SAN ANTONIO – UTSA Hockey returned home and earned back-to-back blowout wins in a weekend sweep against East Texas Baptist University at the Ice & Golf Center at Northwoods. Despite UTSA visiting the penalty box numerous times, the Roadrunners won 9-1 Friday and 7-2 Saturday to complete the sweep.
Game One
Junior forward Jaylen Mendez opened the scoring three minutes in. Senior forward Jonathan Blum and junior forward Travis Sorce scored a goal each in the middle of the period. Freshman forward Caden Wong scored the fourth goal with four minutes left in the period to make it 4-1.
The second period had both teams chasing after the puck for 12 minutes. PhD candidate goalie Joe Spracklen froze the biscuit until Mendez scored the fifth goal of the game. Sorce scored with two minutes remaining on the clock. Despite leading, UTSA’s patience was wearing thin as Mendez and freshman defenseman Evan Grainer got into two separate fights during the same stoppage. Both were escorted into the penalty box a minute before time ran out.
“Caden Wong played so well,” Sorce shared after being named the evening’s MVP. “He’s one of the younger guys on our team, and he’s been growing so much and he’s a really good player. Honestly, he deserved Player of the Game more than I did.”
The third period allowed Sorce to score a hat-trick goal in the first minute. Grainer followed suit, scoring six minutes in. Wong scored a Gordie Howe hat-trick fresh out of the penalty box on minute 13, and the rest of the period, ETBU had a 5-on-4 advantage due to senior forward Joshua Lecomte getting into a scuffle with two opposing players.
Game Two
At 2 p.m., senior night attendees cheered for the Ice Birds and UTSA hockey as seniors Nariah Garza, Paulina González, Spracklen, Blum, Lecomte and captain defenseman Noah Dow walked on the ice to get photographed with their loved ones before warm-ups.
“One of the big things I’ve learned is to learn how to work with people and necessarily find a way to make everyone feel included and not left out,” Dow said, reflecting on his time with the team.
“Sometimes you guys take sacrifices, sometimes you don’t want to be a leader, but you know you should because you have the qualities to,” Lecomte added. “So, sometimes you just gotta put yourself in that situation, the rest will come.”
Sophomore forward Corey Devereaux scored the first goal of the game three minutes into the first period. With Blum in the penalty box, the chase after the puck was unbalanced with a 5-on-4 power play favoring ETBU. Freshman defenseman Thad Bielanski wrist-shot an insurance goal on minute 11. Sorce finished the period scoring on minute 17, leaving the scoreboard at 3-1.
The second period started to heat up as players were going into the penalty box for roughing. Sorce scored on minute eight, and freshman defender Justin Trevino took advantage of UTSA’s 4-on-5 power play to score. The 4-on-5 turned into a 4-on-4 when penalties were given left and right for high-sticking, roughing and fighting, among other penalties from sophomore forward Jackson Stubblefield, Blum and Lecomte.
“We let them just play a mental game with us that we’ve been trying to avoid all year long,” Coach Zac Swank shared regarding the game before pivoting back to praising his seniors. “Thank you guys for everything you do for the team. It’s a great group of kids, and without them this program’s not even possible. Great guys, love them to death, and sad to see them go, but we got an exciting group coming in. The team’s only going to get better from here on out.”
The third period was the most aggressive of the night. Devereaux scored the sixth goal in minute two, and Wong followed suit with UTSA’s last goal in the next minute. Penalties increased in the rest of the game when the 4-on-5 turned into a 3-on-5 in favor of ETBU. The last one to visit the box was Lecomte with nine minutes remaining. The battle for the puck intensified. While saucer passes, hand passes and body checks were happening alternatively, the matchup ended 7-2, ensuring a well-fought win for UTSA.
“I’ve seen how much work Josh and Noah have put towards the team behind the scenes and just seeing how it’s come from nothing,” Spracklen shared. “I just hope that the newcomers are appreciative of the opportunity to play hockey again, to play some meaningful games, to wear the UTSA jersey that we all think is so special.”
UTSA will head up I-35 to face Dallas Baptist University at 8:30 p.m. on Friday at StarCenter-Farmers Branch.
