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Oles skate to another split against St. Mary's

Mike Cassano
November 13, 2002

It was another up and down weekend for the St. Olaf men's Hockey team. Coming off a split against Hamline last weekend the Oles were hungry for the sweep of Saint Mary's. Unfortunately, the Oles came home with a one game win.

The first of two games was Friday night with a 5-4 win, in Northfield. In front of a packed crowd, the Oles got off to quick lead on a shorthanded goal by Keith Townsend (Jr., Sterling Heights, Mich.). Townsend picked off a pass and went in all alone on the Saint Mary's goalie. Townsend went to his backhand and roofed one over the goalie. Saint Mary's would answer late in the period sending both teams to the locker room tied at one goal apiece.

The second period saw the Oles explode for 2 goals while keeping the Cardinals off the board. Dan Norsten (Jr., Eagan, Minn.) gave the Oles the lead on the power play, as he deflected Bryan Hapka's (So., Mukwonago, Wis.) slap shot from the point. Dana Quinn (So., Madison, Wis.) later added a shorthanded goal putting the Oles up 3-1 at the end of the second period. Quinn streaked down the far boards and pumped faked the shot making the goalie go down, while he lifted the shot over the goal tender.

The Cardinals battled back in the third, making the game interesting, but two identical power play goals by Nathan Espiritu (FY, West Hills, Calif.) put the Oles ahead for good. Garret Hasti (Jr., St. Louis Park, Minn.) made 39 saves, giving the Oles a win. The second game of the series was Saturday night in Winona ending with a 4-1 St. Olaf loss, on Saint Mary's Olympic sized ice. The Oles jumped out again to a 1-0 lead when Joel Ihrie (FY, Woodinville, Wash.) banged home a power play goal in the middle of the first period. The score remained 1-0 until the third period when the Cardinals exploded with four goals in 10 minutes. Hasti played well in net for the Oles, but Saint Mary's took advantage of St. Olaf and fired shots from the slot.

The Oles travel to Green Bay on November 15th to face the number one ranked St. Norbert's. From there, the Oles travel to Lake Forrest, Illinois for a game on Saturday. The Oles are now 2-2 in MIAC conference play.

Contact Le Ann Finger at 507-786-3315 or finger@stolaf.edu.