| 3 | 5 |
| Value City Arena | Columbus, Ohio | 6,625 | |
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Feb. 28, 2015
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A four-minute, three-goal barrage allowed Ohio State to take a 5-3 decision Saturday night at Value City Arena over the Penn State men's hockey team. David Goodwin (Des Peres, Mo.) had three assists, while Taylor Holstrom (Yorba Linda, Calif.) had three points on a goal and two helpers to bring his career total to 100 points. Casey Bailey (Anchorage, Alaska) had matching a two-point night with a goal and an assist.
Penn State (16-12-4, 8-7-1-0 Big Ten) led 3-2 with 15:30 remaining in the game. In a scramble in front of the PSU net, Holstrom went down with an injury, which proved to be the turning point in the game.
Ohio State (11-17-2, 6-10-0-0 Big Ten) would score four minutes later and add two more in a four-minute span to sweep the series.
"I thought after Taylor Holstrom left the ice, we fell apart," head coach Guy Gadowsky said of the senior center's injury. "Obviously, we have to be a little tougher than that and we weren't. We were vulnerable at that time and Ohio State jammed down the gas pedal and out-shot us 16-5 and scored 3-0."
Nick Schilkey scored from the right wing off a Matthew Weis feed with 10:42 remaining to even the score at three before Tanner Fritz put away a rebound that caromed off the end board a minute later to take the lead. Nicholas Jones capped the scoring three minutes later for the final 5-3 scoreline.
Penn State was on its heels for the majority of the first period, but its top line struck first blood when Bailey scored his 21st of the season with 11:45 into the game. Goodwin won the puck in the corner, sent it up to Holstrom who slid a perfectly placed pass across the crease to an open Bailey on the right post for the 1-0 lead.
The trio would team up to double the lead nearly five minutes later as Holstrom was the beneficiary of a Bailey pass with 4:28 remaining in the period. Goodwin again won the puck along the boards, sending a pass from behind the net to Bailey on the right post and his pass found Holstrom for the 2-0 lead.
The two-goal advantage was short-lived as Ohio State's Justin DaSilva's first goal of the year was scored 43 seconds later. He one-timed a Luke Stork offering from the top of the slot as the two teams went into the locker rooms with the Nittany Lions lead, 2-1.
The Buckeyes would take advantage of a pair of Penn State penalties as Sam Jardine rifled one from the slot through traffic to even the score at two after 4:23 in the second. The goal came on a rare 4-on-3 situation as Tanner Fritz found Jardine alone up top.
Penn State seemingly went ahead 3-2 a couple minutes later as Eric Scheid (Blaine, Minn.) deflected a Holstrom cross-crease pass, but the goal was ruled off by the officials for a kicking motion.
Nevertheless, Penn State would take the lead the very next shift as Mike Williamson (Leduc, Alberta) blasted a rocket from the right point on Goodwin's third assist with 13:01 remaining in the second. It was Williamson's first goal since March 14, 2014 against Ohio State.
Prior to the Holstrom injury, a key play to preserve the lead was David Glen's (Fort Saskatchewan, Alberta) kick save off the line with 16:30 remaining on a shot that got through Matthew Skoff (McKees Rocks, Pa.). Skoff had 39 saves.
The Buckeyes out-shot Penn State 44-27 for the game, which included higher shot totals in all three frames (15-10-, 13-12, 16-5). Skoff's counterpart, Christian Frey, had 24 saves for his seventh win of the year.
GAME NOTES
• Penn State fell to 4-7-0 in true road games. The Nittany Lions have lost four straight on the road and have failed to win a true road game since Dec. 6 at Wisconsin. The Nittany Lions are 1-6-0 away from Pegula Ice Arena, when including neutral ice games, in that span.
• Penn State lost just its fourth game this season when scoring the game's first goal (11-4-1).
• Penn State fell to 0-4-0 all-time at Value City Arena. The Nittany Lions gave up five goals in back-to-back games for the first time since Feb. 22 and Feb. 28 at Michigan (L, 5-2) and Minnesota (L, 5-1), respectively.
• Holstrom's three points adds his career total to 100. He is on a four-game point streak with one goal, five assists and six points in that span dating back to Feb. 20.
• Ohio State won back-to-back games for the first time in the 2014-15 season.
NEXT TIME OUT
Penn State returns to Hockey Valley for the final time in the 2014-15 campaign. The Nittany Lions host Michigan on Friday at 7 p.m. and Saturday at 3 p.m. on Senior Day. Both games will air on BTN Plus.