Men's ice hockey continued its hot streak with a 5-2 victory over Robert Morris (Ill.) Friday night at the Lindenwood Ice Arena in Wentzville, Mo. It was the fourth straight win for the Lions and it came against the number two ranked team according to the latest American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Division I Ranking.
While the Eagles controlled most of the first period, it was Lindenwood that took charge later in the game, coming from behind to tie and then skate past Robert Morris. The Lions did score the first goal when Cody Barra found the back of the net with help from Kevin Walters with 12 minutes left, but the Eagles countered with a short-handed effort less than two minutes later and tacked on a second goal on the power play with 6:24 remaining to carry a 2-1 lead into the second.
Both defenses held firm in the first half of the period until Mike Lozano burst free with an unassisted power play goal for Lindenwood to tie the game at two. Less than four minutes later, Riley Spraggs split the pipes at even strength, assisted by Peppi Sipila to give the Lions the lead. Lindenwood maintained the single goal lead for most of the third period until Walters and Rock Einersen set up Lukas Daniels on the power play to give the Lions some breathing room. As the final minute ticked off the clock, Robert Morris pulled the goaltender. Mitch Riese took over the puck for Lindenwood and fed Sipila for an empty-netter with just 14 seconds left to clinch the upset.
The Lions outshot the Eagles 32-25 overall, and after giving up two goals in the opening frame, Cody Karpinski didn't yield another score the rest of the game, stopping 23 of 25 shots to earn the win in goal for Lindenwood. Special teams play was once again strong as the Lions capitalized twice in five man-advantage opportunities while holding Robert Morris to one goal on four chances.
With the win, Lindenwood improves to 4-4-1 overall and has opened play in the Central States Collegiate Hockey League with a perfect 3-0-0 record. The Lions go for the series sweep Saturday afternoon with a 4 p.m. faceoff at the Lindenwood Ice Arena in Wentzville, Mo.
