Hockey

Category: Hockey

The Week Ahead: January 16-22

APPLETON, Wis. — The Vikings will all be on the road this weekend as the teams get deep into the heart of the winter season. Lawrence University basketball hosts Lake Forest College on Wednesday, and the Vikings then travel to Beloit College on Saturday. Lawrence hockey travels north to St. Scholastica for a big Northern Collegiate Hockey Association series this weekend. The Lawrence swimmers get a preview of a Midwest Conference heavyweight when the Vikings travel to Lake Forest College on Saturday.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL (2-11, 0-8 MWC)

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Lake Forest (3-10, 2-6 MWC)

When and Where: Wednesday, Jan. 18, 5:30 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium.

Webcast: Lawrence vs. Lake Forest

The Series: Lake Forest leads the series, which started in the 1975-76 season, 49-13. The Foresters have won 18 straight over the Vikings.

Opponent: Lawrence at Beloit (2-11, 0-8 MWC)

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 21, 1 p.m., Flood Arena, Beloit, Wis.

Webcast: Lawrence at Beloit

The Series: Beloit leads the series 36-28 and has won the last 16 meetings with Lawrence. Prior to the current streak by Beloit, the Vikings had won six straight and 16 of 18.

Fast Fact: Rookie Liesl Hostetter scored her first career point in the game against Illinois College.

MEN’S BASKETBALL (6-6, 6-2 MWC)

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Lake Forest (7-6, 5-3 MWC)

When and Where: Wednesday, Jan. 18, 7:30 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium.

Webcast: Lawrence vs. Lake Forest

The Series: Lawrence holds a 58-50 edge in a series that dates back to the 1915-16 season. The Vikings have a 9-7 advantage over Lake Forest during the tenure of head coach Joel DePagter.

Opponent: Lawrence at Beloit (4-9, 2-6 MWC)

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 21, 3 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium

Webcast: Lawrence at Beloit

The Series: In a series that started during the winter of 1911-12, Beloit holds a 101-74 advantage. Lawrence has had the better of the rivalry over the past 15 years. Lawrence has won 23 of the last 27 and included in that record is a 16-game Vikings’ win streak.

Fast Fact: Senior forward Pete Winslow might still be smoldering because he was on fire over the weekend. Winslow went 10-for-13 from 3-point range for a blistering 76.9 percent. Winslow went 5-for-6 on 3-pointers in the win over Cornell and was 5-for-7 in the victory over Illinois College.

HOCKEY (5-8-2, 4-4-2 NCHA)

Opponent: Lawrence at St. Scholastica (8-6-1, 6-3-1 NCHA)

When and Where: Friday, Jan. 20, 7 p.m., and Saturday, Jan. 21, 5 p.m., Mars Lakeview Arena, Duluth, Minn.

Webcast: Lawrence at St. Scholastica

The Series: St. Scholastica holds a 13-2-1 advantage in a series that started in the 2001-02 season. The Saints have won the last five meetings, and Lawrence’s last victory was a 3-2 win in the 2013-14 campaign.

Fast Fact: Lawrence forward Nick Felan broke a four-game scoreless streak in a big way this past weekend at Aurora. Felan assisted on both goals in Friday’s overtime tie and then scored a pair of goals, including the game-winner, in Lawrence’s 5-3 victory on Saturday.

SWIMMING

Opponent: Lawrence at Lake Forest Triangular (Lake Forest, UW-Whitewater)

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 21, 1 p.m., Sports and Recreation Center, Lake Forest, Ill.

Webcast: None.

Fast Fact: The Vikings had their final home meet of the season this past Saturday and paid tribute to five seniors taking part in their final competition at Boldt Natatorium.

Felan scores twice as Vikings rally past Aurora

GENEVA, Ill. — Nick Felan scored a pair of goals Saturday as Lawrence University rallied for a 5-3 Northern Collegiate Hockey Association victory over Aurora University at the Fox Valley Ice Arena.

The Vikings trailed 2-1 entering the second period, but Felan scored twice in the second to help stake Lawrence (5-8-2, 4-4-2 NCHA) to a 4-3 lead. The Vikings added an insurance goal in the third.

Mattias Soderqvist played the final 45 minutes in goal and stopped 23 shots to pick up the win for Lawrence. Jared Rutledge gave up three goals in the first 24:10 before being replaced by Max Kirkwood. Kirkwood stopped 22 shots and took the loss.

It was a quick start for both teams as Brendan Logan scored just 1:10 into the opening period to put Aurora up 1-0. Carson Knop countered for the Vikings just 23 seconds later to tie it at 1-1. Aurora’s Tim Santopoalo scored with 5:27 left in the opening period and the Spartans led 2-1 after one.

The Vikings quickly tied it with the help of a power play. After Liam Stirtzinger was sent off for boarding 43 seconds into the period, the Vikings went on the man-advantage. Lawrence captain Brad Mueller scored off an assist from Blake Roubos a second after the penalty expired to tie it at 2-2.

Felan then scored his first goal of the game at the 4:10 mark off assists from Lane King and Josh Koepplinger to put Lawrence up 3-2.

Stirtzinger countered with a power-play goal for Aurora at the 10:12 mark, but it didn’t stay tied for long. Felan scored just 2:09 later off an assist from Matt Beranek and Lawrence led 4-3.

After matching penalties put each man down a skater, Matt Montemurro scored at 6:00 of the third as Koepplinger and King each picked up assists again. Aurora pulled Kirkwood for the final 1:52 but couldn’t draw any closer.

Box score

Vikings skate to overtime tie at Aurora

GENEVA, Ill. — Lawrence University posted a 2-2 overtime tie at Aurora University on Friday night after neither team was able to score for the final 19 minutes at the Fox Valley Ice Arena.

Aurora scored at the 5:51 mark of the third period to tie the game at 2-2 and that was it for the scoring for the final 14 minutes of regulation and the five minutes of overtime.

Lawrence (4-8-2, 3-4-2 NCHA) led 2-1 after two periods on the strength of a pair of goals in the second.

Matt Montemurro scored on the power play just 3:06 into the second period off assists from Austin Frank and Nick Felan to tie the game at 1-1. Lawrence grabbed a 2-1 lead at the 12:34 mark when Josh Koepplinger scored his fifth goal of the season with assists from Felan and Lane King.

Aurora’s Brendan Logan tied it early in the third period. The Spartans (3-10-1, 3-5-1) took a 1-0 lead on Anthony Pnewski’s goal with 2:19 left in the first period.

Evan Cline stopped 31 shots for Lawrence, and Jared Rutledge made 32 saves for the Spartans.

Box score

The Week Ahead: January 9-15

APPLETON, Wis. — It is a big weekend at Alexander Gymnasium as the Lawrence University basketball teams play four games in the historic venue. Lawrence takes on Cornell College on Friday night, and the Vikings face Illinois College on Saturday afternoon. Lawrence track also opens its season on Friday as the Vikings travel to UW-Oshkosh for a meet at Kolf Sports Center.

INDOOR TRACK AND FIELD

Opponent: Lawrence at UW-Oshkosh

When and Where: Friday, Jan. 13, 4 p.m., Kolf Sports Center, Oshkosh, Wis.

Webcast: None.

Fast Fact: Lawrence opens its season at the alma mater of its coach, Jason Fast. Fast was a member of UW-Oshkosh’s 2002 NCAA Division III national championship cross country team. He later served as an assistant coach at Oshkosh before taking over the cross country and track programs at Lawrence.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL (2-9, 0-6 MWC)

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Cornell (8-3, 6-0 MWC)

When and Where: Friday, Jan. 13, 5:30 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium.

Webcast: Lawrence vs. Cornell

The Series: The series, which started in the 1988-89 season, is tied 7-7. Lawrence put together a seven-game win streak against the Rams from 1989-06, and Cornell has won the last six meetings.

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Illinois College (8-3, 5-1 MWC)

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 14, 1 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium.

Webcast: Lawrence vs. Illinois College

The Series: Illinois College has a 21-18 lead in a series that started in the 1991-92 season. The Lady Blues have won the last seven meetings.

Fast Fact: Lawrence played one its best road games of the season this past Saturday at Monmouth. The Vikings trailed by just six points with less than five minutes remaining before the Scots pulled away. A big stat for the Vikings was a 38-29 edge on the glass, and that’s the first time Lawrence has out-rebounded an opponent this season.

MEN’S BASKETBALL (4-6, 4-2 MWC)

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Cornell (5-6, 3-3 MWC)

When and Where: Friday, Jan. 13, 7:30 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium.

Webcast: Lawrence vs. Cornell

The Series: Cornell holds a commanding 61-29 lead in a series that goes back to 1924. The Vikings are 3-3 against the Rams since Cornell rejoined the Midwest Conference.

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Illinois College (3-8, 0-6 MWC)

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 14, 3 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium

Webcast: Lawrence vs. Illinois College

The Series: In a series that started in 1985-86, Lawrence holds a 35-10 advantage over the Blueboys. Lawrence has won 11 straight and 23 of the last 25 against Illinois College.

Fast Fact: Junior forward Ben Peterson continues to be hot from beyond the 3-point line. Peterson went 7-for-13 from 3-point range in two games this last week for a 53.8 percent clip. On the season, Peterson ranks eighth in all of NCAA Division III in 3-point shooting at 52.9 percent.

HOCKEY (4-8-1, 3-4-1 NCHA)

Opponent: Lawrence at Aurora (3-10-0, 3-5-0 NCHA)

When and Where: Friday, Jan. 13, 7:30 p.m., and Saturday, Jan. 14, 3 p.m., Fox Valley Ice Arena, Geneva, Ill.

Webcast/Live Stats: Lawrence at Aurora

The Series: Lawrence holds a 2-0 edge in a series that started last season. The Vikings defeated Aurora 7-0 and 6-4 in the 2015-16 season.

Fast Fact: Lawrence is coming off a pair of tight losses to Concordia (Wis.), the second-place team in the NCHA South Division. Lawrence rookies Carson Knop and Matt Beranek both scored their first collegiate goals in last Friday’s 4-3 loss at Concordia.

SWIMMING

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Illinois Tech

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 14, 1 p.m., Boldt Natatorium.

Webcast: None.

Fast Fact: This is the final home meet of the season for the Vikings, who are facing former Lawrence star Kyle Griffin, now in his third season as the coach at Illinois Tech.

Roubos scores twice but Concordia holds off Vikings

APPLETON, Wis. — Concordia University Wisconsin got a pair of third-period goals Saturday to hold off Lawrence University 4-3 in a Northern Collegiate Hockey Association game at the Appleton Family Ice Center.

Blake Roubos scored twice in the third period for the Vikings (4-8-1, 3-4-1 NCHA), who nearly got the equalizer in the final minute.

Concordia (9-4-1, 6-3-1) led 2-1 entering the third period, but Roubos fired a wrist shot past Jack Romanuik just 1:56 into the period to tie it.

The Falcons surged ahead with an extra attacker on the ice due to a delayed penalty as Connor Hogg scored at the 7:10 mark to put Concordia up 3-2. Three minutes later, Jon Brumwell intercepted a pass in the neutral zone and skated in to score against Mattias Soderqvist for a 4-2 lead with 9:43 remaining.

Roubos struck back for the Vikings just over a minute later when he scored off a face-off in the Concordia end. Roubos’ went top shelf to cut the lead to 4-3 with 8:32 remaining.

Lawrence pulled Soderqvist with 1:32 left and had a great chance to score the equalizer. After Romanuik made an initial save, a pair of Vikings couldn’t get a stick on the bouncing puck and Concordia dodged the bullet.

Romanuik made 37 saves to pick up the win. Soderqvist stopped 31 shots for the Vikings.

Concordia jumped out to a 2-0 lead after one period, and Lawrence trimmed the lead in half in Josh Koepplinger’s goal at the 6:27 mark of the second.

Box score

Goal in final seconds pushes Concordia past Vikings

MEQUON, Wis. — Jake Switzer scored with 20 seconds remaining Friday to give Concordia University Wisconsin a 4-3 Northern Collegiate Hockey Association win over Lawrence University at the Ozaukee Ice Center.

The game looked like it was headed to overtime before Switzer scored off assists from Tanner Bull and Jim Pearson at the 19:40 mark.

Lawrence (4-7-1, 3-3-1 NCHA) tied the game at 3-3 on Carson Knop’s first collegiate goal with 7:12 remaining in the third period. Blake Roubos and Jake Drinkard picked up assists on the goal.

Lawrence jumped on top on Matt Beranek’s first collegiate goal at the 8:04 mark of the first period. The Falcons (8-4-1, 5-3-1) tied it on Pearson’s goal with 3:51 remaining in the opening period.

Sean Reynolds, who had assisted on Beranek’s goal, put Lawrence up 2-1 with a goal at the 13:28 mark of the second with Knop picking up the helper.

Concordia got a goal from Jon Brumwell at the 6:14 mark and another from Josh Adkins at 12:14 to take a 3-2 advantage.

Jack Romanuik made 28 saves to get the win for Concordia. Evan Cline stopped 37 shots for the Vikings.

Hockey series preview: Lawrence vs. Concordia (Wis.)

APPLETON, Wis. — Lawrence University drops the puck on the second half of the season this weekend when the Vikings face Concordia University Wisconsin in a home-and-home Northern Collegiate Hockey Association series. The Vikings travel to Mequon, Wis., for a 7 p.m. game Friday at the Ozaukee Ice Center, and Lawrence hosts Concordia at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Appleton Family Ice Center.

Preview

The Week Ahead: January 2-8

APPLETON, Wis. — It’s a full week of games for nearly all the winter season teams as basketball tips off 2017 with games on Monday afternoon. Lawrence gets back into Midwest Conference play with games against Knox and Monmouth this week. Lawrence hockey returns to Northern Collegiate Hockey Association play with a series against Concordia (Wis.), and the Lawrence swimmers travel to UW-Oshkosh on Saturday.

LU Sports-VikingBasketball-PMS294WOMEN’S BASKETBALL (2-7, 0-4 MWC)

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Knox (5-4, 2-2 MWC)

When and Where: Monday, Jan. 2, 1 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium.

Webcast: Lawrence vs. Knox

The Series: In a series that started in the 1989-90 season, it is all tied at 19-19. Knox has won the last five meetings, and Lawrence’s last victory was a 93-92 win at Knox during the 2013-14 season.

Opponent: Lawrence at Monmouth (1-8, 1-3 MWC)

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 7, 1 p.m., Glennie Gymnasium, Monmouth, Ill.

Webcast: Lawrence at Monmouth

The Series: Monmouth holds a 20-11 lead in a series that started in the 1988-89 season. The Scots have won the last 16 meetings, and Lawrence’s last wins came courtesy of a season sweep during the 2006-07 campaign.

Fast Fact: Lawrence sophomore forward Leah Reeves had a trio of big games during the Vikings’ recent nonconference schedule. Reeves averaged 16.7 points while shooting 55 percent from the floor to go with 5.7 rebounds in her last three games. Reeves, who scored a career-high 24 points vs. Widener, has taken over the team lead in scoring at 10.0 points per game.

LU Sports-VikingBasketball-PMS294MEN’S BASKETBALL (2-6, 2-2 MWC)

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Knox (1-8, 1-3 MWC)

When and Where: Monday, Jan. 2, 3 p.m., Alexander Gymnasium.

Webcast: Lawrence vs. Knox

The Series: In a series that goes back to 1925, Knox holds a slim 61-59 advantage, but the rivalry has been dominated by Lawrence over the past 15 years. The Vikings have won 10 straight over Knox and 26 of the last 29 meetings dating back to the 2000-01 season.

Opponent: Lawrence at Monmouth (2-7, 2-2 MWC)

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 7, 3 p.m., Glennie Gymnasium, Monmouth, Ill.

Webcast: Lawrence at Monmouth

The Series: Monmouth has a 70-40 lead in a series that started in 1926, but Lawrence has had the better of the rivalry over the last decade-plus. Lawrence is 19-5, including a 12-game win streak mixed in there, against the Scots since the start of the 2002-03 season.

Fast Fact: Junior forward Ben Peterson averaged nearly a double-double in the Vikings’ two games at the JustAGame Field House against a pair of WIAC foes, including unbeaten UW-Whitewater. Peterson averaged 12 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in those two games and is now averaging 11.8 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. Senior forward Mitch Willer shot 65 percent from the floor in the last two games, and his shooting percentage actually went down. He’s hitting at a 67.1 percent clip from the floor while averaging a team-high 15.1 points and 7.3 rebounds per contest.

HOCKEY (4-6-1, 3-2-1 NCHA)

Opponent: Lawrence vs. Concordia (Wis.) (7-4-1, 4-3-1 NCHA)

When and Where: Friday, Jan. 6, 7 p.m., Ozaukee Ice Center, Mequon, Wis.; Saturday, Jan. 7, 7 p.m., Appleton Family Ice Center.

Friday Webcast: Lawrence at CUW; Saturday Webcast: Lawrence vs. CUW

The Series: Lawrence holds a 13-5-2 lead in a series that started in the 2007-08 season. The Vikings are 3-0-1 in their last four meetings with the Falcons.

Fast Fact: Both of these teams are off to strong starts early in the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association season. Lawrence is tied for second place in the North Division, and Concordia holds down second place in the South Division.

LU Sports-VikingSwimDive-PMS294SWIMMING

Opponent: Lawrence at UW-Oshkosh

When and Where: Saturday, Jan. 7, 1 p.m., Albee Hall, Oshkosh, Wis.

Fast Fact: Lawrence swept the Midwest Conference Swimmer of the Week honors after the Vikings’ meet in Florida before Christmas. Danielle Millin was the women’s winner and Christian Bell took the men’s honor as the Vikings split a dual meet with Urbana University.

Koepplinger, Soderqvist sweep NCHA weekly awards

Josh Koepplinger
Josh Koepplinger
Mattias Soderqvist
Mattias Soderqvist

APPLETON, Wis. — Lawrence University’s Josh Koepplinger and Mattias Soderqvist swept the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association weekly awards in the wake of a big win.

Koeppliner (Saginaw, Mich.), a sophomore forward, was named the Offensive Player of the Week and senior goaltender Mattias Soderqvist (Stockholm, Sweden) was chosen as Defensive Player of the Week. In Lawrence’s only action of the week, the Vikings downed No. 6 Augsburg College 5-3.

Koepplinger scored two goals, including the game-winner, to pace the Lawrence attack. Koepplinger scored the game’s opening goal midway through the first period, but the Vikings needed another goal from him in the third to retake the lead.

After Augsburg rallied to tie the game at 3-3 with seven minutes left in the third period, Koepplinger scored just 30 seconds later to collect the game-winning goal. Koepplinger, who won an NCHA weekly award for the first time in his career, has three goals this season and is tied for the team lead with nine points.

Soderqvist earned the sixth NCHA Defensive Player of the Week award of his career. He stopped a season-high 42 shots and came up big when the Vikings needed him most.

Soderqvist stopped 18 of 19 shots in the final period, and that included a spectacular save with 10 seconds remaining and the game tied at 4-4. Soderqvist redirected that puck to teammate Blake Roubos, who scored an empty-net goal and gave Soderqvist the second assist of his career.

After getting off to a difficult start this season, Soderqvist has improved to 2-3-0 and lowered his goals against average to 4.99 while raising his save percentage to .860.

The win over the sixth-ranked Auggies was Lawrence’s first over a ranked opponent since defeating No. 15 St. Scholastica on Jan. 25, 2014.

Lawrence ended the first half of the season with a 4-6-1 record, including a 3-2-1 mark in the NCHA. The Vikings take several weeks off during the holidays and return to action on Jan. 6 at Concordia (Wis.).