Re: 2020 NCAA Hockey Tournament - What If: A Simulation of the 2019-2020 Postseason
Midwest Regional – Allentown
#2 – Penn State v. #3 – Massachusetts Lowell
The Penn State Nittany Lions and the Massachusetts Lowell RiverHawks squared off in the second Midwest Regional Semifinal here in Allentown, with a slot in the Midwest Regional Final on the line. The sides met earlier this season in an epic thriller in Lowell, with Penn State forcing overtime with a goal in the final seconds of regulation, but UML had the last laugh, winning in overtime. The two goalies who waged that battle were back in the nets this afternoon, Peyton Jones for Penn State and Tyler Wall for the RiverHawks. The netminders outperformed the skaters in the opening twenty minutes, as Jones stopped each of the RiverHawks 9 shots on goal, and Wall kept out all of Penn State’s 11 shots on net, and after one period of play, the score remained 0-0. However, the Penn State-friendly crowd in Allentown got to finally roar early in the second period when Liam Folkes tallied a powerplay goal, corralling a rebound at the near post and sliding the puck into the back of the net to put the Nittany Lions up 1-0. Midway through the second period the UML fans, many of whom chartered flights to get to Allentown, finally got their chance to make some noise. Seth Barton flung a beautiful saucer pass through the neutral zone, which connected with Connor Sodergren’s stick, who skated between the Penn State defenders and lifted a wrister over Jones’ blocker and into the back of the net to tie the game at 1-1. The RiverHawks’ faithful would not sit down for long, as just two minutes later, Carl Berglund found Matt Brown at the bottom of the near circle, and Brown one-timed the puck underneath Jones’ sliding pads to give Lowell its first lead of the game at 2-1. Wall kept the Nittany Lions off the board the rest of the second period, continuing his strong postseason play, and after forty minutes of action, Lowell held a one-goal advantage. The Nittany Lions were given a great opportunity to knot the score just over five minutes into the third period when Anthony Baxter was called for interference. PSU held the puck in the Lowell zone for the first 90 seconds of the man advantage, but were unable to solve Wall. However, just as Baxter got back on the ice, Nate Sucese took a pass along the far boards, skated towards the slot, and ripped a wrister that Wall caught a piece of with his glove, but the puck trickled over his arm and into the back of the net to tie the game at 2-2. The two sides pushed for the go-ahead goal, but as the clock wound down in the third, it appeared the two sides would again need an extra session to settle this one. But with just under three minutes to play, Cole Hults launched a blast from the point that deflected off Alex Limoges’ hip, who was stationed at the top of the crease. Wall, unable to react in time, watched as the puck bounced into the net, and the Nittany Lions took a 3-2 lead with just a few minutes to play. The RiverHawks desperately pushed for the equalizer in the final 150 seconds, but Jones was able to keep the puck out of his net, and when the game ended, it was Penn State advancing to the Midwest Regional Final with a 3-2 victory over Massachusetts Lowell.
Midwest Regional – Allentown
#2 – Penn State v. #3 – Massachusetts Lowell
The Penn State Nittany Lions and the Massachusetts Lowell RiverHawks squared off in the second Midwest Regional Semifinal here in Allentown, with a slot in the Midwest Regional Final on the line. The sides met earlier this season in an epic thriller in Lowell, with Penn State forcing overtime with a goal in the final seconds of regulation, but UML had the last laugh, winning in overtime. The two goalies who waged that battle were back in the nets this afternoon, Peyton Jones for Penn State and Tyler Wall for the RiverHawks. The netminders outperformed the skaters in the opening twenty minutes, as Jones stopped each of the RiverHawks 9 shots on goal, and Wall kept out all of Penn State’s 11 shots on net, and after one period of play, the score remained 0-0. However, the Penn State-friendly crowd in Allentown got to finally roar early in the second period when Liam Folkes tallied a powerplay goal, corralling a rebound at the near post and sliding the puck into the back of the net to put the Nittany Lions up 1-0. Midway through the second period the UML fans, many of whom chartered flights to get to Allentown, finally got their chance to make some noise. Seth Barton flung a beautiful saucer pass through the neutral zone, which connected with Connor Sodergren’s stick, who skated between the Penn State defenders and lifted a wrister over Jones’ blocker and into the back of the net to tie the game at 1-1. The RiverHawks’ faithful would not sit down for long, as just two minutes later, Carl Berglund found Matt Brown at the bottom of the near circle, and Brown one-timed the puck underneath Jones’ sliding pads to give Lowell its first lead of the game at 2-1. Wall kept the Nittany Lions off the board the rest of the second period, continuing his strong postseason play, and after forty minutes of action, Lowell held a one-goal advantage. The Nittany Lions were given a great opportunity to knot the score just over five minutes into the third period when Anthony Baxter was called for interference. PSU held the puck in the Lowell zone for the first 90 seconds of the man advantage, but were unable to solve Wall. However, just as Baxter got back on the ice, Nate Sucese took a pass along the far boards, skated towards the slot, and ripped a wrister that Wall caught a piece of with his glove, but the puck trickled over his arm and into the back of the net to tie the game at 2-2. The two sides pushed for the go-ahead goal, but as the clock wound down in the third, it appeared the two sides would again need an extra session to settle this one. But with just under three minutes to play, Cole Hults launched a blast from the point that deflected off Alex Limoges’ hip, who was stationed at the top of the crease. Wall, unable to react in time, watched as the puck bounced into the net, and the Nittany Lions took a 3-2 lead with just a few minutes to play. The RiverHawks desperately pushed for the equalizer in the final 150 seconds, but Jones was able to keep the puck out of his net, and when the game ended, it was Penn State advancing to the Midwest Regional Final with a 3-2 victory over Massachusetts Lowell.
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