DE PERE, Wis. – The Concordia Wisconsin ACHA men's hockey team opened its weekend series with a thrilling victory on Friday night. Behind a four-goal performance from sophomore Dylan Pomillo (Oswego, Ill.), the Falcons battled past St. Norbert, 4-3, to secure their first victory of the season. The victory moves the Blue and White to 1-10 on the year, while the Green Knights fall to 10-5.
The Falcons wasted little time making their presence felt, striking in the opening minute of the contest.
Freshman Ryan Hogan (St. Louis, Mo.) forced a turnover and quickly found Pomillo, who charged toward the net and buried the puck to give Concordia an early 1-0 advantage.
The Green Knights answered with a pair of first-period goals to take a 2-1 lead into the first intermission.
The Blue and White refused to back down and came out firing in the second period.
Pomillo struck for the second time on Friday night, firing a shot from the far circle past the St. Norbert goaltender to even the contest at two. Senior Rocco Cicirello (Mequon, Wis.) and junior Nolan O'Malley (Chicago, Ill.) collected assists on the equalizer.
The Falcons continued to apply pressure, and just two minutes later, Pomillo completed the hat trick to put Concordia back in front.
O'Malley sent a shot toward the net, and Pomillo was there to clean up the rebound in front of the cage, giving the Falcons a 3-2 advantage and completing his three-goal outburst.
St. Norbert responded midway through the second period, finding the back of the net to even the contest at three and set the stage for a dramatic finish.
With the Falcons shorthanded, Pomillo delivered the defining moment of the night. The Oswego, Ill., native broke free from the Green Knights' defense and raced toward the net on a breakaway. Pomillo made the most of the opportunity, burying his fourth goal of the evening to put Concordia ahead for good, 4-3.
The shorthanded strike capped a remarkable offensive performance from Pomillo, who accounted for all four Concordia goals in the victory.
With the lead in hand, the Falcons turned to their defense to finish the job.
The Blue and White stood tall throughout the third period, holding off the Green Knights and protecting their one-goal advantage to secure the hard-fought road victory.
Senior Austin Bartell (New Berlin, Wis.) anchored the Concordia defense between the pipes, turning aside 26 shots to earn the victory.
The Falcons finished Friday's contest with a commanding 50-26 advantage in shots, showcasing an aggressive offensive attack throughout the evening.
The victory gives Concordia momentum heading into the second half of the weekend series after handing the Green Knights their fifth loss of the season.
The Blue and White return home on Saturday morning to close out the weekend series against St. Norbert.
