Hockey team drops three

The Utah State hockey club lost all three of its games in Colorado last weekend, falling 3-1 to Denver Thursday, 6-1 to Colorado Friday and 7-3 to Colorado State Saturday.

The Aggies were swept on their Centennial State road trip for the fourth year in a row.

“The curse lives on,” Aggie Robert Hashimoto said. “It shouldn’t have freaked us out [to play in Colorado]. The veterans played well but the rookies seemed nervous.”

Aggie Roberto Leo said the team isn’t intimated by playing in Colorado, but the teams they play are always good.

“Colorado is always a tough road trip,” he said. “We don’t go out there knowing we’re going to lose. That’s just how it works out.”

Hashimoto said Saturday’s loss was the best game the Aggies played.

“We should have played better,” he said. “But it was our best game of the weekend.”

Although the score seemed lop-sided, Hashimoto said the game was much closer.

“We lost 7-3, but the shots were even,” he said.

USU lost to CU in the Buffaloes’ first game of the season. Hashimoto said CU was much better than USU thought it would be.

“CU might be No. 1 in the west,” he said. “They were juiced. They were ready to play.”

At the end of that game, the Buffaloes awarded “stars” to the best three players of the game. Hashimoto was the second star.

“I played pretty well,” he said. “I wish we would have won.”

Leo said Hashimoto was the star player for USU.

“He had two goals against CSU,” he said. “He was just where he was supposed to be.”

In Thursday’s game, Hashimoto said Denver was not very good except for its goalie, which was amazing.

“Their goalie stood on his head,” he said. “[Roberto Leo] had a breakaway, I had a breakaway but he made some sick saves. It was pretty rough.”

-bhhinton@cc.usu.edu