Despite a third-period comeback brewing, the No. 15 seed Ice Dawgs fell to No. 2 seed Tampa 4-2 on Saturday morning at the Queen City Sportsplex in Cincinnati, Ohio. The loss eliminated Georgia from the ACHA men’s Division II Southeast Regional in the first round.
The Ice Dawgs’ penalty kill was put to the test early. Georgia committed four first-period penalties, including a 10-minute major penalty and game disqualification issued to senior forward Dylan Punzenberger.
Georgia managed to keep the Spartans off the board and hold a 0-0 tie into first intermission, but Cole Vallese’s unassisted goal in the second period finally gave Tampa a one-goal lead. The lead was doubled when Billy McCann scored in the first minute of the third frame, putting Georgia’s tournament life in serious danger.
Halfway through the third period, with Tampa goaltender Kyle Myer’s shutout still intact, the Spartans committed just their second penalty of the game and Georgia’s Declan Conway took advantage, cutting the lead in half with a blocker-side rifle.
With three minutes to go and Georgia still searching for an equalizer, Tampa’s Marco Beshere found the back of the net to once again lead by two. The Ice Dawgs had one final push to attempt a comeback.
Just 37 seconds after Beshere’s goal, Ice Dawgs senior forward Truman Haugen beat his man and received a pass just outside the crease, sliding the puck past the pad of Myer to bring the score to 3-2. Haugen recorded a goal and an assist on the game.
Still needing one more, Georgia pulled senior goaltender Isaac Haugen for an extra attacker in the final minutes, but was unable to force overtime. With nine seconds left, Tampa scored an empty-netter to cap off its 4-2 victory.
The Spartans will advance to the next round of the tournament, facing the winner of Rowan and Penn State Sunday. With no further games on the schedule, Georgia’s season appears to have concluded, with a large group of seniors lacing up the skates for the final time with the Ice Dawgs in the loss.