The packed-out, rival-driven atmospheres at Spirit Ice Arena in College Station and Chaparral Ice in Austin teemed with excitement for the two-game series between the top two teams in the Division II of Texas Collegiate Hockey Conference.
Going into the first of two Lone Star Showdowns on Nov. 1-2, Texas A&M was ranked No. 1 and Texas was ranked No. 2, according to EliteProspects.com. Backed by the 12th Man, the Aggies were able to set the tone early in Game 1 in physicality and goal-scoring with a 6-3 win on Friday. The Aggies were out-matched in Austin, dropping Game 2 to the Longhorns, 5-2, on Saturday.
The exuberant crowd that showed out for Friday’s game is what coach Gary Russell said makes A&M hockey special.
“We love to play in front of such a big crowd,” Russell said. “Obviously, the Texas games, we get a lot of people here. It’s great for fans to see the hard work that these guys put in. To be rewarded with that many fans is truly special.”
In the third minute of the first period in Game 1, A&M junior forward Jacob Smith scored on a power play after a penalty committed by Texas senior forward Andrew Kungle. The Maroon and White continued their dominance in the first period, successfully executing a penalty kill and tacking on a second goal with just over two minutes left in the first period to carry the 2-0 lead into the first intermission.
Sophomore forward Owen Just put the Longhorns on the board shortly after the third Texas power play concluded. With five minutes left in the second period, junior nuclear engineering forward Nicholas Leone extended A&M’s lead after a shot between the legs of junior goalie Jesse Reinhard. Texas kept up with A&M’s scoring with a goal from junior forward Donte Pierre off a one-timer to make it a 3-2 A&M game at the end of the second period.
“It was a team effort, and I just wanted to get a goal to tie it up,” Pierre said. “In that moment, I was pretty proud, a step closer to tying the game.”
The offensive barrage from both teams continued as the Longhorns started the third period red hot with a tying goal by Kungle. The Aggies responded with a trio of goals by senior kinesiology forward Marshall Rushing, senior agricultural leadership and development forward Christian Spearman on a breakaway shorthander and sophomore public health defenseman Dylan Luu to reach the final score of 6-3 in Game 1.
With the crowd erupting on his breakaway, Spearman described the shorthander “like an out-of-body experience.”
“Being a senior, you always dream of those moments of definitely getting that goal against Texas at home and to give your team the one-up,” Spearman said. ”Career-wise, it was one of my bigger goals.”
Luu said he found himself at the right place at the right time to score his first of two goals for the weekend.
“I was told later that the coaches were actually about to yell at me to get back,” Luu said. “I was there. The puck got to me. [It] wasn’t the nicest of goals, but got her in.”
Texas coach Kyle Galloway said getting a hot start in Game 2 on Saturday at home ice was crucial to success coming off of Friday’s loss.
“That’s why we love the sport,” Galloway said. “Fans are crazy. I think A&M definitely fed off that. The message was now we’ll be in our home barn. The fans will be on our side.”
Right out of the gate of Game 2, the Longhorns executed Galloway’s philosophy, putting up three goals in the first period thanks to goals by Just and sophomore forwards Charles Drage and Ian Silberstein.
After two ineffective power play opportunities for A&M, the Maroon and White got on the board with a power play sniper-shot from Luu from the back of the offensive zone. Luu scored the goal with over six minutes left in the second period. It only took the Longhorns two minutes to respond as sophomore defenseman Lucas Robins netted a quick goal to end the second period at 4-1.
Texas continued to set the tone with its fifth goal seven minutes into the final period. Despite not getting the win, the Aggies matched the Longhorns’ third period goal inside the 15th minute to reach the 5-2 final score.
The A&M squad came out too flat for Game 2, junior nuclear engineering forward Mason Burdette said.
“We’re not satisfied,” Burdette said. “We’re never satisfied with a loss. Frankly, we’re still hungry.”
A&M hockey will face off against Texas in the second Lone Star Showdown on Jan 24-25.
“We’re going into January looking to collect two Ws against [Texas], and we’ve got a lot of work to do to get there,” Burdette added. “There’s more preparation to be done, more work to be done in practice. There’s a lot of holes we can fill. We’re a good team right now, but we have the tools to be a great team. We’re going to get there.”
The Aggies return to Spirit Ice Arena ice to host SMU on Friday and Saturday.
Wyatt Watson is a sport management senior and contributed this article from the course JOUR 359, Reporting Sports, to The Battalion.
