Jobst Strikes Twice, McCormick Nets Shootout Winner against No. 1/2 Penn State

The men's hockey Buckeyes and the Nittany Lions met for round No. 3 on Friday night. The game lived up to its billing as a hotly contested conference battle between high-scoring teams. In the end, 60 minutes weren’t sufficient to decide a winner.

Ohio State got off to a slow start. The penalty kill was called upon within the first minute of the game. The Bucks successfully defended their net. However the penalty put them behind the eight ball. The offense was slow to engage. 

Penn State suffered no such difficulty. The home team held a 24-3 edge in first period shots. Goalie Christian Frey stood tall against the Nittany Lions’ assault but one puck slipped by him. PSU’s James Robinson scored the opening goal with the extra attacker on a delayed penalty against the Buckeyes.

The ice leveled out in the second period. Action was back and forth. The teams traded goals. Josh Healey netted the equalizer for Ohio State. He was assisted on the play by Dave Gust and Dakota Joshua.

Joshua, along with Matt Weis, made a return to the Buckeye line up from the ranks of the walking wounded. As expected, leading scorer Nick Schilkey did not play. Neither did the Bucks’ star rookie and No. 3 point man Tanner Laczynski.

The teams remained tied until late in the middle frame. Vince Pedrie nabbed another go-ahead goal for the Nittany Lions at the 18:26 mark. Penn State held a 2-1 lead going into the final 20 minutes.

The Buckeyes drew even once again in the third period. Mason Jobst, potted his eighth goal of the season, knotting the score at two all. Momentum then swung back in PSU’s favor. Alec Marsh popped in a third Nittany Lion marker with 7:19 left on the clock.  

But Ohio State refused to die. Moments later Penn State was hit with an untimely roughing penalty. Jobst drew the Bucks even for a third time with a power play goal, his second tally of the contest.

Regulation came to an end. Neither side prevailed in the overtime session, though PSU had a golden opportunity with a full two minutes of power play time. Frey was stellar in extra time and the ensuing shootout. His top notch netminding opened the door for Buckeye freshman Sam McCormick's seventh round shootout winner.

Jobst, Gust, and Joshua each tallied two points to lead the Buckeyes. Frey was huge in turning aside a whopping 56 shots. Ohio State is now 11-4-6 overall and 2-2-1-1 in the Big Ten. As tight as the conference race is shaping up to be, tonight’s extra point might wind up being very important.     

The Bucks and Nittany Lions conclude their regular season series tomorrow. Game time is scheduled for 7pm ET. You can follow along on the radio via 1460 AM or stream the contest online with a BTN Plus subscription. 

Late Gophers Goal Sinks Women’s Hockey Bucks

The first period was a scoreless affair. Kassidy Sauve stopped all eight shots that the Gophers threw at her. Minnesota goalie Emma May, taking the reins from Sidney Peters, turned aside the Buckeyes’ three attempts. 

Ohio State surged ahead in the second period. Two of the Buckeyes’ hottest scorers hooked up to give the team a 1-0 lead. Maddy Field fed Julianna Iafallo for the score. Field now boasts two goals and four assists in her last five games. Iafallo owns two goals and three assists in the same span. 

The Buckeye goal spurred the Gophers into action. They outshot the Bucks 13-1 over the remainder of the period and 18-3 in total. Sauve was equal to the task, though. She further frustrated Minnesota by denying every last shot.

Minnesota’s surge continued into the third period and this time the Buckeyes couldn’t stop it. The Gophers edged Ohio State 7-2 in shots over the final frame. Caitlin Reilly tied the tilt at the 10:43 mark. Minnesota’s leading scorer, Kelly Pannek, notched the game winner with 3:37 left on the clock.

The teams are back in action to wrap up their season series tomorrow at 3pm ET. The game can be streamed online through a subscription to BTN Plus.