(Photo: Amanda Luberto/WCSN)
The ASU DII Elite team headed into their final game with three things in mind: win for the seniors, do not let the disappointing news of their stat change affect them, and simply beat the team that won the night before. The Sun Devils did all three as they beat the Utah State Aggies 5-2 in the last home game of the season.
The Sun Devils didn’t get off to a good start as Utah State forward Cooper Limb scored a short-handed goal seven minutes into the game. USU’s stout defense shook the Sun Devil’s confidence and held the 1-0 through the first.
ASU forward Coda Engbar put the Sun Devils on the board in the second, scoring on an assist from senior captain Justin Havriliak. The goal swung momentum back into ASU’s favor.
Freshman Brad Swampy took the lead back for Utah State as he was able to beat senior goalie Kyle Dietriech. Going into this game, Dietriech had a 22-1 personal record.
Three minutes later, Jacob Brown got the first of many game misconducts the Sun Devils would earn as he had to be ejected from the game for his hit from behind on USU’s Derrek Shoup.
Forward John Randall brought ASU back into the game with a sniper goal with less than two minutes remaining, ending the second period in a tie.
Forward Jason Kuta raised the bar for the final period by scoring a goal within the first two minutes with an assist from forward Justin Butler. The rest of the period followed with a much more organized Sun Devil team, making solid passes and increasing team connection.
Utah State suffered a messy ending to the game as the team was penalized with five game misconducts throughout the third period. Kuta and Butler found each other on ice once more for an effortless goal before forward Brady Morgan scored his last goal of the season in the final minutes.
The ASU DII Elite Sun Devils ended the game with a 5-2 victory and would have ended the season with a 27-2. With the sanctions due to a player violation, the team ended with a record of 5-24. For more information please see the ASU hockey website.
You can contact this reporter at amanda.luberto@yahoo.com or @amanda_luberto
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