Chris Marinucci scored twice and assisted on another pair of goals Sunday as Kokudo came within one win of reaching the finals with a 6-3 victory over Nippon Paper in Game 2 of the Japan Ice Hockey League (JIHL) semifinal series.
Marinucci's goals gave a 2-1 first-period lead to Kokudo, who went on to hold off the Cranes' comeback attempt at Shin-Yokohama Skate Center and lead the best-of-five series 2-0.
In the other semifinal matchup, Akihito Sugisawa scored the winning goal 7 minutes, 11 seconds into overtime as Oji Paper tied the series 1-1 by edging Snow Brand 2-1 in Tomakomai, Hokkaido.