Men's Hockey completes sweep of Bethel to retain Thanksgiving Cup

BLAINE, Minn. – For the second straight day, the Concordia University Wisconsin Men's Hockey team scored two unanswered third period goals against Bethel University, helping the Falcons complete a weekend sweep. On Saturday, CUW broke a 1-1 tie with two third-period goals, defeating the Royals 3-1 and retaining the Thanksgiving Cup in the process.

Facing a 1-0 deficit heading into the third stanza, Bethel got a goal from Travis Payne at the 4:43 mark to tie the score at 1-1. Just as it did last night, CUW would not let the score remain tied for long as sophomore Tanner Bull (Brooklin, Ontario) netted a goal 1:16 later to give his team a 2-1 advantage. Freshman Anthony Pickering (Sylvan Lake, Alberta) assisted on the Bull goal, which would go down as the game-winner. Bull finished the game with two goals, tying a career high.

Junior Chris Hughes (Dundee, Mich.) gave the Falcons some insurance minutes later as he put his team up 3-1 with 9:45 to play in the game. Sophomore Brandt Weldon (The Pas, Manitoba) and junior Eli Riddle (Blissfield, Mich.) assisted on Hughes' power play goal.

That was all the offense junior goaltender Domingo Torrenueva (Oshawa, Ontario) needed in his first start of the season as he was impressive all afternoon. Torrenueva stopped 32 of the 33 shots he faced Saturday in picking up his first win of the year. Remember it was this exact game last season where Torrenueva took over the starting duties and helped lead the Falcons on a school-record six-game winning streak.

Torrenueva had the benefit of playing with a lead for a majority of the game as the Falcons struck just 41 seconds into play on a goal from Bull. Hughes and junior Devin Stuermer (Milwaukee, Wis.) assisted on the Bull goal. Stuermer now has 11 points this season, which leads CUW.

The 1-0 lead held until the 4:43 mark in the third when Payne scored for the Royals. Despite his team getting swept over the weekend, Payne had a strong performance with four goals over the two games. That 1-1 tie wouldn't last long as the Falcons answered 1:16 later, resulting in them holding a lead for all but 1:57 of play Saturday.

Saturday's tilt saw more penalties between CUW and BU as the teams combined for 24 minutes in the box. The Falcons spent 14 minutes in the penalty box, committing seven infractions but did fare decent on the penalty kill. CUW killed off 4-of-5 Bethel power plays, while they countered with a 33.3 percent (1-for-3) power play unit.

CUW (3-7-0) will look to build off this weekend when it hosts Finlandia University in a Northern Collegiate Hockey Association series next Friday and Saturday. The Falcons and Lions will start their series Friday night at 7 p.m. at the Ozaukee Ice Center.