The Michigan State Spartans (12-12-2, Big Ten 5-5-2) handed the nineteenth-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions (15-9-4, Big Ten 7-4-1) their first sweep of the season, taking the game by a final score of 3-2 in East Lansing on Saturday night.
Spartans’ forward Mackenzie MacEachern was the dominating force of the game, using two powerplay chances enroute to three goals against the Nittany Lions’ goaltender Matthew Skoff to pick up the natural hat trick.
Despite the fact that Penn State outshot Michigan State 42-29, netminder Jake Hildebrand was solid between the pipes, stopping Penn State’s flurry of shots from nearly every angle.
Michigan State opened the scoring with MacEachern’s first goal 10:02 into the first period. Ron Boyd picked up the assist, angling the puck to MacEachern for the point.
Penn State evened the score in the second period after defenseman Connor Varley found a hole in Hildebrand’s defense and sailed it into the back of the net. Top line member Eric Scheid collected the assist on the Lions’ first goal, picking up his tenth of the season.
Penn State tried to carry the momentum through the rest of the period, but the Nittany Lions picked up two quick penalties that gave Michigan State a 5-on-3 opportunity and allowed the team to recover its lead when Matt Deblouw marched the puck down the ice and took an unsuccessful shot on Skoff. MacEachern picked up the rebound and drilled it behind Skoff to give the Spartans a one-point lead.
MacEachern would use the third period to score the final goal for Michigan State. Spartans’ star Matt Berry set up his teammate for the finishing touch with 10:38 remaining in regulation.
Penn State head coach Guy Gadowsky pulled Skoff with just over three minutes remaining to give the Lions the man advantage during a 4-on-4 situation, allowing winger Casey Bailey to record his twentieth goal for the season when he finalized the score with just over two minutes remaining to play.
Penn State will look to snap its losing streak when the team returns to Pegula Ice Arena to clash with the Minnesota Golden Gophers in another weekend series. Friday’s game is set for a 6:30 p.m. start on the Big Ten Network; Saturday’s game will begin at 5 p.m. on ESPNU.
Photo Credit: GoPSUSports.com
