Portz Pots Pair, No. 12/14 St. Cloud State Men’s Hockey Beats Augustana

Friday, October 25

St. Cloud, Minn.

7:00 P.M. CT

St. Cloud State

5-1-0

Augustana

3-2-0

Augustana (SD)

St. Cloud St.

Portz Pots Pair, No. 12/14 St. Cloud State Men’s Hockey Beats Augustana

10/26/2024 1:12:00 AM | Men's Hockey

Box Score

Three Huskies score in 4-3 win over Vikings in first-ever meeting

ST. CLOUD, Minn. – No. 12/14 St. Cloud State Men's Hockey (5-1-0, 0-0-0 NCHC) had three score their first goal of the season in a 4-3 win over (RV) Augustana (3-2-0, 0-0-0 CCHA) on Friday night at the Herb Brooks National Hockey Center. Senior forward Nick Portz (St. Cloud, Minn.) potted two goals to lead the charge offensively, and was joined by junior defenseman Josh Zinger (Red Deer, Alberta) and sophomore forward Daimon Gardner (Eagle Lake, Ontario) in finding the back of the net.

Augustana was the one who jumped out to the early lead, scoring just 2:32 into the game on a rush from Owen Bohn. The Huskies didn't let the early adversity get to them, scoring midway through the period on Portz's first of the night. The St. Cloud native and Zinger played a two-man game on the right way, with Zinger feeding Portz just in front of the blue line in the high slot, who let a one-timer rip, beating the Viking goalie at the 10:48 mark. The Vikings took the lead again at 16:08, but that lead wouldn't last for long, as Zinger's first goal as a Husky came with 50 seconds left in the period to tie the score at 2-2. Sophomore forward Jack Reimann (Ham Lake, Minn.) charged the net on a breakaway and pushed the puck on net, where Zinger was able to get a piece of a rebound and find the back of the net.

The goal was the start of three consecutive scored from the Huskies, as Portz added on his second of the night at the 8:51 mark of the second period. Junior defenseman Cooper Wylie (Stillwater, Minn.) began the play as he entered the offensive zone on the left side before moving the puck to sophomore forward Barrett Hall (Apple Valley, Minn.) in the middle of the ice. Hall then fed Portz right on the tape and alone on the back side, as he fired a wrist shot to beat the goalie near side for the score and a 3-2 lead. Then, near the end of the period it was Gardner's turn to score his first goal as a Husky. Sophomore forward Tyson Gross (Calgary, Alberta) led a 3-on-2 charge up the ice and moved the puck to the left side to Gardner, who had enough space to fire a wrist shot and beat the Viking goalie far side for the score.

Despite SCSU controlling play for much of the third period, Augustana still scored with just over five minutes left in the game to make it a one-goal game. The Vikings pulled their goalie with 2:11 left and tried to score the equalizer, but the Huskies were able to hold them off for the win.

TOP HUSKIES

Portz scored two goals and recorded his first career multi-goal game.
Hall had two assists in the game, while Zinger had one goal and one assist for two points.
Sophomore goaltender Isak Posch (Umea, Sweden) made 29 saves in net and moved to 5-1-0 on the season.

NOTES

With the win, SCSU earned the first win in the first meeting between the two programs.
Portz recorded his first career multi-goal game and just his third career multi-point game with his two goals. Prior to the game, Portz had never scored more than two goals in any of his three collegiate seaons.
Hall matched his career-high with two assists for the third time in his career, moving into the team lead with seven points (2g/5a).
Zinger scored his first goal as a Husky and seventh of his career, while adding an assist for his sixth career multi-point game.
Gardner scored his first goal as a Husky and his second career goal while recording his first career game-winning goal.
Posch made 29 saves in the victory, marking the 12^th time in his career he has made 25 or more saves.
Junior defenseman Mason Reiners (Edina, Minn.) and junior forward Grant Ahcan (Savage, Minn.) each recorded their first assists of the season.

HIGHLIGHTS

PRESS CONFERENCE

UP NEXT

St. Cloud State and Augustana will finish its series tomorrow at the Brooks Center, with puck drop scheduled for 5:00 p.m. CT on Fox 9 + and NCHC.tv.

For all the latest on St. Cloud State Men's Hockey, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook. Tickets for the 2024-25 season are available at www.scsutickets.com, downloading the St. Cloud State Huskies app or by calling 1-877-SCSUTIX / 320-308-2137.