Box Score
OXFORD, Ohio – A first-period goal by
Bryant Molle gave the Alaska Nanooks the early advantage in the game but the host No. 7 Miami RedHawks responded with four unanswered goals to take the meeting 4-1 and give them the 1-0 advantage in the Central Collegiate Hockey Association second round playoff series Friday night in Oxford. The Blue and Gold must win Saturday's rematch to force a third and deciding game in the series.
Alaska opened the scoring at 10:02 of the first period, with a blast from the point by senior defenseman
Bryant Molle. Rookie
Colton Beck forced a turnover with a check to MU's Joe Hartman below the goal line.
Cody Kunyk intercepted the puck behind Reichard, bounced it off the back of the cage to beat Will Weber, then sent a feed through the slot that just missed linemate
Andy Taranto where he was posted at the hash marks. Molle was streaking into the zone at the left point, where he met the puck and one-timed the once errant pass beyond the screen created by Taranto and Hartman and into the RedHawks net.
Miami led the shot count through the first period of play 9-5, but the Nanooks held on to their 1-0 advantage as the teams headed to their respective lockerrooms.
The second period saw the RedHawks net the equalizer off the stick of RedHawk defenseman Chris Wideman. Just moments after Kunyk rang a shot off the cross bar he found himself serving a high-stick minor that gave the home team the time and space they needed. After winning the draw in their defensive zone, the Nanooks failed to clear the puck. MU's Carter Camper found himself with the puck on his stick as he skated above the left faceoff circle and fed a cross-ice pass to Wideman who collected it and send a slap shot that beat Alaska's
Scott Greenham low stickside to knot the score at one apiece.
Despite a 21-12 shot advantage after the first 40 minutes of play, the score reamined tied 1-1.
Coming back in the final frame, the Nanooks had 1:55 of power-play opportunity remaining after Hartman asessed a tripping minor to close the second stanza. The Nanooks managed just one shot on that chance and the momentum swing kicked the RedHawks into high gear and the Nanooks nor Greenham could stop them.
Patrick Tiesling made it 2-1 at 3:15, Andy Miele widened the gap at 11:11 and Reilly Smith sealed the Nanooks fate with the RedHawks fourth goal of the night at 17:35.
Despite a slough of overlapping penalties in the middle of the final frame, neither team would convert with their man-advantage chances. Alaska finished the evening with a 6-on-4 chance after pulling Greenham in favor of an extra attacker, when Tiesling was charged with a five-minute major for checking from behind and 10-minute game misconduct. Miami and Reichard held on and the 4-1 decision stood.
For the game, Alaska was 0-for-6 on the power play, 4-for-5 on the penalty kill, and was outshot 36-18 by their hosts.
The teams meet again on Saturday at 7:05 p.m. EST and the Blue and Gold must win the encounter to force a third and deciding game and to keep their 2010-11 season alive.
