RIVER FALLS, Wis. - The UW-River Falls men's hockey team rallied to a 4-3 win over UW-Superior Friday evening at Hunt Arena, led by a hat-trick from sophomore defenseman
Noah Ganske.
The Falcons erased a pair of deficits during the comeback, tying the game at 18:06 of the third period with a
Noah Ganske extra-attacker goal, followed up by Gankse's game-winner with 12 seconds left in regulation, his third goal of the night.
A penalty-heavy contest led to each team committing seven minor penalties. Superior went 3-for-6 on the power play, and the Falcons were 2-for-6.
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The Yellowjackets capitalized on a pair of Falcon penalties in the first period, scoring on both and taking a 2-0 lead into the first intermission.
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UWRF built momentum in the middle frame, out-shooting UWS 11-5 and trimming the Yellowjacket lead in half 7:50 into the period, with
Vilho Saariluoma tapping home his third goal of the season on the doorstep, assisted by
Cayden Cahill and
Noah Roofe.
Just when the Falcons were buzzing with a power play goal early in the third period by Ganske to tie the game, Superior's Coltyn Bates scored his second power play goal of the night to regain the Yellowjackets' lead.
Down 3-2 late in the game, UWRF elected to pull goaltender
Dysen Skinner for the extra attacker. A Ganske shot from the point snuck through traffic for his second of the night, tying the game with just under two minutes left in regulation.
With 43 seconds left in the game, Superior took a crucial too many men penalty, putting UWRF on the man advantage. 30 seconds later, another Ganske shot from the point made its way past Myles Hektor for the hat-trick and game-winner.
The Falcons led 31-15 in shots on goal and held a 36-31 edge in faceoffs. Each team blocked 11 shots.
Skinner made 12 saves and earned the win, improving his record to 9-6 on the season. Saariluoma notched three assists along with a pair from Cahill.
The two teams wrap up the series tomorrow night in Superior.
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