NCAA D-III West Weekend Men’s Hockey Wrap-up

MSOE earned a big win over nationally ranked Babson in its opener. (Photo by Kylie Bridenhagen/MSOE Athletics)

Oh what a start to the season it was for the MSOE Raiders.

They faced off against 15th-ranked team in the nation in Babson at home and dominated in a 4-1 win.

Carson Jones scored the first goal of the night off a power play in the opening period but the Raiders went into the final period tied at 1-1.

It was in the final five minutes that everything changed in terms of momentum, with the Raiders scoring three goals in that stretch to seal the deal.

Charlie Skinner scored the go-ahead goal before Jacob Bosse punched in a goal for a 3-1 advantage. Jackson Hughes scored the final goal, punching it into an empty net.

Colin Beilke had a hand in two goals, dishing out a pair of assists and Austin Schwab made 28 saves.

The Raiders capped the weekend with a 6-3 win over Saint Mary’s behind two goals from Jones and Bosse while Nick Stofcheck started in goal and raked up 24 saves.

Foresters top ranked team

After Connor Scahill recorded the first hat trick of the season in the NCHA to lead Lake Forest to an 8-0 win over Saint Mary’s on Friday, the Foresters toppled No. 15 Babson Saturday by a 4-0 score. 

Dylan Kruss made 34 saves while Chase Freiermuth, Collin Bella, Vabrizio Mazzarelli, Hayden Riva all scored goals as Lake Forest remains unbeaten and unscored upon through two games.

Blugolds make a statement

In a matchup featuring USCHO.com Top 15 teams Saturday, UW-Eau Claire prevailed, edging Augsburg 5-4 in overtime.

The Blugolds, ranked 14th, trailed the No. 13 Auggies 4-3 going into the final period. Quinn Green delivered a clutch goal with six seconds to play in regulation to force OT.

Tyler Love came through with the game winner off a tip out from Ryan Green to give UW-Eau Claire the thrilling victory.

Matt Gutjahr stopped 12 shots in goal.

UW-Eau Claire led 2-0 a little over two minutes into the opening period thanks to goals from Jack Johnston and Leo Bacallao. Blaine Warnert and Luke Mountain tied the game with two goals late in the first.

Belisle Fritz and Cade Stibbe extended the Augsburg lead to 4-2 at the 14:11 mark of the second before Aaron Swanson cut the deficit to one with under two minutes left in the period.

Cobbers knock off Aurora

Concordia passed its first big test of the season as the Cobbers defeated No. 9 Aurora 4-1 Friday night.

Hunter Bjorge got things going for Concordia as he scored off a shot from just inside the blue line to give the Cobbers an early lead. He had one goal all of last season and has now already matched that total.

With the game tied at the 13:52 mark of the first, Concordia took over the rest of the way, taking the lead for good on a goal from Jack Westlund three minutes after the Spartans tied the game. It was Westlund’s first game back since an injury in January.

Hanson O’Leary put the Cobbers up 3-1 midway through the second and Caden Triggs finished off the scoring early in the third.

Concordia got 20 saves from Matt Fitzgerald, who picked up the 10th win of his collegiate career.

Concordia and Aurora played to a 2-2 tie in the series finale Saturday.

Bethel defeated St. Norbert for the first time in more than 30 years this weekend. (Photo provided by Bethel Athletics)

It feels like 1989 again

Bethel punctuated its unbeaten weekend with a 2-1 win over St. Norbert, picking up their first win over the Green Knights since 1989.

St. Norbert received votes in the preseason national poll but the Royals were unfazed, snapping a 12-game losing streak to the Green Knights that dates back more than 30 years.

Dane Stoyanoff assisted on one goal and scored the game winner. Sam Wilhite scored the other goal for the Royals.

Austin Ryman made big plays in goal, including a key save with 14 seconds to play to help seal the deal. It was one of his 30 saves.

The Green Knights had opened the season with a 4-3 win over St. Olaf thanks to Logan Dombrowsky’s game winner.

Adrian has mixed results against Pioneers

Adrian didn’t get a win in its trip out to Utica for a game featuring the No. Bulldogs and No. 6 Pioneers.

Adrian and Utica played to a scoreless tie in the opener Friday thanks to Dershahn Stewart making 41 saves for the Bulldogs.

On Saturday, Adrian tied the game with Utica at 2-2 in the second period but couldn’t steal the momentum as it lost 3-2. Riley Murphy and Connor May both scored goals for Adrian.

Dubuque makes debut

The Spartans played their first two games in program history over the weekend, losing 3-2 to Gustavus Friday before playing to a 2-2 tie Saturday.

In Saturday’s finale, the Spartans trailed 2-0 before battling back. Thomas Gazich scored he first goal and Ethan Lang tied the game. Both goals were scored in the second period.

Goalie Dakota Meyer faced 27 shots in the game.

Great start for Falcons

UW-River Falls came through with a shutout win over Saint John’s Saturday, winning 2-0.

Dysen Skinner played a key role in the win, stopping 33 shots, while Jonny Meiers scored the first goal of the game in his debut as a college hockey player. Noah Roofe added the final goal while the Falcons stopped four power-play opportunities by the Johnnies.

Lumberjacks get a win

Northland started the 2023-24 season strong Friday with a 3-2 OT win against Lawrence.

The Lumberjacks got the win when Zach Ross scored 50 seconds into the extra session.

Evan Ilkos scored the first goal of the night, tying the game at 1-1 and Ben Stewart put Northland up 2-1.

The victory is the first for Shane Buckley, a former Northland player who took over as the head coach this season.

Lawrence bounced back Saturday with a 5-3 win as five different Vikings scored. Brendan Vettraino, Jack Michels, Ethan Beaumont, Oliver DeCroock and Cory Checco all scored for the Vikings.