Flames Hockey Opens with 9-0 Demolition of IUP in Front of Home Fans
The Liberty Flames D1 men’s hockey team decimated the Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) Crimson Hawks 9-0 in the Flames’ Sept. 17 home opener.
The Flames, led by freshman forward Truett Olson’s hat trick, put on an offensive clinic against the Crimson Hawks, outshooting IUP 60-20 in the matchup. Backed by a loud crowd in a sold-out LaHaye Ice Center, it seemed as if nothing could go wrong for Liberty.
Along with an outstanding offense, the defense and goalie Hunter Virostek dominated the ice to force the shutout.
After a few missed opportunities early, Liberty opened the scoring with a goal by graduate defenseman Chayden Lauber. The Crimson Hawk defense dropped back towards the goal in an attempt to stop the Flames’ offense, but it opened up a lane for Lauber to put one in the back of the net. Lauber’s goal set the tone early, and the Flames never looked back.
Truett Olson and Brett Gammer added to the Flames’ lead, scoring to put the Flames up 3-0 to end the first period. The Crimson Hawks had a chance to capitalize on a power play after a Liberty penalty, but IUP was not able to score on the breakaway.
The second period brought more missed opportunities for IUP. The Crimson Hawks ended up with multiple power play chances, but the Flames continued to deny the Crimson Hawks.
Gammer scored for the Flames on a beautiful backhand shot to increase the lead at the 15:27 mark. Lauber scored the next goal for Liberty, giving him two goals on the night. Lauber spoke before the game about the team needing points to seal the victory.
“We need all the points we can get this year because we want to give ourselves the best chance at nationals with the best position,” Lauber said in an interview with Liberty News. “We know every game’s important because even if you drop one or two, that could be a huge impact on the final rankings.”
Things would slow down tremendously in the first 14 minutes of the third period. However, with six minutes left in the game, Liberty’s offense exploded for four more goals to close out the game.
Kam Ottenbrett and Jason Foltz scored during the barrage of goals in the third period. Olson added two goals as well to complete his hat trick. After the game, Olson noted how the fans brought energy to the game.
“It was pretty exciting,” Olson said in an interview with Liberty News. “It was awesome to see all the people coming out. I could feel their energy when I was out there on the ice, so it was a great experience.”
The Flames won again when the team faced NC State Sept. 18. They actually trailed 3-1 after the first period before storming back to snatch a 8-4 victory.
The D1 men’s hockey team will be back on the ice to face the University of Michigan-Dearborn at home Oct. 1-2.
Harper is a sports reporter. Follow him on Twitter at @jharpmedia.