(Canton, MI) – The Concordia men's hockey team faced off with UM-Dearborn in a rematch of last night's affair with the Wolverines. The game remained tight once again, but despite two late goals by CUAA, UMD pulled out another one-goal victory, 5-4.
Zachary Janis started the game in net, making 35 saves on 40 shots faced.
Much like the night before, both sides came out the gate flying with back-and-forth opportunities, and both goalies remained stout, keeping the score blank for the first 19:53 of the period. Concordia was the first to strike late in the frame though, as Shane Romback fired a shot from the left side that beat the Wolverine goaltender with just 7 seconds remaining in the frame to give Concordia the 1-0 lead going into the break. Seth Francoi and Brandon Troyer picked up assists on the score.
CUAA jumped at the chance to double their advantage early in the 2nd period, too, when after Garrett Benoit cycled the puck to Carson Ediger on the boards, Ediger found Quinn Bieniek in the high slot, who fired a missle past the goalie into the top right corner of the net, doubling the Cardinal lead. Despite 28 shots combined in the period, the goalies once again remained strong in between the pipes, leaving the score at 2-0 in favor of the Cardinals going into the 2nd intermission.
UM-Dearborn came out flying in the third, taking advantage of a powerplay by scoring just 1:01 into the period. The Wolverines followed it up with four more goals in the next 13:22 of action, flipping the game on its head and holding a 5-2 lead late.
The Cardinals would get a chance late in the game, however, when a five-minute major penalty was assessed to UMD, and after another Wolverine penalty just 30 seconds later, CUAA pulled their goalie to make a push. The risk paid off for the Cards, as Shane Romback scored on a 6-on-3 advantage with just 3:21 to go in the game, reducing the deficit to 2. Tyler Bieniek and Bryce Iott recorded helpers on the goal.
As the clock dipped under a minute remaining, the Concordia fight did not quit, peppering the goalie with opportunities as they finished with 29 shots in the last 20 minutes of action. Their battled was rewarded with just 10 seconds left, as Kyle Hebner would finish a third rebound shot in front, bringing the game to a 5-4 mark (assists by Iott and Brayden Tayles).
CUAA won the ensuing draw, getting the puck into the zone, where shots by Hunter Kepple and Kyle Hebner were turned aside, and the rebound just avoided a Cardinal stick as the clock expired, confirming a 5-4 victory for the Wolverines.
Concordia will be back in action next Friday night, October 14th, when they host the first game of their weekend series against WHAC rival #22 Lawrence Tech. Puck drop is set for 8pm at the Arctic Edge in Canton, MI.
