Eight-Goal Outburst Lifts Falcons Past Oswego State

OSWEGO, N.Y. – The Concordia Wisconsin men's hockey team notched its fourth win of the season by way of an 8-5 victory over the Oswego State Lakers. The first leg of the team's two-game stretch in New York saw nine different Falcons record points against a Lakers team that received 20 votes in the most recent U.S. College Hockey Online poll.

Matt McQuade struck first for Oswego State just under three minutes into the contest, but Concordia responded only 22 seconds later, as freshman Riley Klugerman (Aurora, Ont.) tallied a shorthanded goal for the Falcons after a takeaway. Klugerman would go on to record two assists en route to collecting his first career three-point game.

Sophomore Derek Humphreys (Spokane, Wash.) gave Concordia the lead on the man advantage at 14:34 of the first to notch his sixth goal of the season.

The Lakers regained control of the game early in the second period, scoring three goals in the opening 6:24 of the frame. However, the Falcons were quick to respond, first cutting the lead in half by way of a goal by freshman Alex Ochitwa (Prince George, B.C.). Fellow freshman Matt Koepke (Vernon Hills, Ill.) struck just under a minute later with his first collegiate goal on a shorthanded breakaway to pull the Falcons back to even.

After a penalty awarded Concordia a power play midway through the period, freshman Logan Kroyman (Deerfield Beach, Fla.) capitalized to put the Falcons back in front. The goal marked Concordia's fifth of the game to tie the team's season-high.

The Falcons dominated the third period, outscoring the Lakers by a 3-1 margin. Sophomore Dain Sardelli's (Hebron, N.D.) third goal of the season at 3:07 doubled Concordia's lead, while Ochitwa picked up the primary assist. The helper marked his fourth of the game to match a program record.

Freshman Mi-Kwan Tallman (Edmonton, Alta.) recorded his first career goal to grant the Falcons a three-goal advantage, intercepting a pass while shorthanded before putting the puck into an empty net. The tally represented the team's third score while on the penalty kill, a program record.

AJ Ryan cut into the lead for Oswego State as the period neared its halfway point, but Concordia's lead proved to be insurmountable. Sophomore Collin Kerchoff (White Lake, Mich.) restored the three-goal lead for the Falcons as the game neared its close, scoring an empty-net goal from center-ice. Concordia's eight goals set the mark as the team's highest-scoring performance since January 2020.

Sophomore goaltender Gabe Rosek (East Lansing, Mich.) recorded 49 saves in the effort to set a season-high.

The Falcons will be back on the ice on Sunday, December 31 against the 9-3-1 Stevenson Mustangs in the championship game of the Oswego State Hockey Classic.