After a rollercoaster season, the Weber State men’s hockey team has moved on to regional competition, ending the season ranked fifth in their division.
The team ended the season with a home-and-home match up against in-state rival Utah State University last weekend. In the first game of the match up, the Wildcats were able to hold off the Aggies 3-2 to take home a victory on the road.
The Aggies drew first blood in that match with a goal late in the first period. The Wildcats were able to respond and after 13 minutes of play, leading 2-1 with goals from Jake Webber and Koda Coleman. The Aggies responded with another late goal in the second to send the game into the third period tied 2-2.
The Wildcats were able to gain the upper hand when Jake Webber was able to find the back of the net again with an assist from Dakota Fox and Alex Pizzaro. The team was able to hold off the attacks of the Aggies for the remainder of the third and walked off the ice with a victory.
On Saturday, the team returned home and celebrated senior night against the Aggies. Despite having momentum on their side from the previous night’s victory, the team fell at the hands of the Aggies 3-2.
Both teams came out fighting, neither giving any ground. The teams kept that up, and by the end of the first period, the game was scoreless. The Aggies were able to get on the board first, with Phill Jennrich finding the back of the net to send the game into the third tied 1-1. Despite the team scoring one more time, the Aggies were able to net two goals to walk away with the victory.
The Wildcats will have two weeks to prepare for regionals and then will travel to Logan as the fifth seed and will face off against eighth-ranked Boise State University at 1 p.m. on Feb. 26.
The tournament will continue through Sunday and the top two teams from the tournament will travel with the top-seeded teams from the region to compete in the American Collegiate Hockey Association National Championship Tournament. The national tournament will be March 18-22 in West Chester Pennsylvania.
