MARQUETTE, Mich. — The NMU hockey team and the (RV) Skyhawks skated to a 2-1 overtime decision, with Stonehill earning the overtime extra point.
The Wildcats (2-4-0, 0-0-0 CCHA) opened the scoring at 11:17 of the first period, as the third line combined once again. Owen Pitters laid a breakout pass to Michael Burchill, who cruised up the right-wing boards and into the Skyhawk zone. Burchill played a drop pass to Nik Gudmundson, who beat Mason Vaccari with a wicked wrist shot high on the short side to earn his first career collegiate goal.
The Skyhawks (3-1-0) evened the score less than two minutes later. Matthew Rafalski fired a pass from the right corner to Owen Drury, who redirected the pass on goal. The rebound landed on Liam Fitzpatrick’s stick, and he was on the spot to score his first goal of the season.
While NMU dominated the opening period last night, the Skyhawks came out of the gates quickly tonight, outshooting NMU 10-8 from 23 attempts to 11. Goaltender Oliver Auyeung-Ashton had to be sharp in the first two periods, making 19 saves from nine 42 attempts in 40 minutes. The Wildcats had chances to pull ahead in the third, outshooting Stonehill 8-3 with 21 attempts to nine, with seven of those attempts coming from inside ‘the house’, a high-danger scoring area. The Skyhawks survived the late Wildcat rush and forced overtime.
Anthony Galante wound it up from his own end in overtime and fired a shot from the slot that beat netminder Auyeung-Ashton to the stick side, avoiding the weekend sweep. The extra frame tonight marked the second overtime win for the Skyhawks this season, as they defeated Colgate in an identical score to open the season.
The last time a game was decided in overtime at the Berry Events Center was also a 2-1 loss at the hands of #19/20 Colorado College on October 17, 2025, this exact date one season ago.
Goaltender Mason Vaccari earned his second career collegiate win in as many starts, making 23 saves for a .958 SV%. Auyeung-Ashton made 25 saves in tonight’s effort, posting a .926 SV%. Auyeung-Ashton and Vaccari were excellent, both making nine saves on high-danger scoring chances.
Pitters led all skaters in shot attempts (6) and shots on goal (5), and was 6-4 (60%) on faceoffs with a +1 rating. Girts Silkalns led the Wildcats in faceoff wins with seven, and defenseman Joe Schiller paced the team with three blocks.
The box score was about as even as you could get: the shots were 27-24 in favor of Stonehill, both teams went 2-2 on the penalty kill, and the Skyhawks held a narrow margin in faceoff wins at 22-21. The Wildcats were 18-14 (56.2%) on the draws excluding the Stonehill defensive zone, where the Skyhawks held an 8-3 (72.7%) advantage. The ‘Cats 27 shots against is the fewest the Green and Gold have allowed on target this season.
The Wildcats now enjoy a bye weekend, as the team gets a break before traveling to Augustana to open the CCHA conference schedule. The Wildcats and Vikings drop the puck at Midco Arena on Friday, October 30, at 8:07 p.m. ET, and Saturday, October 31, at 7:07 p.m. ET.
