BOX SCORE

ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Calvin picked up its second victory in as many nights, downing Nebraska-Omaha 5-2 in a pool play game on Thursday at the ACHA D3 National Tournament. The Knights are now 2-0 in pool play heading into a big showdown with sister institution Dordt University Friday night in the pool play finale for both teams.

In its win over ninth-ranked Nebraska-Omaha, Calvin followed a familiar formula, scoring a go-ahead goal late in the second period and then pulling away with a third period scoring outburst.

Calvin (21-3-1) grabbed a 1-0 lead with 6:16 left in the first period as senior Myles Radersma connected on the power play. Radersma received a pass from sophomore Luke Afman and ripped a shot from the right point that slid through the five-hole of the UNO goalie. Senior Drew Klomparens also drew an assist on the play.

UNO tied the game 1-1 just over a minute later on a goal by Chase Mann.

UNO began to pressure the Calvin defensive zone in the second period but the Knights were able to hold the Mavericks at bay. Calvin then regained control of the game with a sudden one-two punch. The first blow was struck by senior Owen Duiker who redirected a shot by Joshua VanSchepen into the net for a 2-1 Calvin lead with 1:15 left in the period. The second blow came 27 seconds later as the Knights won a faceoff in their own end and carried the puck on a 3-on-1 scoring opportunity. Junior Josiah Lambers led the rush and received a return pass from sophomore Nathan Sova and slammed a one-timer into the net for his second goal of the tournament and a 3-1 Calvin lead with 48 seconds left in the period. Radersma was also credited with an assist on the play.

Calvin went up 4-1 just over six minutes into the third period on a picture-perfect combination between junior Joel Dieleman and junior Oleg Grishatov. On the scoring play, Dieleman slid a perfect cross-ice pass that found Grishatov pinching in from his defensive point. The 6-6 defender deftly went forehand-backhand and flipped a shot past UNO goalie Nahuel Veyan into the net for a three-goal Calvin lead. Junior Ian Schweigert also picked up an assist on the play.

Calvin sealed the win with an empty-net goal by Nathan Sova with 7:51 left with the Mavericks pulling the goalie early. UNO broke through for a goal with 3:01 left to close out the scoring.

Calvin held a 34-29 shots on goal advantage. Senior Ryan Worosz had 27 saves in goal for Calvin to pick up the win. Veyan had 29 saves for UNO.

Calvin will now turn its attention to No. 8 Dordt which defeated Purdue 3-2 in overtime on Thursday. Dordt and UNO are both 1-1 with Purdue 0-2 while the Knights are 2-0 in the pool. Calvin also holds a +7 goal differential through its first two pool play games. The winner of Calvin's pool will advance to the ACHA D3 National Semifinals on Saturday.

COACHES COMMENT: "Really proud of our effort tonight," said Calvin ACHA D3 hockey head coach Austin Huizenga. "UNI is a strong, solid team and brought its best tonight. Our guys battled and were able to get timely goals from a number of guys. We look forward to our game against Dordt tomorrow for an opportunity to move on to the semifinals."

NEXT UP: Calvin will face sister institution Dordt University in its final pool play game Friday night at 8:15 p.m. (CT).