EAU CLAIRE, Wis. – The No. 1-ranked UW-Stevens Point men's hockey team (23-0-2, 8-0-0) defeated No. 3-ranked UW-Eau Claire (18-5-2, 4-3-1), 7-1, on Saturday to become the first team in school history to finish the regular season unbeaten.
Four players recorded a multi-point game with Kelly O'Brien (Detroit, Mich.) leading the charge with his second career hat trick and adding an assist. Colin Raver (Bartlett, Ill.), Zach Zech (South Lyon, Mich.), and Steven Quagliata (Bartlett, Ill.) each finished with a goal and an assist.
Raver opened the scoring at 7:25 of the first period. Danny Kiraly (Glendale, Ariz.) picked up the assist.
O'Brien doubled the lead 13:31 into the first with his first of the night. Stephan Beauvais (Shelby Township, Mich.) and Ryan Bittner (Crookston, Minn.) dished out the assists.
The Pointers increased the lead to 3-0 when Zech scored at 15:08 of opening period. Tanner Karty (Oklahoma City, Okla.) and O'Brien provided the helpers on the goal.
UW-Eau Claire scored their only goal of the night on the power-play at the 16:31 mark of the first.
Just under four minutes into the second, O'Brien picked up his second of the night to make it 4-1, with Karty getting the assist.
For the second night in a row, Quagliata tallied a power-play goal, going top-shelf on the UWEC goalie. He scored 5:08 into the second with the assist going to Raver.
O'Brien recorded his second career hat trick with 5:00 remaining in the second. Brennen Miller (Keller, Texas) and Zech picked up the assists.
Wilson Northey (North Vancouver, B.C.) scored his first career collegiate goal at 18:35 of the final period. Luke McElhenie (Sauk City, Wis.) and Quagliata got the assists on the play.
Sophomore goaltender, Connor Ryckman (Minesing, Ont.), improved to 20-0-1 on the season, making 44 saves in the game.
The Pointers return to action on Friday, February 22 at K.B. Willett Arena in the semifinals of the WIAC Conference Tournament. They will face the winner of UW-Stout and UW-River Falls. Puck drop is scheduled for 7:00 p.m.
