KALAMAZOO, Mich. – The Western Michigan hockey team forced a game three in the National Collegiate Hockey Conference Quarterfinals after beating Omaha, 5-2, on Saturday night at Lawson Ice Arena.
The line of Hugh McGing, Colt Conrad and Wade Allison combined for 10 points on four goals and six assists. With the exception of a late goal by Michael Rebry, the line was responsible for every other goal. McGing and Conrad both finished with career-highs, with McGing scoring two goals and tallying an assist for three points. Conrad finished with three assists and a goal for the first four-point game of his career. Allison had a goal and two assists.
Omaha jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead on a goal just 48 seconds into the first period. Mason Morelli fired the puck down the ice and Justin Parizek won a race to it to negate the potential icing call. Parizek played a drop pass back to Tyler Vesel and he put it in the net.
Conrad tied the game up at 7:56 in the first period after his 12th goal of the season. Allison fired a shot on net and McGing controlled the rebound, sending it to Conrad in the slot for the goal.
WMU took its first lead of the night, 2-1, at 10:49 in the first period on McGing's first of the night. Allison played the puck to Conrad just across the UNO blue line and the sophomore forward found McGing at the far post for the tap-in goal.
Austin Ortega scored just 13 seconds into the second period to tie the game up at 2-2. Right off the faceoff David Pope found him alone at the WMU blue line for the breakaway goal.
The second period ended in a 2-2 tie but Allison netted the game-winning goal just 52 seconds into the third period. Corey Schueneman passed it up to Allison at the Omaha blue line and he split defenders and fired it through Even Weninger's legs and into the net for his 12th goal of the season. The goal ended a seven-game scoring drought for the Philadelphia Flyers' draft pick.
McGing scored his second of the night and eighth of the year at 12:21 of the third period to give the Broncos a 4-2 lead. Scott Moldenhauer chipped the puck out of the WMU zone off the glass and up to Conrad. Conrad took the puck into the left circle and out-waited a defenseman before passing it across the crease to McGing and he lifted it over Weninger and into the net.
Fifty seconds later Rebry made it 5-2. Conrad controlled a rebound on a shot by Luke Bafia and threw it into the slot. The puck got deflected off of an Omaha player's body and right to Rebry, who fired it into the top-left corner of the net to seal the win.
Omaha outshot the Broncos 38-32 on the night. Ben Blacker made 36 saves and both teams were held scoreless on two power plays each.
The decisive game three will be on Sunday night at 7:00 p.m.
