4 Union (7-3-2) |
Postgame Comments: Coach Gadowsky | Players University Park, Pa. • Pegula Ice Arena • Attendance: 5,877 | 3 Penn State (3-6-1) |
Nov. 30, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State men's hockey team battled back to erase a three-goal, second-period deficit, but a Union tally midway through the third frame sent the 15th-ranked Dutchmen to a 4-3 victory at Pegula Ice Arena Saturday night. The Nittany Lions fell to 3-6-1, while Union improved to 7-3-2.
After Daniel Ciampini's power-play tally gave Union a three-goal cushion with less than five minutes left in the second period, Penn State netted three straight goals to eventually tie the game at 10:21 of the third. The game remained knotted for less than three minutes as the Dutchmen's Max Novak tallied the game-winner at 13:10.
Redshirt sophomore Eric Scheid (Blaine, Minn.), who recorded a team-high two points (1g, 1a), started the scoring spree with a power-play tally late in the second. Redshirt junior defenseman Patrick Koudys (Smithville, Ont.) and sophomore forward Kenny Brooks (Las Vegas, Nev.) each tallied their first goals of the season to even the score.
Union out shot the Nittany Lions, who finished 1-for-3 with the man advantage, by a 34-32 margin and went 1-for-5 on the power play. Sophomore netminder Matthew Skoff (McKees Rocks, Pa.) turned aside 30 shots, while Dutchmen goaltender Colin Stevens made 29 saves.
Union skated to a 1-0 lead at 11:11 of the first period. Eli Lichtenwald passed to Matt Wilkins in the slot, where he quickly moved the puck to Kevin Sullivan in the left circle. The forward then sent a low shot past Skoff for the goal.
The Dutchmen added a pair of goals in the middle stanza before Scheid put the Nittany Lions on the board in the frame's final minute. Just 1:18 into the period, Jeff Taylor gave the Dutchmen a 2-0 lead when his right-point shot found its way to the back of the net. While on the power play, Ciampini extended the advantage after taking a stretch pass from Shayne Gostisbehere and scoring on his own rebound.
With 23 seconds left in the period, Scheid made it a 3-1 game. After a Union shot went wide, Scheid corralled the loose puck deep in the Nittany Lion zone, skated down the length of the ice and dragged the puck across the crease before curling it past Stevens' outstretched pad.
Koudys brought the Nittany Lions to within a goal with 12:47 left in the third. Junior Jacob Friedman (West Bloomfield, Mich.), who garnered a point for the first time since a two-point game against Fredonia State Dec. 11, 2012, moved the puck to Scheid behind the Union net. The Blaine, Minn., native then passed to Koudys at the point, where he wristed a shot for the goal.
At 10:21 of the frame, Brooks brought the Nittany Lion fans to their feet with his game-tying marker. Redshirt junior Taylor Holstrom (Yorba Linda, Calif.), who received a pass from freshman Dylan Richard (Sherwood Park, Alta.), found Brooks at the bottom of the right circle, where he one-timed the puck into the net.
With 6:50 left in the game, Union's Novak tallied the game-winner to account for the 4-3 final.
The Nittany Lions and Dutchmen will conclude their two-game series Sunday (Dec. 1) at 7 p.m.