Syracuse ice hockey falls short of the sweep in a 2-1 loss to Lindenwood
By: Carter Masterson | @cwmasterson16
Maryland Heights, Mo. — After four straight goals to close out yesterday’s contest, Syracuse ice hockey (8-4, 6-4 AHA) faced off against Lindenwood (6-10, 3-7 AHA) for the second game of the set. SU came in looking for its first sweep in Missouri since 2021, but the Lions protected the Centene Community Ice Center in a 2-1 victory over the Orange.
The game got off to a hot start for the ‘Cuse with a power-play chance less than a minute in. SU totaled three shots on the advantage but could not break through. The Orange continued to apply pressure, and the Lions didn’t tally their first shot until after the 10-minute mark. Syracuse broke through with almost five minutes left in the period when it got its second power-play chance of the day. Stella Costabile buried the puck for the second game in a row, and Emma Gnade tacked on an assist to pad her points lead. However, LU fought back when SU gave up a penalty of its own and tied the game with under a minute remaining in the first. Both teams went to the locker room confident, but the Orange dominated the faceoff dot and held a 13-4 lead in shots after a relatively fast first frame.
The second period played even quicker than the first. The ‘Cuse started hot and peppered the LU goaltender with shots, but absolutely nothing could get past. A Syracuse penalty provided the best chance of the period for Lindenwood on the power play with around seven minutes to go in the period. Ava Drabyk answered the call when her teammates needed her. The sophomore made five saves on the power play to keep the game tied. After that, SU got right back on the attack, but nothing was getting by Lindenwood goaltender Ebba Ridderstolpe.
In the final frame of the weekend, Lindenwood came out playing its hardest all weekend. The Lions started off with five unanswered shots, and the mounting pressure came to a boiling point when LU took the lead. That goal, just five minutes into the final frame changed the tone of the game. The Orange struggled to get going in the third, but a penalty about halfway through gave the ‘Cuse its best chances of the day. Once again, though, Ridderstolpe stole the show and kept SU off the board. The Orange continued to push the rest of the period, but they could not muster up any other Grade-A scoring chances, and the Lions came away with the win.
The ‘Cuse are back in action next Friday when it travels to play RPI before SU plays host on Saturday. I’ll have live game updates on X at @cwmasterson16 when game time arrives.
