Minnesota State broke open a back-and-forth game early in the third period on goals by C.J. Franklin and Marc Michaelis, Cole Huggins stopped all seven shots he saw in relief, and the Mavericks went on to defeat Northern Michigan, 7-4, at Mankato, Minn.
Seven different players scored for the Mavericks, who alternated the first four goals of the game with the Wildcats before Zach Stepan’s even-strength marker with 2:51 to go in the first period put them ahead for good. Zeb Knutson, who had assisted on Stepan’s goal made it 4-2 just 2:10 into the second, and after Northern Michigan’s Darien Craighead cut the margin to one just 1:09 later, Nicholas Rivera answered for Minnesota State 1:33 after that.
Troy Loggins’ second goal of the game pulled Northern to 5-4 midway through the second before Franklin and Michaelis struck.
“I thought that was a really big goal for momentum to give us a two-goal lead again,” Mavericks coach Mike Hastings said of Franklin’s strike.
Daniel Brickley and Charlie Gerard also scored for the Mavericks, while Luke Voltin tallied for the Wildcats, who got 41 saves from Atte Tolvanen.
Minnesota State, which outshot Northern Michigan, 48-18, inserted Huggins in net after starter Aaron Nelson let in Loggins’ second goal.
“I thought Cole came in and shut the door,” Hastings said. “I thought he played very well. Not a lot of rebounds, and we’re going to need that going forward.”
WCHA roundup
Ferris State 3, Alaska Anchorage 0
Corey Mackin scored two first-period goals to propel the Bulldogs to a sweep of the Seawolves at Big Rapids, Mich. Olivier Mantha made 50 saves for Anchorage, one night after stopping 37 shots. Gerald Mayhew set up both of Mackin’s goals, and Mitch Maloney scored an empty-netter with 34 seconds to play.
Lake Superior State 3, Alaska 3
Sophomore Anthony Nellis’ goal with 3:11 remaining in the third period capped a two-goal rally that helped the Lakers tie the Nanooks at Fairbanks, Alaska. Freshman Luke Morgan scored in the second, three-on-three, overtime to help Lake Superior State gain the extra point. Max Humitz had scored early in the third to cut Alaska’s lead to 3-2. The Nanooks took an early 2-0 lead on goals by Josh Erickson and Justin Woods, and rebuilt the margin to 3-1 on Tyler Cline’s strike with less than five minutes to play in the first. Davis Jones made 39 saves for the Nanooks, who were outshot 43-28.
