THUNDER BAY – SPORTS – For the second night in a row, the Lakehead Thunderwolves were downed 3-1 by the Ontario Tech Ridgebacks at the Campus Ice Centre in Oshawa on Saturday.
Mike Robinson struck twice for the Ridgebacks in the opening frame; his first on a deflection that eluded Wolves’ goalie Devin Green midway through the period on a UOIT power play, his second coming with just 44 seconds remaining to give UOIT a 2-0 lead after 20 minutes.
Patrick Murphy got Lakehead on the scoreboard 2:08 into the second with a hard wrister from the high slot that beat UOIT netminder Brendan O’Neill on the glove side, with Daniel Del Paggio and Sam Schutt getting the assists.
The Wolves really picked up the pace in the middle stanza and threatened to tie the game with several good scoring chances, but O’Neill was equal to the task.
The Ridgebacks converted on another power play opportunity when Alex Yuill rocketed a one-timer past Green at 19:38, giving UOIT the momentum back and a two-goal lead heading into the third.
Each side had good scoring chances in the final period, but excellent goaltending at both ends of the ice kept the score at 3-1 for UOIT when the clock showed zeros.
Total shots on goal in the game favored the Ridgebacks by a margin of 28-24.
On the night, the Thunderwolves were 0-for-2 on the power play while the Ridgebacks went 2-for-4.
Lakehead concludes the fall portion of its schedule with an OUA record of 6-8-1 (8-10-1 overall) and currently sit in 7th place in the West Division.
The Wolves will return to the ice on December 28-29 when they host the Guelph Gryphons in the annual Christmas challenge at the Fort William Gardens.
