Box Score TROY, N.Y. – The Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) men's hockey team and Minnesota State Mavericks went head-to-head on Saturday night, battling in a back-and-forth matchup that saw the Engineers fall by a 4-2 final at the Houston Field House.
For the second straight night, Minnesota State scored first – this time a first period goal courtesy of Evan Murr. The goal came on the power play at the 5:50 mark, as it appeared RPI goaltender
Brett Miller made the initial save on a shot from the blue line by Sam Morton.
However, the puck fluttered behind the goalie on the side of the net, was passed out by Josh Groll to Murr who smacked a shot from the high slot into the twine to give Minnesota State the 1-0 lead.
RPI returned the favor to open up the second period, scoring just 1:18 into the frame to even things up at 1-1.
Max Smolinski lined up a shot from the point, and saw his shot tipped in front of the net by
Austin Heidemann to even the score.
Ryan Brushett also earned an assist on the play.
The Mavericks reclaimed the lead at the 7:24 mark of the second period, as a puck rebounded out off a shot by Groll and tossed in by Adam Eisele. Eisele found space on the left side of Miller, giving Minnesota State the 2-1 lead. Zach Krajnik also earned an assist on the play.
Jakob Lee and
Lauri Sertti teamed up for an equalizer late in the second period, as the duo copied the first RPI goal as a tip in front of the net evened the score up at 2-2. Sertti sent a shot toward the net, finding Lee out front for the misdirection as the game stood tied heading to the final 20 minutes of play.
The back-and-forth continued into the third, as Minnesota State took the lead back just 1:58 into the final frame. Steven Bellini scored his second goal of the weekend to give the Mavericks a 3-2 lead on an assist from Jordan Steinmetz. RPI attempted to clear the puck from their defensive zone, and Bellini fired a puck on net that Miller got a piece of but couldn't keep out of the net.
The Mavericks collected an empty net goal late in the third period as RPI put on the pressure looking for the tie. Sam Morton tossed in the goal from three-quarters down the ice, putting Minnesota State in front for good to seal the 4-2 win.
Miller finished with 36 saves in net for the Engineers, while Keenan Rancier collected 21 for the Mavericks.
RPI returns to action on Friday, Dec. 29 at 3 p.m. when they head to Buffalo to face off with the Canisius Golden Griffins.
