner in the semifinals against Cumberland, earning him tournament MVP honors.

“I’m just so proud of this team, I couldn’t be more grateful to have the opportunity. You always think that, you always think you’re going to be the guy to do it. I was the guy, but I wouldn’t be here without this team,” said Kiernan moments after the Avengers hoisted the championship plaque.

After winning just four games in its first season as a co-op last winter, EG/TG moved to Division II and quickly became a force, going 22-2 overall while clinching first place at regular season’s end. Portsmouth entered the contest as the third seed as it looked to repeat as champs, and the Avengers knew they’d be in for a wild battle.

“It’s huge, they wanted to come back here and go back-to-back. They didn’t see us, they didn’t know us, so there’s a new team in Division II,” said Toll Gate’s Brady Slinn. “When we’re out here, we’ve got to play focused, play to our potential, and if we stick to the gameplan no one can hold us. It seemed like that for a while, but we were more dedicated and we got the job done.”

The Avengers took a 3-2 lead into the third period before the Patriots tied up the score in the third. Markus Rowe scored the go-ahead goal shortly after EG/TG killed off a five-minute major for boarding.

Portsmouth took a 1-0 lead less than two minutes into play in the first period, but Austen Dufresne responded shortly after to tie things at 1-1. The second period got off to a blazing start as Joe Andreozzi put the co-op back on top with a goal, but Portsmouth answered to make it 2-2 less than a minute into the period. EG/TG goalie Wyatt Gelzhiser finished the day with 33 saves.

After beating Portsmouth 7-4 in the regular season, the Avengers were plenty confident that they’d pick up one final win. It was Toll Gate’s first hockey championship since the 2005 season.

“It (was) a nail biter, you never know what’s going to happen. We knew we had the upper hand on this team so we knew we had to stick to the gameplan, do what the coaches said and we’d be all set,” said Kiernan. “It’s unbelievable, you don’t see a team go 22-2 very often. The banner is going to be there forever.”