EAU CLAIRE, Wis. — The No. 4 seeded UW-River Falls men's hockey team fell 2-0 at No. 3 seed UW-Eau Claire Saturday evening in the 2025 WIAC Tournament Championship game as the Blugolds earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
UWRF finishes the 2024-25 season with a 17-12-1 overall record as they reached the WIAC Tournament Championship game for the first time since 2016.
Despite outshooting the Blugolds 39-24 with plenty of solid chances, the Falcons were shut out by the Blugold defense and goaltender Max Gutjahr.
Nearly nine minutes into regulation, the home team took the first lead as a Kyler Grundy shot snuck through traffic and past
Brennan Boynton, and the Falcons trailed 1-0 after one period.
With 1:49 left in regulation, UWRF elected to pull Boynton for the extra attacker, and with 14 seconds left on the clock, UWEC iced the win with an empty-net goal.
Each team was afforded just one power play, with the Falcons and Blugolds both going 0-for-1.
Dylan Smith led the Falcons with seven shots on goal, followed by six from
Jonny Meiers.
