ST. PAUL, Minn. – The Concordia Wisconsin men's ACHA hockey team battled hard against the fifth-ranked Tommies of St. Thomas on Saturday morning. UST claimed a 4-3 victory to send the Falcons to 18-12-0 on the year.

The Tommies struck first on Saturday with a goal in the first period.

Sophomore Dominic Murano (Milwaukee, Wis.) tied the game in the first minute of the second period off assists from senior Andrew Malek (Milwaukee, Wis.) and senior Tommy Cassel (Grafton, Wis.).

St. Thomas struck again halfway through the period to take a 2-1 lead into the third period.

Junior Chuck Emme (Glenview, Ill.) tied the game early in the third period with an assist from senior Garrett Wilderman (Waukesha, Wis.).

The Purple and White posted the next two goals to reclaim the lead at 4-2.

Senior Rex Staudacher (Yorkville, Ill.) cut the deficit in half on the power play with a late goal off a sophomore Rocco Cicirello (Mequon, Wis.) assist.

The Falcons fought until the final whistle but could not level the contest.

Senior Austin Bartell (New Berlin, Wis.) posted 30 saves in the loss.

Concordia held a 46-34 advantage in shots on Saturday.

The Falcons will face the top-ranked team in the nation on Friday night in Lindenwood at the Lindenwood Showcase.