Three weeks into their season, the Texas A&M club ice hockey team stays perfect.
The Aggies continued their dominance within the Texas Collegiate Hockey Conference with a 4-2 victory over Baylor on Saturday, Oct. 15, at the Spirit Ice Arena. With the win, the maroon and white now sit in first place in the league and improve to 6-0 overall after sweeping Oklahoma State and Texas to start the 2022-23 campaign.
The win comes a day after the Aggies took down the Bears, 4-3, in a barn-burner of a game. With plenty of tension between the two teams left over from the previous contest, Saturday’s matchup was chippy and physical from the start.
However, A&M wasted no time getting on the scoreboard, as freshman forward Nicholas Leone broke free from the defense and, going one-on-one with senior goalie Matthew Cole, found the back of the net less than two minutes into the game.
The Aggies padded their lead with seven minutes remaining in the first period, as freshman forward Jacob Smith managed to knock in the puck amid a scrum of players. A&M entered the first intermission up 2-0 after a defensive display by freshman goalie Peyton Woodlief.
The Aggies began to turn the matchup into a blowout when senior forward Daniel Dufresne scored to make it a 3-0 game with four minutes to go in the second period. Baylor refused to go down without a fight though, literally and metaphorically, as freshman Joseph Vacca found the back of the net with 31 seconds remaining in the period to bring the Bears back into it.
The green and gold threatened again as junior Owen Eldersveld scored to bring Baylor within a goal at 3-2 with 8:32 remaining in the third and final period. As the 12th Man began to sweat despite the rink’s chilly temperatures, Leone added a huge insurance goal, his second of the match, to put the game away for A&M. The Aggies’ defense held up for the remaining time, securing the win.
A&M returns to the ice on Friday, Oct. 21, and Saturday, Oct. 22, in Shreveport, La., to take on East Texas Baptist in a series that will determine first place in the conference. The Tigers, who boast an official NCAA-recognized team, sit in second place with a 5-0 record.