Ohio State completed their non-conference schedule this week at Mercyhurst’s Snowtown Throwdown. After defeating the Lakers last night, the Scarlet and Gray had a quick turnaround to this afternoon’s tilt.
The Bucks did not get off to as good a start today as they did in Friday’s game. The two teams skated through 19 scoreless minutes. With just 16 ticks left in the first period a power play goal by Mercyhurst’s Jack Riley put the Lakers up 1-0.
| goals by period | 1 | 2 | 3 | final |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Mercyhurst | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Mercyhurst extended its lead in the opening minutes of the second period, but Ohio State battled back. Matt Johnson, Chad Niddery, and Christian Lampasso connected to put the Buckeyes on the board. The tally was Johnson’s eighth of the season. The lunch pail line, OSU’s most consistent this season, combined for four goals and six assists this series.
Midway through the third period the Buckeyes still trailed by a goal. Anthony Greco knotted the game with his eighth of the season. In addition to securing the tie for the Bucks, the marker drew the junior even with Johnson for the team lead in goals scored.
Ohio State put pressure on Mercyhurst for the remainder of regulation but wasn’t able find the back of the net. The overtime period brought chances for both sides but the goaltenders stood tall. This being a non-conference, and therefore non-shootout, game the contest ended in a 2-2 tie.
| pd | time | buckeye goal scorer (assists) |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 10:50 | Matt Johnson (Chad Niddery, Christian Lampasso) |
| 3 | 11:32 | Anthony Greco (Tanner Fritz, Craig Dalrymple) |
Shots for the game were near to even with OSU holding a slight 28-26 edge. Sophomore Christian Frey started in net for the Buckeyes and finished with 24 saves. The Ohio State power play went 0-for-4 and its penalty killers stopped two of Mercyhurst’s three man advantages.
This was OSU's best series result since a tie and win at Canisius the beginning of November. It wasn’t a flawless series by any means, but it was a pretty good start to 2015. The hockey Bucks return to action (and Big Ten play) next week when they’ll be hosted by No. 20 Penn State.
