GENEVA, Ill. – Aurora University, ranked third in the latest USCHO.com Division III Coaches poll, finished off a weekend sweep of fourth-ranked Trine University with a 4-3 victory. The Thunder trailed 3-0 in the game before mounting a comeback that was just short.
The Spartans scored twice in the first period taking the 2-0 lead into the intermission. They added another goal at the midpoint of the second period to take the 3-0 lead.
The Thunder finally got on the board in the 15th minute of the second period with three penalties on the board and a man advantage four-on-three. Running the power play offense, Aleksa Babic sent a pass to the bottom of the near faceoff circle to Logan Furstenau. The sophomore promptly whiffed on a shot attempt with the puck ending up in the corner where Jack Cooper was able to collect it on his way behind the back of the net. His pass went back to Furstenau who was more successful on his second shot finding the back of the net.
Trine scored again just less than two minutes later. This time Aurora attempted to clear the puck around the boards but ended up giving it to Tyler Blanchard inside of the far corner. The senior threw the puck toward the net getting a bounce off the goalie's blocker that went right to the high slot for Bobby Price who buried the shot in the back of the net. The 3-2 score lasted the rest of the period.
The Thunder tied the game early in the third period, taking advantage of another power play opportunity. Price had possession of the puck at the point before passing it down the near boards to Michael DiPietra who promptly switched places heading to the center of the ice near the blueline. He fired a shot at the net, with Blanchard tipped it home for the goal.
Aurora scored last in the contest with a power play goal at the seven-minute mark of the final stanza. Trine pulled their goalie for the final minute of the game but were unable to for overtime and the 4-3 score went final.
The Thunder fall to 16-4-1 overall and 10-3-1 in Northern Collegiate Hockey Association (NCHA) after the loss. The loss is a costly one, giving the Spartans firm control of race for the Peters Cup with them sitting four points ahead of Trine in the conference standings with four games left. The Thunder will look to bounce back when they travel to face Marian University for a pair of games, beginning with a game on Saturday, February 8 at 7:30 p.m. CT / 8:30 p.m. ET.
