No. 9 Penn State men’s hockey couldn’t sweep Ohio State in Columbus, falling 4-2 Saturday night
Despite momentum being on Penn State’s (19-10-1, 9-10-1 Big Ten) side to start the game, Ohio State (17-10-1, 10-8-0 Big Ten) came out swinging and swarmed Penn State goalie Liam Souliere with 13 shots on goal. Jaedon Leslie got the scoring going for Ohio State with a wicked shot that put the Buckeyes up 1-0 at the 17:16 mark of the first period.
Penn State entered the second period hoping to swing the momentum back in its favor, and it did that. Tyler Gratton finally lit the lamp for Penn State with a tip-in shot from the low end of the slot that tied the game at one 11:18 into the second period. Souliere also did his part for Penn State.
The outstanding goaltender stood tall in the net the entire second period, knocking down all 13 of Ohio State’s shots and sending the tied game into the second period, both teams chomping at the bit for the lead.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.The third period opened up with a bang for both teams. Ohio State’s Davis Burnside took advantage of an easy open shot and briefly give the Buckeyes the lead 02:47 mark into third period. But Penn State forward Jimmy Dowd quickly retaliated and tied the game with his second goal of the night to keep the win within reach at 04:54 into the third period. Yet the overbearing Ohio State offense kept up its relentless shooting and soon found a way to put the puck in the back of Penn State’s net with a snipe from Tate Singleton at the 15:28 mark and then quickly followed up with an empty net goal from his fellow teammate Cole McWard, sealing the game and the win for Ohio State. With a final score of 2-4.
Souliere finished the night with 32 saves on 37 shots. He now has a 16-8-1 regular-season record.
Penn State is back in action Friday, February 17 at Pegula Ice Arena against the Golden Gophers of Minnesota.
