After dropping three consecutive games, St. Norbert is back on track. The Green Knights nailed down a huge 4-1 win over St. Scholastica Friday night in an NCHA showdown.
Three third-period goals propelled No. 3 St. Norbert to the win and home-ice advantage for the first two rounds of the league playoffs.
T.J. Black made 14 saves in goal. The Green Knights took 44 shots and got goals from Dominick Sacco, Steven Phillips, Kurt Black, and Sean Campbell. Phillips gave the Green Knights the lead for good less than two minutes into the third.
Black’s goal was his eighth of the season. Sacco also scored his eighth goal of the season.
The Green Knights came into the showdown having dropped three one-goal games, including one in overtime, but they stepped up big time against a Saints team that had won 10 of its last 12 games.
St. Norbert improved to 17-4-1 overall and 12-3 in the NCHA. St. Scholastica dropped to 13-8-1 overall and to 7-7-1 in the conference. Cole Golka scored the Saints’ only goal.
Sabres sweep rivalry series
Marian took both games from Lawrence in the Battle of Highway 41 over the weekend. The Sabres won 3-1 Friday and 5-1 Saturday, clinching a Harris Cup berth in the process.
Scoring five goals in the first two periods, the Sabres dominated Saturday’s finale. Jake Howie and Gianni Mangone both scored their seventh goals of the year, while Curtis Lewington punched in his first of the year. Clay Cross dished out two assists.
It was a big night for goalie Hunter Vorva as well. He set a single-season school record for wins in a season, pushing his total to 16 on a night when he stopped 24 shots.
In Friday’s win, Derek Thorogood scored a goal for the 15th time this season to help pave the way. Conner Blanck scored twice and now has eight goals on the year.
The Sabres have won their last five games and are 16-6-1 overall and 10-6 in the NCHA.
Tommies keep rolling along
The win streak for St. Thomas now stands at seven after a weekend sweep of St. Olaf. The Tommies also sit alone atop the conference standings, leading second-place Augsburg by a point (28-27).
Brett Gravelle paved the way in the Tommies’ 6-4 win over the Oles in the series finale Saturday night, scoring two goals for the second consecutive night.
The Tommies, who are 14-6-1 overall and 9-2-1 in the MIAC, dominated in terms of shots, getting off 36 shots while limiting St. Olaf to 23.
Broydon Stufko and Johnny Panvica also scored for the Tommies, while Benjamin Myers came through with 19 saves.
Myers had his best game of the weekend Friday, recording a shutout, the seventh of his career and the second during this win streak. He stopped 30 shots in a 4-0 win over the Oles.
Gravelle punched in two goals, while Cullen Willox scored a goal and dished out an assist. Stufko scored as well. The road win was their fifth during the win streak.
St. Thomas lost 3-1 to the Oles earlier this season, but is a much different team now and hasn’t lost a game since Jan. 12, when they fell 5-2 to Gustavus.
Johnnies salvage a split
Saint John’s capped off a two-game series with Augsburg Friday night, earning a 2-1 win. The Johnnies have won six of their last 10 and are in third place in the MIAC standings with 24 points.
The Johnnies scored twice in the first period, both coming off the power play. Andrew Lindgren came up big defensively, stopping a career-best 38 shots. He now has eight wins on the year. The performance was a boost of confidence for Lindgren, who was pulled after two periods after allowing six goals in a 7-4 loss to Augsburg Thursday night.
Sean Lang and Kyle Wagner both scored for the Johnnies. Wagner’s goal proved to be the game-winner, his second game-winning tally of the season. Saint John’s has won four of its last five games on the home ice of the Auggies.
Pointers stay on top of standings
Wisconsin-Stevens Point maintained its hold atop the WIAC standings with a pair of wins over the weekend, including a 4-2 victory over Wisconsin-Superior Saturday.
Tanner Karty scored twice to pace the way for the second-ranked Pointers, who are 17-4-2 overall and 5-0-1 in the WIAC. They are the lone unbeaten team in the conference.
Colin Raver and Austin Kelly both tallied goals as well. Raver finished with three points on the night, while Kelly came through with his third goal of the year.
Max Milosek made 15 saves to help the Pointers secure home ice advantage for the conference tournament. The win was his 14th of the year.
The Pointers, winners of five consecutive games, can clinch the regular-season title with a win or tie against Wisconsin-Stout next weekend. That game is Friday night.
Winless streak over for Blue Devils
Wis.-Stout came into Saturday night’s game against Wisconsin-River Falls in dire need of a victory. The Blue Devils got it, skating to a 3-1 win. They ended their nine-game winless streak.
Kyle Sylvester helped their cause, scoring his fifth goal of the season a little over four minutes into the game.
Tommi Ahlgren came through with 30 saves to notch the victory, his fifth of the season.
Wis.-Stout improved to 6-14-2 overall and 3-3 in the WIAC, good enough for third place in the conference standings.
