Giving up the puck in front of the net is probably not ideal.
Texas A&M hockey fell 7-6 to the Baylor Bears on Friday, Sept. 29. The Aggies started off the game on the front foot. Even when Baylor scored, A&M answered back instantly. However, the issue for the Aggies was losing possession right in front of their net.
The Aggies pressured the Bears early on as the puck was in Baylor’s zone for nearly the first two and a half minutes of the period.
A&M then committed a minor penalty to give Baylor a power play, but the Aggies were able to kill it. Right after, there was a collision near the net which resulted in roughing penalties for both teams.
Sophomore forward Jacob Smith scored with 12:15 left to put A&M up 1-0. Junior forward Robby Sours then scored 30 seconds later to put the Aggies up 2-0 in the first period.
The Bears had a good amount of possession in the Aggies’ zone for about three minutes. Baylor put multiple shots on net forcing freshman goalie Peyton Woodlief into some saves.
The Bears then had an opportunity in a one-on-one chance, but Woodlief got a save to maintain the shutout.
With 3:25 left in the period, A&M received a power play after an interference call on Baylor. The Bears killed the penalty, but the Aggies scored right as Baylor’s fifth man was skating on the ice. The goal gave A&M a 3-0 lead into the first intermission.
Baylor opened the second period with the majority of the puck control. After a Bear ran into Woodlief, there was a small scrum which resulted in a penalty on each team.
With 16:07 left, Baylor brought a goal back and then scored a second after Woodlief fumbled the puck in front of the net.
It took A&M less than a minute to answer as junior forward Marshall Rushing scored a top-shelf shot to give the Aggies a 4-2 advantage.
A&M committed a two minute minor for tripping to give the Bears a five-on-four advantage and Baylor utilized the power play to bring the score back within one.
It didn’t take A&M long to respond as sophomore forward Mason Burdett brought the puck to the middle of Baylor’s zone and sent a wrist shot past the goalie’s glove.
The Bears brought one back on a two-on-one chance with the puck bouncing into the net off the post. They had multiple chances to even the score, but the Aggies held onto a 5-4 lead to close the second period.
The start of the third period was all Bears. Baylor held possession in the Aggie zone and forced Woodlief into multiple saves before A&M could clear the zone.
However, Baylor equalized after bringing the puck back into A&M’s zone, but senior forward Matthew Perri gave the Aggies a short-lived lead. The Bears evened the score at six in less than a minute after Perri’s goal.
Baylor then took its first lead of the game after A&M gave up possession in front of the net. With six minutes left, A&M trailed 7-6.
The Maroon and White pressured Baylor for two minutes, but had to pull the goalie with 45 seconds left. The Aggies were unable to use the six-on-five advantage as they lost 7-6.
The Aggies held an early three goal advantage over the Bears, but gave the puck away in a goal scoring area too much. A&M dropped to 2-3 on the season with the loss.
The Maroon and White continue play against Baylor on Saturday, Sept. 30, with first puck drop set for 2 p.m.
