Falcons Slash Spartans and Move on to the Championship

FOND DU LAC, Wis. – The CUW ACHA team competed in the second round of the NCHL Conference Tournament on Saturday afternoon. They took on the Spartans of Aurora.

The Falcons didn't waste any time getting the bad taste out of their mouth from Friday's win.

Senior Jacob Palmerio (Sault Ste. Marie, Ont.) netted the first Falcon goal just over one minute into the matchup with assists coming from junior Ian Malcolmson (Waukesha, Wis.) and sophomore Tommy Cassel (Grafton, Wis.). The Falcons saw two more goals in the first period with seniors Rex Staudacher (Yorkville, Ill.) and Lucas Kreuser (Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.) netting the goals. Staudacher's powerplay goal was assisted by senior Lucas Hefty (Oregon, Wis.) and sophomore Garrett Wilderman (Waukesha, Wis.). Kreuser's goal was assisted by senior Sam Weiss (Glen Ellyn, Ill.).

The Blue and White scored four goals in the second period with junior John Swiatek (Rochester, N.Y.) recording the first off an assist from senior Thomas Dyball (Papillion, Neb.). 

The second came from Sam Weiss in the eighth minute off a pass from Staudacher. Malcolmson netted his first goal of the matchup in the 11th minute off an assist from Palmerio. The two of them followed that up with another goal in the same fashion six minutes later to close out the period.

The Spartans opened the third period with a goal three and a half minutes into the final frame.

Senior Alex Way (Ottawa, Ont.) found the back of the net for the first time this weekend with the two Falcon goals in the third period. His first goal was unassisted and his second was assisted by Kreuser on a five-on-three powerplay.

Senior Mack Willy (Tacoma, Wash.) recorded 26 saves on the afternoon

The Blue and White will face the DePaul Blue Demons on Sunday afternoon for a chance at their program's first NCHL crown.