Krestan, Sanchez score twice to lead Men's Hockey to road victory

HANCOCK, Mich. – Martin Krestan and Morgan Sanchez each scored a pair of goals to propel Concordia University Wisconsin to a 5-4 come-from-behind victory at Finlandia University on Saturday afternoon.

The Falcons found themselves down 3-2 midway through second period of the Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association matchup, before Sanchez scored the tying goal. Krestan and Sanchez then scored 38 seconds apart in the third stanza to give CUW an important 5-3 advantage.

The two goals for Sanchez were his first of the season, while Krestan's markers were the first in a Falcons uniform after transferring from UW-Superior after the first semester.

It was a penalty-filled game as there were 21 whistles blown for a combined 42 minutes. CUW (6-9-0, 6-4-0 MCHA) did finish with a 34-27 shots on goal advantage, including a 16-9 difference in the final period.

Freshman Jake Hebda (Firestone, Colo.) recorded 23 saves between the pipes to earn the victory. His counterpart, Troy Chandler, made 29 saves in a losing effort.

Freshman James Poston (Sylvania, Ohio) had a career night with three assists, two of which were scored by Krestan.

Collin Saint-Onge found the back of the net twice for the Lions (3-12-0, 3-7-0 MCHA), including the game's opening score just over four minutes into the first period. The referees were busy during the first 20 minutes of action as 13 penalties were called.

Krestan scored his first goal in a CUW uniform 14:48 into the first period after he fired home a Cody Kostecki (freshman, Thunder Bay, Ontario) and Poston passing combination. Freshman Buster Hebda (Firestone, Colo.) netted his first career goal in the second period to knot the scoreboard at 2-2.

In a span of 7:02, Sanchez scored twice while Krestan (freshman, Zimrovice, Czech Republic) added his second goal of the night to turn a 3-2 deficit into a game-deciding 5-3 lead from the second into the third period.

CUW returns home on Friday and Saturday for MCHA series against Northland College. Friday's contest is scheduled for 7 p.m.