The Liberty University Men’s Division I Hockey team turned up the heat on Maryville University to melt away the competition 3-1 Feb. 6 and 5-3 Feb. 7 in the LaHaye Ice Center.
These wins pushed the Flames past the Saints on the American Collegiate Hockey Association (ACHA) Men’s DI ranking, defining Liberty as the new No. 6, placing them one seat closer to the ACHA Men’s DI Nationals. The national tournament will be held March 12-17 in St. Louis, Missouri.
Hoping to continue with the winning momentum, the Flames and Saints returned to the ice on Saturday for the final game of the weekend.
Maryville graduate student center Chad McIlwain put the first tally on the board during the opening period with assists from graduate student assistant defenseman Colt Corpse and freshman defenseman Vito Biondo.
A cross-checking penalty on freshman forward Bronson Hunt put the Flames at a man disadvantage with only two minutes left in the period.
Even with one man in the sin bin, Liberty still managed to set up a scoring opportunity. Junior forward Mac Ratzlaff smashed in the first Flames point of the game with an assist from sophomore defenseman Joe Feamster.
The first period ended with both teams deadlocked at 1-1.
In the second period, Ratzlaff and sophomore forward Kal Essenmacher fended off the Saints trying to get the puck from a loose Liberty pass.
From there, Maryville was able to fish out the biscuit and take it down the ice. Junior center Jack Henderson snuck it in the net assisted by sophomore right-wing Maxwell Wagener and graduate student forward Lucas Adams, making the score 2-1 to give the Saints the lead.
Another opportunity presented itself when McIlwain was able to tip another one in with help from senior right-wing Félix Turcotte and senior left-wing Hunter Floris, extending Maryville’s lead further to 3-1.
McIlwain and sophomore defenseman Michael Adamek were each served 2-minute penalties for roughing and interference respectively. The 4-on-4 play allowed junior forward Luke Munroe to receive the puck from senior forward Aidan Carney and senior forward Ryan Finch. He sent it flying past the Saints’ junior goalie Parker Sawka’s ear and into the back of the net to close out the second period.
The Flames returned to the ice with hopes to tighten the 3-2 gap against Maryville.
Five minutes into the third period, senior forward Michael Debrito came up the side and received a pass from junior defenseman Nick Pomerleau. As Debrito released the puck, he was taken out at the ankles.
Debrito skated off the ice with assistance and was evaluated.
“I think we just kind of put them in our prayers and we just kind of play for them. I feel like it doesn’t change (or) shift our game at all. I think it kind of adds a little bit of something to it like you are playing for one of your brothers,” sophomore forward Liam Cox-Smith said.
Liberty was granted a power play opportunity and Essenmacher was able to capitalize on it with a pass from Cox-Smith and sophomore forward Tucker Shields, shooting one between the pipes to level the score 3-3.
Shortly after, Munroe accepted a pass from captain and senior forward Sam Feamster and Finch to secure his second goal of the night, pushing Liberty ahead 4-3.
“I think on my first one, Aidan Carney made me a really nice pass and I just kind of caught the goalie off guard by drilling it on that from the corner, and then on my second goal Sam Feamster gave me a really nice passing slot,” Munroe said.
In the last minute of play, Essenmacher received a pass and took it to the corner to send it around, but after releasing the puck he was propelled headfirst into the wall. Maryville junior defenseman Brett Ursulak boarded him from behind and Essenmacher remained lying on the ice after the altercation. He was able to stand and was helped off the ice.
A fight broke out between Pomerleau and graduate student center Will Smith. In the commotion, Pomerleau had his helmet ripped off and officials stepped in. Multiple 5-minute majors were handed out to Smith, Ursulak and Pomerleau. All three were ejected, and Liberty was given a power play during the last minute.
The Flames capitalized on their final advantage. Cox-Smith took a pass from Debrito and Shields, tapping in the final goal of the game with 17 seconds remaining on the clock.
“I thought our guys adapted and battled through the first part. They hadn’t had early success, so they battled through some of that and were able to convert at the end which was awesome,” Head Coach Kirk Handy said.
Liberty secured the weekend sweep with a final score of 5-3 to close out the series.
The Flames hit the road to play Ohio University in Athens, Ohio, Feb. 13-14. The following week, the Flames and the Bobcats will return to the LaHaye Ice Center, Feb. 20-21 for senior night and the final home series of the season.
Stewart is a sports reporter for the Liberty Champion.