ST. CLOUD TAKES GAME ONE 3-2 AND FALL 5-1 ON SATURDAY
The Matchup: St. Cloud (15-12-2) fell to the first place Minot Minotauros (27-7-1) on the road Friday (Jan 12) by a score of 3-2. The Norsemen rebounded on Saturday and netted five goals to secure a 5-1 victory on (Jan 13).
A Look at the Central: After this weekend’s series, Minot will remain in full control of first place with 55 points. St. Cloud sits in fourth place in the Central Division with 39 total points.
Series Review: In game one, Hudson Blue (Costa Mesa, Calif.) got on the board first for the Norsemen. Andrew Cumming (St. Cloud, Minn.) and Hagen Moe (Grand Rapids, Mich.) registered the assists on the first goal of the game. The Minotauros responded when Cayden Casey lit the lamp after receiving a right wing feed from Nicholas Sewecke.
St. Cloud took the lead back in the second period with two goals from Moe and Gavin Gunderson (Roseau, Minn.) at the end of the frame. Minot responded in the third with a Joel Lehtinen goal late. This wasn’t enough as St. Cloud squeaked out a 3-2 regulation win on Friday night.
In game two, St. Cloud struck first courtesy of Kyle Miller (San Jose, Calif.). This wasn’t enough as the Norsemen were blasted by a barrage of goal scoring early. Adam Mahler, Cayden Casey, Will Dawson, Jack O’Hanisain and Trevor Stachowiak all found the back of the net for Minot in a 5-2 win that would make the weekend series a split for both teams.
Between The Pipes:
Game 1: Ryan Manzella (Eagan, Minn.) made 31 saves on 33 shots. Brady James was credited the loss after letting in three goals against on a total of 36 shots making 33 saves.
Game 2: Manzella turned aside 35 of 37 shots for the Norsemen. In net for Minot, Lukas Swedin made 22 stops on 23 shot attempts.
Up Next on the Schedule: St. Cloud will begin a home-and-home series with the Minnesota Wilderness on Jan 19-20. On Friday, they will play at the St. Cloud Municipal Complex. On Saturday, the team will travel to Northwoods Credit Union Arena. Puck drop will take place at 7 p.m. for game one (C.T) and 7:15 p.m. (C.T) for game two.
Dain Solberg, Media Relations Intern