Sports

After twice tying in 3rd period, UAA tumbles again

For every glimpse of hope Friday night -- and the UAA hockey team delivered several in a 4-3 loss to No. 11-ranked Bowling Green -- there was a counter-balancing snapshot of regret.

The Seawolves twice forged third-period ties. But they also twice surrendered the go-ahead goal in the third period.

The Seawolves pushed back from deficits of 2-0 and 3-2, but the Falcons authored the final shove on Brandon Hawkins' game-winning strike with less than eight minutes to go at Sullivan Arena.

The Seawolves enjoyed the luxury of a two-man advantage in the third period, and they cashed in to generate one of those ties. But they also committed yet another major penalty -- defenseman Austin Sevalrud got the gate for boarding in the third period, UAA's 14th major penalty in 31 games -- and the Falcons exploited that five-minute advantage situation for a go-ahead goal.

Brad Duwe scored twice in the third period for the sophomore's first multi-goal game, and both goals knotted the game. Those goals snapped his seven-game goal drought and offered him redemption for his missed check of Brett D'Andrea in the first period just a moment before D'Andrea punctuated a 3-on-2 rush with the game's first goal.

The Seawolves scored three goals for the first time in the last eight games. But they have surrendered at least four goals in five of the last seven games.

So it goes for the Seawolves, who can't seem to crawl their way over the hump that grows higher and steeper every weekend.

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The fallout from the loss was severe. UAA, last in the 10-team Western Collegiate Hockey Association, squandered another chance to make up ground on ninth-place Lake Superior State of Michigan. Before the Seawolves even took the ice, the Lakers had lost 5-0 at Northern Michigan.

UAA (7-19-4, 4-19-2 WCHA) remains three points behind Lake Superior State and each team has three regular-season games remaining. The team that finishes last will be the only eligible team that fails to qualify for the WCHA playoffs -- sixth-place UAF is prohibited from postseason play because of NCAA violations in previous seasons.

The Seawolves, who were missing leading goal scorer Scott Allen (upper-body injury), have also lost nine consecutive games, which ties for the fourth-longest losing streak in the program's 36 seasons.

"It's tough, it really is,'' said Duwe. "We know what we're doing wrong and how to fix it. The results aren't showing. It's frustrating.''

UAA coach Matt Thomas liked a lot of what he saw from his team, but the result was disheartening for a team that had opportunity in front of it.

"We executed well, played the system well, we had push-back,'' he said. "We just have to eliminate those mistakes.

"It's just so disappointing we can't complete a game right now.''

Bowling Green (19-9-5, 17-7-3 WCHA) snapped its three-game losing streak -- all three of those were one-goal decisions, two in overtime -- and locked itself into third place on the circuit, which guarantees it home-ice advantage in the first round of the playoffs.

Bowling Green owned a 2-0 lead nearly halfway through the game, courtesy of D'Andrea's first-period goal of Dajon Mingo's feed and the generosity of puck luck on Mitchell McLain's goal early in the second period. McLain, on the rush, tried to feed a pass across to linemate Matt Pohlkamp. UAA winger Austin Azurdia dove to the ice with his stick extended on the backcheck, hoping to break up the relay, and inadvertently deflected the puck past his goaltender, Olivier Mantha (28 saves).

UAA junior center Blake Tatchell kick-started the comeback near the midway point of the second period with the first short-handed goal of his Seawolves career. McLain, facing the left-wing boards, made an ill-advised pass diagonally along the blue line. Tatchell swooped on the turnover, raced on a breakaway and flicked a dart over the blocker of Tommy Burke (18 saves) to cut UAA's deficit to 2-1.

Duwe just 35 seconds into the second period snapped a shot past Burke off Matt Anholt's face-off win on right wing for a 2-2 tie.

Yet Adam Berkle furnished the Falcons a 3-2 lead on Sevalrud's major penalty. Still, Duwe showed a nice touch on a power-play strike to generate a 3-3 tie. Tad Kozun's shot from the bottom of the right circle was blocked and the puck ricocheted to Duwe at the top of the crease. He used his left skate to kick it to his stick blade and quickly snapped a shot past Burke.

Hawkins' game-winning goal came on a chaotic shift in UAA's zone, where the Seawolves defended poorly in this instance. Hawkins' initial shot from the goal line on left wing -- that bid came with Mantha out of his net after contact in the crease -- hit off the side of the cage and tumbled high into the air. Hawkins seemed about the only player on the ice who tracked it, and he picked it up and snapped it home.

UAA compounded its challenge with a penalty for too many men with five minutes to go. The Seawolves also couldn't get Mantha off for an extra attacker until the waning seconds. Duwe's last-second bid was blocked by defenseman Sean Walker (two assists).

And that hump the Seawolves can't scramble over grew yet again entering Saturday night's series finale against the Falcons.

Reach Doyle Woody at dwoody@alaskadispatch.com, check out his blog at adn.com/hockey-blog and follow him on Twitter at @JaromirBlagr

Doyle Woody

Doyle Woody covered hockey and other sports for the Anchorage Daily News for 34 years.

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