An Even Final 44:58 With No.6

MOORHEAD, Minn. (2/08/20)--- Concordia played even with No.6-ranked Gustavus for the final 44:58 of the series final between the teams but a pair of goals in the first 15:02 sent the Cobbers to a 3-1 loss.

Concordia started slowly against Gustavus and the Gusties made CC pay as they put up unassisted goals at the 3:14 mark and then again at 15:02. Cobber freshman goalie Kiana Flaig once again kept Concordia close as she turned aside 12 of the 14 shots she faced in the opening 20 minutes of play. Gustavus wound up outshooting CC 14-1 in the first period.

The Cobbers flipped the switch in the locker room between the first two periods and proceeded to play two of their best periods of the season. The Gusties held a slight 19-15 edge in shots in the final 40 minutes with both teams coming away with one goal.

Concordia pulled to within one goal in the seventh minute of the second period. Sophomore defenseman Jordie Egerdahl scored her second goal of the year at 6:01 and the Cobbers were within one at 2-1. Libby Hinrichs and Maiah McCowan earned the assists on the even strength goal.

The Gusties turned the momentum back in their favor in the dying seconds of the middle period. They were able to push the lead back to two goals by converting a turnover into an even-strength tally at the 19:52 mark.

Both teams had nine shots on goal in the middle frame.

Instead of heading to the third period trailing 2-1, CC faced a 2-goal deficit and was never able to get close in the final 20 minutes of play.

Gustavus was able to lock down the Cobber offense in the final 20 minutes of play to complete the sweep.

Flaig finished with 30 saves in the game and stopped 72 shots in the 2-game series.

Hinrichs and Hannah Christian both had three shots on goal to lead the Cobbers.

Neither team was able to post a power play goal. Both teams went 0-for-4 with the extra skater.

INSIDE STAT INFO: The best way to describe Concordia's offensive output in 2020 is "team effort". With Egerdahl recording her second goal of the year on Saturday, the Cobbers now have 13 players with at least two goals on the year. Last year CC only had eight players register two or more goals.                

UP NEXT: Concordia takes to the road for the final time in 2020 next weekend when they play Augsburg in Minneapolis in a 2-game series on Feb. 14-15. The Auggies are 16-5-0 on the year with a 11-3-0 record in the MIAC. They are currently tied for third in the MIAC standings.

Saturday recaps sponsored by Bufffalo Wild Wings: Grab your friends and get to B-Dubs on Sunday nights for College Nights at 9 p.m. 50% off 1 food item with ID and $3 apps at the Buffalo Wild Wings located on Hwy 10 in Moorhead.