Adrian dodged a bullet in its first-round Harris Cup series. Facing off against the Milwaukee School of Engineering, the Bulldogs fell 3-1 Friday before tying the series with a 7-1 win Saturday. The Bulldogs then won a decisive mini-game, 2-0, to eliminate the Raiders.
In Friday’s win, Nate Rogers and Michael Romund scored to stake the Raiders to a 2-0 lead. However Adrian came back on Saturday like a team on a mission, clicking on all cylinders as it rolled to the convincing win.
Cory Dunn dished out four assists to pace the Bulldogs, tying a career high, and Dino Balsamo scored two goals. Balsamo also came through with an assist. Austin Bottrell, Brandon Marinelli, and Braden Hellems all tallied a goal and an assist in the win. Kevin Entmaa made 12 saves.
In the mini-game, Dunn and Trevor Boyd punched in goals to put away the Raiders.
Foresters sneak past Spartans
Lake Forest found itself in a win-or-go-home Saturday against Aurora. After winning 5-2 in the series opener Friday, the Foresters were crushed 5-1 Saturday, as the Spartans forced a decisive mini-game. Aurora scored five unanswered goals to take control in the second game of the series.
Connor Chilton and Anthony Tzveyn each tallied a goal and an assist to pace the Spartans.
In the mini-game, Lake Forest trailed 1-0 after a goal by Drew Doyon, but the Foresters tied the game at 1-1 thanks to a goal by Ryan Kruss. Neither team scored the remainder of the 20-minute regulation period. In overtime, Joe Sardina punched in a goal to lift the Foresters to a 2-1 win and into the semifinals.
Sabres back in the semifinals
Marian was pushed to the limit by Northland, but prevailed in a mini-game Saturday to reach the semifinal round for the fourth consecutive season. Yuri Chernichko scored off a rebound less than two minutes into the mini-game to propel the Sabres to a 1-0 win.
Hunter Vorva stopped all nine shots he faced in the mini-game. He came up with 19 saves in a must-win game earlier in the night that the Sabres won, 5-1. Tied at 1-1, the Sabres scored the next four goals to nail down the victory. Blaine Caton scored twice to lead the way.
Northland stole game one on Friday with a 2-1 win. Bailey Shaver and Kyle Pouncey gave the Lumberjacks a 2-0 lead and they never looked back.
Green Knights power past Lions
St. Norbert grinded out a 2-1 win over Finlandia Friday night in their Harris Cup quarterfinal series opener, but the reigning national champions took their intensity to another level Saturday in a 9-0 win to a complete a series sweep.
The Green Knights scored seven goals off the power play in the victory, extending their win streak to 11 games. They have won their last 38 home games in the NCHA tourney. St. Norbert also notched its 21st 20-win season.
Peyton Frantti scored three times to lead the way for St. Norbert, which became the eighth team in NCAA history to score at least seven power-play goals in a game. Brendon Gysbers dished out three assists. Peter Bates tallied a goal and three assists. St. Norbert held a 57-12 advantage in shots.
Augsburg earns top spot in MIAC tournament
Augsburg is the champion of the MIAC for the second time in the last four years and is now set to take aim at its fourth consecutive conference tournament crown. The Auggies swept Concordia to clinch the title. They won 4-1 Friday and then closed out the series with a 5-4 overtime win Saturday.
Augsburg trailed 2-0 early, but scored three goals in the second period to take control. Both teams scored a goal in the third period, setting up an OT period. Eric Brenk scored the game-winner just over a minute into the OT.
John O’Connor came through with two assists, and Gunnar Goodmanson scored his first goal of the year after being injured part of the season. The Auggies also got goals from Chandler Madry, Lukas Gillett, and Charlie Parker. The Auggies are MIAC regular season champions for the 10th time in program history.
Brock Montgomery came through with a goal and an assist for Concordia, which went into the weekend with a shot to win the regular-season title.
Cardinals clinch playoff berth
Saint Mary’s earned the fifth and final spot in the MIAC tournament this past weekend as it swept a series against St. Olaf. The Cardinals closed the weekend with a 2-1 win. Carter Dahl came through with the game-winning goal. It was his second goal in as many games after not having scored in the first 24 games of the season.
Saint Mary’s has won two in a row and three of its last four games. Tommy Stang also scored in the win. His goal was his 12th of the season. Al Rogers played the first two periods in goal for Saint Mary’s and made 11 saves. Caleb Callaway scored the lone goal for the Oles.
Saint Mary’s won Friday’s game, 5-2, before taking care of business against the Oles Saturday to nail down a spot in the postseason.
Falcons punch ticket to WIAC semifinals
Wisconsin-River Falls swept an opening round series against Wisconsin-Stout in the WIAC tournament over the weekend and advances to play No. 1 Wisconsin-Stevens Point in the semifinals this coming weekend. The Falcons won the opener, 3-2, Friday before rolling to a 3-0 win in the second game Saturday. Ryan Cusin, Josh Arnold, and Joel Frazee all scored goals for the Falcons, who are unbeaten in their last three games.
Wis.-River Falls held a 26-21 edge in shots, and Zach Quinn made 21 saves.
