Box Score OMAHA, Neb. – Freshman
Austin Ortega led a five-goal outburst in the second period as the Omaha hockey team beat No. 8 Miami, 6-3, on Friday night in the opener of their NCHC series.
The win was the Mavericks' third over a top 10 team in as many weekends and pushed their record to 7-6-0 overall and 4-1-0 in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference. They now have sole possession of first place thanks in part to a 5-2-0 record in their last seven games.
Miami dropped to 7-5-1 overall and 2-3-0 in the NCHC, putting it in a four-way tie for fifth.
The Mavs trailed 1-0 after Miami's Byron Paulazzo scored a powerplay goal in the first period, but they wasted little time tying the game in the second.
Dominic Zombo raced down the left wing with
Josh Archibald on his right. Zombo kept the puck and fired a wrist shot to the top corner over the shoulder of Miami goalie Jay Williams just 22 seconds into the period.
Just 1:45 later, the Mavericks had the lead when
Zahn Raubenheimer threw a pass out of the right wing corner that
Johnnie Searfoss knocked in for his second goal of the year.
On the play, Williams was injured when his own player appeared to hit him in the head with his knee. He was replaced by Ryan McKay.
McKay fared no better as UNO stretched its lead at 7:21.
Jake Guentzel fought off a Miami defender to throw a pass across the crease that Ortega knocked in for his second goal of the year to make it 3-1.
Later in the period, Miami's Austin Czarnik, the leading scorer in the NCHC, got loose for a breakaway, and UNO defenseman
Ian Brady dashed back to keep him from getting off a shot but the referee called for a penalty shot.
UNO goaltender
Ryan Massa stopped Czarnik from in tight to preserve the lead. It would be the first of three times Czarnik would get free to shoot on Massa, also getting two breakaways, but each time, Massa had an answer.
The Mavericks built momentum off the penalty shot save and scored just 37 seconds later.
Brock Montpetit fired a shot from the low slot that deflected in off of McKay's glove for his seventh goal of the season. Ortega picked up an assist on the tally.
Ortega got his second of the night to put UNO up 5-1, banging in the rebound of a shot by Montpetit past the outstretched glove of McKay.
Miami bounced back with two quick goals before the period ended. First, Sean Kuraly scored on a shot through traffic for a powerplay goal at 19:36. Then just 19 seconds later, Kevin Morris poked home a loose puck during a netmouth scramble to make it 5-3 UNO after two.
The RedHawks had a power play when Zombo was whistled for cross checking just 21 seconds into the third, but the Mavericks turned them back, and Archibald scored a powerplay goal at 11:14 off a feed from
Ryan Walters to ice the game. It was Archibald's team- and NCHC-leading 10th goal of the year.
Massa made 29 saves to earn his fourth straight win. He has backstopped the series-opening win in each of the last four weeks. McKay was tagged for the loss with 25 saves in 37:53 of relief work.
The Mavericks set a new season high for goals in a game this season while handing the RedHawks their worst loss to date. The five goals scored by the Mavericks in the second period was the most since they put up five against Alabama-Huntsville on Nov. 24, 2012.
UNO's win also snapped a seven-game home winless streak to Miami, which hadn't lost in Omaha since October of 2002 and had a 5-0-1 record all-time at the CenturyLink Center.
Ortega (2-1-3) and Montpetit (1-2-3) led the point parade for UNO while
Michael Young had two assists.
The Mavericks conclude their six-game home stand on Saturday night when they host the RedHawks at 8:07 p.m.
