Lawrence has waited a while to beat a ranked opponent. Nearly two years to be exact.
That wait ended Saturday night as the Vikings stunned No. 7 Aurora 4-1 to salvage a split in its NCHA series.
The win is the first over a ranked opponent since Valentine’s Day 2020 when the Vikings beat St. Norbert 3-1.
Brian Tallieu was on top of his game in goal as he stopped 52 shots, including 26 in the final period of play and ended Aurora’s nine-game winning streak. The Spartans had beaten the Vikings 6-2 on Friday They are 9-1 overall and 5-1 in the conference. Lawrence is now 4-5-1 overall and 2-4 in the NCHA.
Zack Olen scored a goal and dished out two assists while Kyle Gierman and Vincent Dekumbis tallied two assists apiece.
Will Robertson gave the Vikings the lead for good at 2-1 when he scored off an assist from Olen at the 13:32 mark of the second period.
Lawrence prevailed despite being outshot 53-22. The Vikings have just one game remaining in 2021, facing Saint John’s at home Saturday and then resume NCHA play New Year’s Day against St. Norbert.
Streak continues for Bulldogs
Adrian continued its impressive win streak over the weekend with a sweep of MSOE. The Bulldogs dominated to the the tune of 9-4 and 6-1 and have now won nine consecutive games.
The second-ranked team in the nation actually trailed 1-0 in Saturday’s game before scoring the next six goals to finish off the win.
Ryan Pitoscia and Rex Moe both scored a goal and dished out two assists. Zachary Heintz and Trevor Coykendall each talled a goal and an assist. The Bulldogs scored four of their goals in the final period of play as they improved to 9-1 overall and 6-0 in the NCHA.
Coykendall came through with a hat trick in Friday’s win. It was the first one of his career. Pitoscia scored twice and also had an assist.
Green Knights dominate Falcons
Everything was clicking for St. Norbert Saturday as it completed a sweep of Concordia with a 10-2 win.
The Green Knights won 7-1 in the series opener and have won eight consecutive games overall. The No. 14 team in the country has racked up 51 goals during its win streak.
St. Norbert held a 54-25 advantage in shots against Concordia Saturday and Colby Entz made 23 saves for the Green Knights.
St. Norbert scored three goals off the power play as it improved to 9-3 overall and 6-0 in the conference.
Peter Bates scored twice and also dished out two assists. Peyton Frantti tallied a pair of goals and an assist as well while Liam Fraser finished with a goal and two assists. Michael McChesney scored a goal and dished out an assist.
St. Norbert jumped in front 5-1 after one period of play and added four more goals in the second period. It has scored four or more goals in each of its wins during its current streak. The Green Knights are now off until Jan. 1 when they play host to Lawrence.
Cobbers upset Auggies
Needing a bounce-back win, Concordia got it Saturday night, stunning fourth-ranked Augburg 4-2 Saturday to come away with a series split.
Concordia used a stretch of three consecutive goals and scored of the final goals of the game to secure a win that snaps the Auggies’ seven-game win streak.
Concordia improved to 5-4-2 overall and is 3-2-1 in the MIAC. Augsburg fell to 7-1 overall and 3-1 in the conference.
Kevin Ness, Cole O’Connell, Mason Plante and Braden Costello all scored for the Cobbers and Tyler Bossert tallied two assists as Concordia bounced back from its 3-1 loss one night earlier.
Jackson Nelson earned the win in goal, stopping 30 shots as he won for the fourth time this season. He now has 189 saves, the sixth-most in the MIAC.
Concordia played its final game of 2021 Saturday. The Cobbers won’t return to action until Jan. 7 when they play host to Northland.
Cardinals get a boost
Saint Mary’s completed a sweep of St. Olaf Saturday with a 2-1 win. The victory comes on the heels of a 4-1 win on Friday night that saw the Cardinals rack up a season high in goals.
On Saturday, Gabe Potyk and Kellen Theraldaon both scored. For Theraldaon, it was his first goal of the year.
Matt Sankner came up big in goal, stopping 25 of the 26 shots he faced as he helped the Cardinals improve to 4-7-1 overall and 3-3- in the MIAC.
In Friday’s game, Laudon Poellinger scored a goal and dished out an assist while Tyson Liverance dished out a pair of assists. Sankner made 20 saves.
Johnnies prevail against Gusties
Nick Michel scored his team-best sixth goal of the season and helped Saint John’s put away Gustavus 4-1 for its fourth consecutive win. The Johnnies defeated the Gusties 5-1 on Thursday in the series opener.
A pair of goals in a span of 32 seconds helped Saint John’s take a 2-0 lead after one period of play, with Michel’s goal getting the Johnnies offense going. Spender Rudrud then scored to put Saint John’s up 2-0. He also had an assist in the game. Auggie Moore assisted on that goal and extended his point streak to six games. Moore also scored a goal.
During its four-game win streak, Saint John’s has outscored the opposition 17-5. They Johnnies (6-4-1, 4-2) won’t play another MIAC game until Jan. 14 when they play at Hamline. Their final four games of December are against non-conference opponents.
Mixed results for the Yellowjackets
Wisconsin-Superior jumped in front 2-0 on Wisconsin-River Falls and never looked back in a 2-1 win Friday.
Bradley Stonnell and Zach Bannister both scored for the Yellowjackets, who came away with their third WIAC win of the season.
Myles Hektor stopped 15 shots and won for the third time this season.
Saturday was a different story as the Yellowjackets followed up a win with a loss for the fourth time this season as Superior dropped a 4-3 decision to Wisconsin-Stout on the road.
The Yellowjackets led 3-2 after one period but never scored again as they dropped to 5-4 overall and 3-2 in the WIAC. Stout scored twice in the third to secure the win. The Blue Devils are 3-7 overall and 3-1 in the conference.
Dylan Johnson scored twice for Superior in Saturday’s loss.
Stout picked up its first home win of the year with Saturday’s victory. Alex Nagel tied the game at 3-3 and Riley Enderle sealed the deal on the win.
Pointers pick up two WIAC wins
Wisconsin-Stevens Point dominated the competition in its weekend conference games, putting away UW-Stout 6-3 and rolling past Northland 5-1.
Against Stout, the No. 15 Pointers scored a season high in goals. David Hill, Tyler German and Jordan Fader all tallied a goal and an assist. Ryan Wagner stepped in goal and racked up 15 saves.
The Pointers finished off the weekend with their win over Northland and now sit at 8-3-1 overall and 3-1 in the WIAC.
The Pointers actually trailed 1-0 after one period before getting on track. Conor Witherspoon led the way with two goals.
Falcons rally past Blugolds
UW-River Falls finished off its weekend on a high note, rallying for a 4-3 win over Wisconsin-Eau Claire Saturday night.
The Falcons trailed 3-1 before Valentino Passarelli scored to cut the deficit to one. Cayden Cahill tied the game at 3-3 before Passarelli punched in the game winner.
Dysen Skinner made 31 saves and won his fifth game of the year. Noah Roofe dished out two assists. Sam Anzai scored a goal as well in the win as River Falls improved to 6-3-1 overall and 2-2 in the WIAC.
