The NC State men’s hockey team played the final game of its historic season in a 9-1 loss to the Trine Thunder Sunday afternoon in Plano, Texas.

NC State’s (1-2-0) tournament hopes were dashed prior to the game as the UMass Minutemen (2-0-0) had secured its bid to the semifinals late Saturday afternoon with a 5-2 win over Trine (1-1-1).

Things started out rough for NC State as the Thunder scored two goals in the first three minutes of the game and it wouldn’t get easier from there. NC State managed to apply some pressure in the latter end of the first period but Trine held firm.

The second period was all Thunder as Trine netted a third goal in the opening minutes followed by a shorthanded goal a few minutes later. Trine scored two more as NC State entered the final period down 6-0.

The Thunder kept coming, scoring two more goals in the third period as the game quickly approached its end. The Wolfpack didn’t go quietly however, when on the powerplay in the final two minutes of the game, senior captain Sam Banasiewicz scored the last goal of his Wolfpack career in a final statement from the Pack. Trine closed the scoring with one more goal before time expired.

Despite the final outcome in Texas, the Wolfpack has nothing to be ashamed of after setting a few school and conference records during its season. With an undefeated regular season, winning the ACCHL conference championship, sweeping its way through the ACHA southeast regionals and even securing a win at nationals, the Pack has enjoyed unprecedented success.

For most of its players, NC State’s goal was simply to win the ACCHL championships. This season was more than anyone could have predicted and the Wolfpack has really asserted itself as a true contender and has put together quite the resume to silence the doubters.