DII men sweep Roadrunners before hosting Senior Night this Saturday

Friday, January 31

Lynchburg, VA

1:30 PM

Liberty University Club Sports

Metropolitan State University of Denver

Flames sophomore goalie Christian Sehlke guards the cage with support from sophomore defenseman Cade Pawluk (left) and freshman Gage Lonergan (5). (Photos by Kendall Tidwell)

DII men sweep Roadrunners before hosting Senior Night this Saturday

2/3/2025 8:15:00 PM | Men's D2 Hockey

Liberty recovered from a 1-2 showing at the Miami (Ohio) Showcase, when it beat the host RedHawks before falling to the top two teams in the nation, to make quick work of MSU-Denver at the LaHaye Ice Center.

Gallery: (2-3-2025) DII Men's Hockey vs. MSU-Denver

Liberty University's ACHA Division II men's hockey team bounced back from losses to the top-ranked teams in the Central Region (Lindenwood, 4-1) and Southeast Region (Florida Gulf Coast University, 5-2) on Jan. 25-26 at the Miami (Ohio) University Showcase by sweeping Metropolitan State University of Denver this past weekend at the LaHaye Ice Center.

The Flames (18-13), ranked No. 2 in the Southeast Region, defeated MSU-Denver, ranked No. 4 in the West Region, 5-2 on Friday afternoon and 3-1 on Saturday night.

"They're a strong team that moves the puck well, and for sure a team we could end up seeing down the line in the postseason," Liberty Head Coach Ben Hughes said of the Roadrunners. "Overall, the guys played really well."

Liberty opened a 2-0 lead in the first five minutes of the first period on goals by junior forward Antonio Vidal — a one-timer in the left circle off tic-tac-toe passes from graduate defenseman Dylan Kent and senior defenseman Logan Johnson — and senior forward and second-leading scorer Jared Matley, off a beautiful behind-the-net fast-break assist from junior forward and leading scorer Mark Padgett.

MSU-Denver trimmed the deficit to 2-1 on a goal by Tristan McLeod in the final 2:14 of the period, set up by the 25th assists from Tanner Caldarola and Jackson Tillinghast, the Roadrunners' leading scorer.

But after finishing the first period tied in shots, the Flames dominated in that department the rest of the way, outshooting MSU-Denver 17-5 in the second period, when they outscored the Roadrunners, 3-0, and 14-7 in the third, when they gave up the only goal.

Luke Hartmark, a freshman forward who joined the Flames for the spring semester, netted his first Liberty goal, a game winner, at the 12:40 mark of the second period, deflecting sophomore defenseman Cade Pawluk's shot from the top of the left circle past MSU-Denver starting goalie Dylan Romanow. Kent, who provided the second assist on that goal, added an insurance score on a putback of shots by Padgett and Johnson on an odd-man rush before freshman forward Anthony Emme capped the Flames' scoring by finishing fast-break feeds from Padgett and Matley with the teams skating 4-on-4.

"On Friday night, we played a solid 45 minutes before we coasted a little into the third period, when we gave them a goal," Hughes said. "For Saturday, we probably gave them a little life, and they brought more juice as well. (Sophomore goalie) CJ Sehlke played both games, and handled himself really well, giving us a chance to win both nights. On Saturday, he stopped three or four (Roadrunners') breakaways."

Midway through the first period of the rematch, the Flames got on the scoreboard when Matley deflected senior forward Corey Owens' rocket of a shot from the high slot off Kent's assist from the top of the right circle.

Junior forward Josh Martin doubled the advantage by punching in a loose puck near the goal line after an initial shot by Emme in the left circle on an odd-man rush with 6:34 left in the second period.

With Roadrunners on a power play, Soren Bredeson ripped a running wrist shot through the right circle into the top-left corner off another assist from Caldarola with 11:04 remaining in regulation before Hartmark answered for Liberty with a putback in front off a driving assist from Vidal 1:31 later, providing some insurance down the stretch.

Liberty will conclude its regular season this Saturday, when it will celebrate Senior Night for its 10 graduating players at 4:30 p.m. in the LIC. Its opponent has yet to be determined as the Flames will face one of the four quarterfinal losers from Friday's ACCHL Division II Tournament in Winston-Salem, N.C. It will then await the final regional rankings on Feb. 10 or 11 before finding out if it will maintain its No. 2 ranking and receive an autobid to the March 14-18 ACHA DII National Championships near St. Louis, as it has the past five seasons.

"We will be graduating some huge catalysts and leadership from this team," Hughes said. "Right now, we're focused on everyone's individual habits that collectively positively affect the team."

By Ted Allen/Staff Writer; Videos edited by Patrick Strawn/Club Sports Director of Video & Media