Anchorage, Alaska --- Despite a 43-17 shots on goal advantage, Minnesota State fell by a 4-3 margin to Alaska Anchorage in a Western Collegiate Hockey Association game played Friday in Anchorage, Alaska.
The loss ended a six-game Maverick winning streak in the series with the Seawolves.
UAA freshman defenseman
David Trinkberger scored the game's first goal at 13:54 of the opening period on shot from the face-off circle that beat Maverick netminder
Cole Huggins on the glove side.
The Seawolves increased their lead at 16:34 of the middle frame on a
Nicolas Erb-Ekholm power play marker, but Minnesota State responded at 19:29 when
C.J. Franklin won an offensive zone face-off and fed the puck to sophomore defenseman
Daniel Brickley, who wristed a shot past
Olivier Mantha for his seventh goal of the season. The Mavericks owned a 29-10 shots on goal advantage after two periods of play, but found themselves trailing 2-1 at the end of forty minutes of action.
UAA regained a two-goal cushion when
Mason Mitchell worked a give-and-go with
Matt Anholt for an even-strength tap in goal at 9:58. The Mavericks kept battling and at 10:48, a shot from the point by senior blue liner
Sean Flanagan caromed off of
Nils Rygaard stick past Mantha and Minnesota State pulled within one goal. UAA sealed the win with an empty net goal at 18:07 by
Tad Kozun. Freshman forward
Marc Michaelis roofed a shot with the Mavericks on the power play and Huggins on the bench for an extra attacker with 6.9 seconds left for the last goal of the contest.
Huggins, who started for the third consecutive time for the Mavericks, stopped 13 shots and now stands 8-5-1 for the year.
The Mavericks, who entered tonight's game having gone 6-3-2 in their last 11 games, are 15-10-4 overall and 11-8-4 in WCHA contests for the year. The 43 shots on goal by Minnesota State marks the fourth time this season that the Mavericks have put at least 40 shots on goal in a game.
The two teams close out the two-game league series Saturday with a 10:07 p.m. CST face-off scheduled.
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