After a thrilling 9-3 victory the night before, the Ocelots continued their dominance on home ice with a 6-2 win over Northern Michigan University in the second game of the weekend series. The win was highlighted by a strong second period, where Schoolcraft scored three goals in just over ten minutes to break open a close contest.
The game started with a fast pace, and it didn’t take long for the first goal to arrive. Joshua Boze put Schoolcraft on the board early, scoring at 3:44, with assists from Joseph Sines and Noah Smentowski. Northern Michigan, however, responded just three minutes later when Zachary Harrison tied the game at 6:47 with a quick strike from Moore.
The back-and-forth continued, but it was Andrew Elliott who gave Schoolcraft the lead again at 15:36, converting a pass from Dustin Fretter and JulianWainwright. The goal proved to be the last of the period, sending the teams into the first intermission with Schoolcraft leading 2-1.
In the second period, Schoolcraft took full control of the game. LJ Sabala extended the lead to 3-1 at 3:31, assisted by Maxim Siratskiy, before Logan Tripp made it 4-1 with a goal at 7:52, assisted by Dustin Fretter. Northern Michigan briefly found a spark when Adam Wiggins netted a power-play goal at 10:48, cutting the deficit to 4-2. However, Schoolcraft responded quickly, as Fretter scored a power-play goal of his own at 16:13 to give Schoolcraft a commanding 5-2 lead heading into the third period.
The third period saw more penalties than scoring chances, as both teams got caught up in physical altercations. A total of five 10-minute misconducts were handed out during a chaotic stretch early in the period. Despite the penalties, Schoolcraft’s power play remained efficient. Wainwright added the final nail in the coffin with a power-play goal at 9:02, assisted by Fretter and Elliott, putting Schoolcraft ahead 6-2.
While Northern Michigan had their opportunities, especially with several power-play chances, they couldn’t solve Schoolcraft’s defense or Leo Tykoski, who turned in a solid performance in goal, stopping 19 of 21 shots. On the other end, Ethan Parraghi was under siege for much of the game, facing 57 shots and making 51 saves. Despite his efforts, the relentless offense of Schoolcraft proved to be too much to overcome.
Shots on goal illustrated the story of the game: Northern Michigan managed just 21 shots compared to Schoolcraft’s 57, making it clear that Schoolcraft’s offense was firing on all cylinders. Northern Michigan’s power play struggled once again, going just 1-for-9, while Schoolcraft converted 2 of their 11 chances on the man advantage.
Key takeaways from the game:
- Fretter was again a standout for Schoolcraft, recording a goal and two assists, while Elliott added a goal and two assists.
- The game featured intense physical play and a combined 15 penalties, with both teams finishing with multiple misconducts.
