The UAH hockey squad traveled to face College Hockey America's defending champion Wayne State. When the smoke cleared, it was a draw with the Warriors taking Friday night's contest 5-4 in overtime, while the Chargers (3-8-0, 3-1-0)picked up their first win over WSU (4-6-0, 1-3-0) in seven attempts on Saturday night claiming a 5-2 victory.
Friday night's game was eerily reminiscent of the 2002 CHA Tournament final in which the Warriors came from behind to defeat the Chargers in overtime. In Niagara, N.Y., Jason Durbin and Dusty Kingston played large in snatching the title from within the grasp of UAH in the controversial win and the duo would play large in the first game of the series as well. With the pair combining for four goals and seven points on the night, Wayne State came back after UAH held a 4-3 lead in the third.
The Warriors jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first before the Chargers got things going in the second period as senior captain Mike Funk netted his first goal of the season unassisted at the 8:44 mark. Less than a minute later, senior winger Joel Bresciani took a Jared Ross pass and beat WSU's netminder David Guerrera. Ross then netted his fourth of the season taking advantage of the power play to knot the game at three. Senior Steve Charlebois gave the boys in blue the first lead of the contest with an assist from Tyler Butler with 2:30 remaining in the second period.
That would end the scoring for the Chargers however as Guerrera made eight saves in the final period and Kingston scored just over four minutes into the third to send the game to overtime. In overtime, Durbin stole the puck and beat Charger goaltender Mark Byrne for the win. Byrne made 29 saves in the losing effort.
On Saturday night, the Chargers sent freshman netminder Scott Munroe to the ice and the rookie proved to be a difference maker. The Warriors scored twice in the first three minutes of the contest but Munroe slammed the door shut the rest of the way leading UAH to the 5-2 making 31 saves on the way.
The first three minutes of the contest would see three goals scored as WSU's Marc St. Jean scored the first goal at the 1:43 mark before Karlis Zirnis tied the game at one just over thirty seconds later. The Warriors grabbed the lead back 19 seconds later as Nathan Rosychuk beat Munroe but the Chargers took the lead away just over ten minutes into the period as freshman Michigan native Todd Bentley scored his first collegiate goal with assists from fellow rookies Munroe and Bruce Mulherin.
After a scoreless second period, the Chargers took control in the first five minutes of the third as sophomore Keith Rowe and Zirnis combined to give the Chargers a two-goal lead in the final frame. With an extra attacker on the ice and a gaping net, senior Jason Hawes picked up his first goal of the season with an assist from fellow senior Joel Bresciani, who has picked up a point in four straight outings.
Series: Niagara Purple Eagles, Nov. 30, 1:35 p.m. and Dec. 1, 1:05 p.m.
HUNTSVILLE - Charger Radio is proud to announce its partnership with SportsJuice.com to provide online broadcasts of UAH Men's Ice Hockey for the 2002-2003 season.
Fans will be able to log in to the Charger Radio website at http://www.sportsjuice.com/providers/uah/ or click on the logo and follow the Chargers as they embark on their most difficult schedule in the 23 year history of the team.
Mike Anderson and Geof Morris will anchor the first broadcast team to cover all Charger hockey contests, home and away. "This is a great opportunity for fans both in Huntsville and around the world to follow Charger hockey like never before," said Anderson. "We've assembled a dedicated team who will work hard to present all of the action on the ice."
Anderson and Morris will be assisted by George Olden on location and Jim Chaloupka in the studio for all 34 regular-season contests and post-season contests.
During the 2001-2002 season, Charger Radio was able to provide internet broadcasts of some UAH games, including the College Hockey America tournament. Due to technical difficulties, fans had problems listening in to games last season. "SportsJuice.com is going to enable us to overcome the technical hurdles that limited our broadcasts last year," said Morris of the partnership. "That will make for a much more enjoyable experience, not only for our fans, but for Mike and I, since we know that we'll be getting our broadcast out to as many listeners as we can."
The Charger hockey season begins October 18 when the Chargers travel to Madison, Wisconsin to face the Wisconsin Badgers. Fans can tune in to the pre-game show 30 minutes prior to face off.
Charger Radio is a student-run radio station at the University of Alabama in Huntsville. The station is funded by student activities fees and outside underwriting. Charger Radio plans to begin its full broadcast schedule in January 2003.
