The number one ranked team in the country proved why they were given that distinction as Arizona State held Lindenwood scoreless in a 3-0 victory Friday night at the Lindenwood Ice Arena.

The Lions held true to their trademark defense early in the game, keeping the Sun Devils off the board through the first period, but Lindenwood couldn't contain the Arizona State offense in the second, giving up two even strength goals.  The Sun Devils added another goal in the third to put the game out of reach.

Despite the lopsided score, the Lions outshot Arizona State 32-23, and the penalty kill passed the test as well, keeping the puck out of the net on three Sun Devils power plays, but Lindenwood went 0-2 with the man advantage.  Cody Karpinski stopped 20 of the 23 shots he faced in the loss. 

The Lions are now 11-10-2 on the season.  They'll try to earn a split in the second contest of the series Saturday afternoon with the faceoff scheduled for 4 p.m. at the Lindenwood Ice Arena in Wentzville, Mo.  You can watch the game and all remaining regular season home games via pay-per-view live streaming at STL Sports Productions.