Seventeen seconds.
That was all it took for Penn State to score its first goal against Ohio Friday night. Two hours of hockey, 12 goals against and two losses later, the Bobcats returned to Athens knowing they have some catching up to do before their bitter rivals make the return trip to Bird Arena in January.
In what was a heavily anticipated matchup of top-five powerhouses, Penn State (5-0-0) dominated after the tone-setting first goal for the rest of Friday night’s opener, a 7-1 route in which Penn State outshot Ohio 53-22 and 13 Icer players scored at least one point.
The six-goal margin was the worst for the Bobcats in more than five seasons. Michael Schultz scored the lone goal with only two minutes remaining to avoid Ohio’s first shutout since February 2010.
Ohio faired much better in Saturday’s matinee, as Brett Agnew opened the scoring seven minutes in on the power play when Penn State goalie PJ Musico failed to corral a Zack Barbis shot.
The score remained the same heading into the third period, with the Icers controlling most of the middle frame but unable to beat Teddy Dushkin. Ohio’s goalie made several key stops on three Penn State power plays to preserve the slight cushion.
“We played really well (Saturday),” coach Dan Morris said. “We played within ourselves over the first two periods. Guys did a great job of executing our adjustments and giving us a chance to win.
“But then we got into the third period, and we ran out of gas.”
That final frame would be a nightmare for the Bobcats, as Penn State turned up the pressure and put five past Dushkin. Penn State’s surge included a hat trick by Kurt Collins to cancel out Ohio goals by Zander Dover and Agnew for a 5-3 Icers victory.
With injuries to nearly a third of its regular roster, Ohio’s trip to State College, Pa., was not going to be easy anyways. Even after the two defeats, Morris remained confident that the two rivals were on par this season.
“Going back, I think you look at our record at Penn State. In that building we don’t win very often,” he said. “They’re a much improved team, they’ve got a lot of good players obviously, but I think we proved today that there’s not that much of a difference.”
The Bobcats will have a chance at redemption when the Icers make a visit to Athens for a two-game set Jan. 27-28.
But the storyline then will depend on Ohio’s work during the next three months, Morris said.
“It’s up to our players, if they buy in,” he said.
“If we show improvement not only in January, but next weekend and the weekend after and do the things we have to do against good hockey teams, I think we’ll be in a better spot to make that judgment come January.”
Quick Stats
Friday: Penn State 7, OHIO 1
Saturday: Penn State 5, OHIO 3
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