Hockey team ties, loses

After losing 5-3 to Brigham Young University Friday night, the Utah State hockey club tied Eastern Washington 3-3 Saturday at the Eccles Ice Center.

The Aggies played better against EWU than BYU, but still felt like they should have won.

“We made a lot of improvements,” Head Coach Jerry Crossley said. “But I still felt we should have won. It was a step in the right direction.”

Jordan Francom was moved to defense and the offensive lines were switched throughout the game.

“What we had been doing wasn’t working,” Crossley said. “We tried something different.”

Francom said he prefers defense to playing forward.

“I was kind of in a slump,” he said. “I played [defense] all my life until last semester. I feel more comfortable back there. I can see the ice a lot better.”

Francom scored with 7:01 to play in the third period to tie the game after EWU had scored twice in the period to take the lead.

The Eagles scored first just 22 seconds into the second period. But Josh Groves and Mikel Roy found the back of the net for the Aggies later in the period to give USU a 2-1 lead.

It was Roy’s first goal of the season.

“It feels good to break the ice,” he said. “I just managed to get a good pass.”

Midway through the final period, defenseman Cory Wardell suffered a neck injury that delayed the game for about 20 minutes until ambulance crews could safely move him.

The delay came after EWU had taken a 3-2 lead.

“I think [the injury] gave us momentum,” Roy said. “It just made me want to play a lot harder.”

BYU 5, Utah State 3

The Aggies dropped their second game in a row to an in-state opponent when BYU defeated them 5-3 in Provo.

USU had beat the Icecats 3-0 at the same location just two weeks earlier.

“We never got going,” Aggie Mike Lewandowski said. “We were waiting for someone else to step up.”

Team co-captain Scotty John said the Aggies still aren’t playing as a team.

“We haven’t bonded,” he said. “There are too many individuals.”

Crossley said he would like to see his team play with more effort.

“There’s some, but not enough real intensity,” he said. “We were moving and acting slow. Our intensity is just not there.”

Lewandowski said the team is really missing having Aaron Burrell and Nick Thiros on the team.

“I don’t think we realized how they made things happen,” he said. “We didn’t have much of a flow [Friday].”

John said there are too many USU players who are forgetting their role on the team.

“No one wants to admit that we’re not a pretty team,” he said. “We win with hard work and hard-nosed hockey. We’re too off on our own right now.”

Crossley said he is glad that USU doesn’t have to finish in the top four in the region in order to reach nationals this season.

Instead, the top two teams get an automatic bid while teams No. 3 through 10 play a tournament for the final two bids in the region.

“It gives you the whole season to prepare,” he said. “You just try to improve a little each week.”

-bhhinton@cc.usu.edu