Bulldogs poison Clarkson's chances in weekend sweep
Samantha Lefebvre
Issue date: 11/4/09 Section: Sports
Last weekend the UMD men's hockey team went head-to-head with Clarkson University on home ice and skated their way to a weekend sweep.
Friday night's game started off slow in the first period offensively but the physical play was evident. By the second period the Bulldogs picked up the pace and despite a game misconduct for each team in the first the teams battled on. UMD continually pushed the Golden Knights' offense, and within the first few minutes of play of the second period sophomore Mike Connolly placed the puck in the net for the first goal of the game. Less than a minute later, after Connolly's goal, came a goal from sophomore Jack Connolly, putting the Bulldogs ahead two to nothing. Jack Connolly also scored the third UMD goal of the night.
"It felt good to get those two goals in a row," Jack Connolly said. "We were only up one-nothing so I thought we needed a little something extra."
The third period of Friday night started off looking very similar to the first period until Clarkson scored their first goal of the night, 15 attempts later. With only 53 seconds left on the play clock UMD senior Drew Akins took advantage of the open net and scored the last point of the night. The Bulldogs stayed strong throughout the entire game and stepped off the ice with 50 shots on goal, 49 saves by sophomore goalie Kenny Reiter and a final score of 4-1.
"I like how we worked and played tonight," Head Coach Scott Sandelin said. "We got the puck a lot and kept the other team working for it. It looked easy cause we worked hard tonight."
On Saturday night Clarkson was able to sneak up on the Dogs and score a goal against sophomore goalie Brady Hjelle within the first 20 seconds of the game. Not letting the quick first point get to the them, junior Rob Bordson responded with a goal of his own. In the second period the Bulldogs put in two more goals, by sophomores Brady Lamb and Mike Connolley.
Similar to what happened in the first period the Golden Knights put the puck in the net within the first minute of the period. Wanting more than a one-point lead, freshman Mike Seidel was able to add to the score with the last goal of the night. The Bulldogs once again came out strong offensively for the second night in a row beating the Golden Knights 4-2. UMD also put up 43 shots on goal, compared to the 23 attempts made by the Golden Knights.
"It's always tough the second night," coach Sandelin said. "We still have to play tough because you can never control the goalies. We did give them some goals and we could have gotten more goals but in the end we played well and we just have a lot of little things to work on."
The sweep over Clarkson last weekend strongly supported one of the major goals of this year's team and also placed the Bulldogs record at 5-2-1 overall this season.
"Our motto is 'If we lose one, we don't turn it into two,'" said Jack Connolly. "We just have to keep doing what we are doing and put the puck in the net."
Next weekend the Bulldogs will take the long trip west to Colorado Springs, Colo., for a two-game series against Western Collegiate Hockey Association opponent, Colorado College.
Friday night's game started off slow in the first period offensively but the physical play was evident. By the second period the Bulldogs picked up the pace and despite a game misconduct for each team in the first the teams battled on. UMD continually pushed the Golden Knights' offense, and within the first few minutes of play of the second period sophomore Mike Connolly placed the puck in the net for the first goal of the game. Less than a minute later, after Connolly's goal, came a goal from sophomore Jack Connolly, putting the Bulldogs ahead two to nothing. Jack Connolly also scored the third UMD goal of the night.
"It felt good to get those two goals in a row," Jack Connolly said. "We were only up one-nothing so I thought we needed a little something extra."
The third period of Friday night started off looking very similar to the first period until Clarkson scored their first goal of the night, 15 attempts later. With only 53 seconds left on the play clock UMD senior Drew Akins took advantage of the open net and scored the last point of the night. The Bulldogs stayed strong throughout the entire game and stepped off the ice with 50 shots on goal, 49 saves by sophomore goalie Kenny Reiter and a final score of 4-1.
"I like how we worked and played tonight," Head Coach Scott Sandelin said. "We got the puck a lot and kept the other team working for it. It looked easy cause we worked hard tonight."
On Saturday night Clarkson was able to sneak up on the Dogs and score a goal against sophomore goalie Brady Hjelle within the first 20 seconds of the game. Not letting the quick first point get to the them, junior Rob Bordson responded with a goal of his own. In the second period the Bulldogs put in two more goals, by sophomores Brady Lamb and Mike Connolley.
Similar to what happened in the first period the Golden Knights put the puck in the net within the first minute of the period. Wanting more than a one-point lead, freshman Mike Seidel was able to add to the score with the last goal of the night. The Bulldogs once again came out strong offensively for the second night in a row beating the Golden Knights 4-2. UMD also put up 43 shots on goal, compared to the 23 attempts made by the Golden Knights.
"It's always tough the second night," coach Sandelin said. "We still have to play tough because you can never control the goalies. We did give them some goals and we could have gotten more goals but in the end we played well and we just have a lot of little things to work on."
The sweep over Clarkson last weekend strongly supported one of the major goals of this year's team and also placed the Bulldogs record at 5-2-1 overall this season.
"Our motto is 'If we lose one, we don't turn it into two,'" said Jack Connolly. "We just have to keep doing what we are doing and put the puck in the net."
Next weekend the Bulldogs will take the long trip west to Colorado Springs, Colo., for a two-game series against Western Collegiate Hockey Association opponent, Colorado College.
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