(Farmington Hills, MI) – The Concordia men's hockey team was back in action Saturday evening against the #16 Lawrence Tech Blue Devils, this time hitting the road to face off with them. The Cardinals would fight to cut the contest to a one-goal game in the 3rd period, but LTU would eventually secure a 4-1 win.
Zachary Janis started in net for the Cardinals, making 36 saves in the contest.
The game opened with a fast paced, back-and-forth flood of opportunities for both sides, but each netminder stood up to the test, keeping the contest blank going into the first intermission.
Period 2 started off with more evenly split hockey, as each side was still unable to pick up their first tally of the game nearly 30 minutes into the contest, despite notable opportunities, such as a pair of shots by Bryce Iott in front of net for the Cards, early in the frame. However, the Blue Devils were finally able to fire a shot past Janis, giving them the first lead of the contest about halfway through the 2nd.
After another LTU goal that doubled the lead, the period contained some more chances for each side, but would eventually make it to the second break of the contest, with Lawrence Tech holding a 2-0 lead through 40 minutes of play.
As the third period came, the Cardinals sought to claw back into the contest and reinvigorate their team with life, and got that chance when they earned a 4-minute powerplay with 8:00 to go in the contest. After a missed shot, Tyler Bieniek out battled a pair of Blue Devils for the puck, curled across the high slot, and fed a beautiful pass back door to Seth Francois, who fired it home to cut the deficit in half and make it a one-goal game with 6:23 to play.
Despite several more opportunities for CUAA, Lawrence Tech would be the next to strike, intercepting a puck in the Cardinal zone and putting it past Janis to re-extend their lead to a pair with 2:50 remaining in regulation. After an empty net goal by LTU, the time on the clock would expire, sealing a 4-1 final victory for the 16th-ranked Lawrence Tech Blue Devils.
Concordia will be back in action next Friday, October 21st, when they welcome the Cleary Cougars to the Arctic Edge in Canton, MI. Puck drop is set for 8:30pm.
