The Cincinnati Bearcats defeated the NC State Icepack 6-3 at Invisalign Arena Friday, Nov. 18. After slow starts to the season, both the Icepack and Bearcats were hungry for a win.
Meanwhile, the Bearcats snapped on an eight-game losing streak by knocking off Rowan in their last outing. NC State hung around with Cincinnati; the game remained close through two periods, but a four-goal effort from the Bearcats resulted in a 6-3 win for Cincinnati.
These two teams were familiar foes after playing a pair of games in Cincinnati last season. The Icepack swept the two-game series with 7-1 and 8-3 victories.
In desperate need of a “get-right game,” the Icepack came out aggressive to start the game, applying pressure to Cincinnati’s defense. However, the Bearcats capitalized on their opportunities to break through the Icepack’s defense, scoring two goals in the first 10 minutes.
Down two scores early, the Icepack was in dangerous territory. Fortunately, NC State’s aggressive offensive paid off and the team got on the board with 5:58 left in the first period. Freshman forward Thomas McEneny scored the Icepack’s first goal of the night.
Down by one to start the second Period, the Icepack capitalized on early scoring opportunities, evening it up at 2-2 with senior forward Alex Robinson’s fourth goal of the season on a nifty solo play through multiple defenders.
Throughout the second period, the Bearcats had multiple power plays, However, senior forward Matt Miller intercepted a Cincinnati pass to score an amazing short-handed goal to give the Icepack its first lead of the night.
A dominant second period turned into the Icepack’s worst nightmare in the third, as the Icepack let up three goals in the first four minutes of the period. By this point, freshman goaltender Daniel Foley took over goalkeeping duties from senior Eric Daniel.
“I wish we would play as well when we are ahead as we do when we are behind,” said head coach Tim Healy. “We got up 3-2 and we flipped the script from last weekend versus Liberty. We play really well when we are down even after we went down 6-3. But we’ve got to play better when we’re tied or when we’re leading like we do when we’re down.”
NC State couldn’t come back, ultimately giving up four unanswered goals to lose 6-3. The Icepack drops to 5-10-1 on the season with the result. The Bearcats won their second straight to improve to 6-10.
The Icepack will be back in action at 8:35 p.m. on Saturday Nov. 19 at Invisalign Arena as the Icepack will look to even the series against Cincinnati.
