New Hampshire Falls To Omaha In Overtime, 2-1

Senior forward Casey Thrush scored a goal for the Wildcats
Prd Time  Team Score Type Scored By Assists
1st 3:12  UNH1-0 EV Casey Thrush (2)Grayson Downing/6
3rd 1:02  UNO1-1 EV Jake Randolph (4)Tyler Vesel/9, Brian O'Rourke/3
OT 3:45  UNO2-1 EV GW Austin Ortega (12)Tyler Vesel/10, Jake Randolph/14
Scoring 1st 2nd 3rd OT Final
New Hampshire  10001
Omaha  00112
Shots on Goal 1st 2nd 3rd OT SOG
New Hampshire  1279129
Omaha  13811133
Team Stats and Records  PP PIM SHGF
New Hampshire (5-11-1)  0/1 6/20 0
Omaha (12-4-3)  0/4 2/4 0
New Hampshire Goaltending MIN GA 1 2 3 OT Saves
Adam Clark (L, 5-11-1)63:452 13810031
Omaha Goaltending MIN GA 1 2 3 OT Saves
Kirk Thompson (W, 3-1-0)63:451 1179128

OMAHA, Neb. - Senior forward Casey Thrush (Easton, Md.) scored a goal but the University of New Hampshire men's hockey team fell at No. 12 University of Nebraska-Omaha, 2-1, in overtime Tuesday night at the CenturyLink Center.

With the loss, the Wildcats fall to 5-11-1 on the year as the Mavericks improve to 12-4-3 on the year.

Thrush scored the first goal of the game with 16:49 remaining in the first period as he registered his second of the season. Linemate Grayson Downing (Abbottsford, British Columbia) fed Thrush the puck in the slot who fired a shot. UNO goalie Kirk Thompson made the initial save, but Thrush followed through and buried his rebound.

With just over 11 minutes remaining in the first period, netmnider Adam Clark (Sherwood Park, Alberta) came up with a huge pad save on a shot by Omaha's Austin Orgeta. Ortega got the puck from linemate David Pope and fired a point-blank one time shot, but Clark extended his leg for the save.

Omaha's Brian Cooper almost tied the game with nearly eight minutes to play in the first period as he ripped a shot from just inside the blueline that sailed through traffic and hit the post. The rebound bounced away from the net.

At the end of the first period, the Wildcats held a 1-0 advantage.

Clark would make an additional 12 saves in the first period as he posted 13 saves on all 13 shots faced from the Omaha offense. Thompson made 11 saves on 12 shots faced in the frame.

Just over three minutes into the second period, junior Dan Correale (Prince George, British Columbia) nearly got UNH its second goal of the net on a one timer from the slot. Freshman Warren Foegele (Unionville, Ontario) fed a pass to Correale in stride to set up the play.

Clark remained a defensive force in the second period as he made saves on each of the eight shots he faced. Four of his saves came with less than a minute to play in the period. Through the second frame, Omaha held the edge in shots, 21-18.

At the 1:02 mark of the third period, the Mavericks tied the game a 1-1 with a goal by Jake Randolph. The play started as Tyler Vessel fired a shot on net that Clark made a save on, but Randolph found the rebound and put it away.

With just under 15 minutes to play in the third, the Wildcats generated a scoring opportunity at freshman Shane Eiserman (Newburyport, Mass.) played a pass to classmate Andrew Poturalski (Williamsville, N.Y.). Poturalski then found senior Matt Willows (Congers, N.Y.) coming in and played a pass to him. Willows flipped a backhander on net, but Thompson made the shoulder save.

During shorthanded play for UNH, junior Maxim Gaudreault (Annapolis, Md.) tried to break the 1-1 tie as he came in on a 2-on-1 situation with the puck. He fired a wrist shot to the high right portion of the net, but Thompson snared the puck out of the air with his glove.

Despite balanced offense between the two teams, the game would ultimately head to overtime as the score was tied, 1-1.

At the 3:45 mark of overtime, UNO's Austin Ortega found the back of the net to secure a victory for the Mavericks. Randolph played a pass over to Vessel to fired a shot that Clark saved, however Ortega scored on the rebound.

Clark made 31 saves on 33 shots faced in the game including 13 in the first period and 11 in the third period. Thompson made 28 saves on 29 shots from the Wildcats. The Wildcats killed off four power play opportunities that the Mavericks had while UNO killed off UNH's only power play.

The Wildcats wrap up the series Wednesday, Dec. 31 as they spar again with Omaha. Puck drop is set for 5:07 ET.