Sweeney Interview | Photo Gallery
HUDSONVILLE, Mich. – Davenport will head into the “Good Luck DUck” series next weekend on a good note after a win over rival Grand Valley State, which the Panthers defeated 3-2 Sunday evening. Davenport and GVSU were tied at the end of each of the first two periods but Mason Bohlinger's goal in the last couple minutes of the third was the decider.
Davenport got on the board first when John Frank put a wrist shot in the top right corner past the GVSU net minder for the short-handed goal. Grand Valley came back with a power play goal with 5:42 remaining in the opening period to knot the game at one heading into the first intermission.
The second period started a little slow with both teams trying to find their rhythm. With 9:22 remaining in the period, Brock Carlston knocked in a four-on-four goal from right in front of the net after a great pass from Jeff Slusser to put the Panthers up 2-1. But once again GVSU responded and they did so quickly with the tying goal less than thirty seconds later.
Both teams battle in the third with a number of good opportunities for either team to break the tie. With under 10 minutes to play, Davenport had a shot go off the post and a goal waived off. On the Panthers end, Phil Graveline made some big saves to keep the score tied. Davenport finally broke through when Mason Bohlinger found the back of the net with 1:54 left in the game.
Davenport will be in action again next week when they take on Oakland for two more games in the “Good Luck DUck” series. Friday's game will be played at Oakland before returning to Patterson Ice Center for Saturday's contest. The two games will also go a long way in determining the regular season conference champion.
Post-Game Quotes – Head Coach Phil Sweeney
Thoughts on game – “It was a back-and-forth game all game long. Grand Valley is good, they won the D2 National Championship last year and they returned a lot of their guys. It was a hard fought battle, our guys are exhausted. We got a break there at the end, a five minute power play and Mason actually scored when it was four-on-four, it's a huge goal in a big situation so good for him.”
On the importance of heading into next week with momentum – “The toughest part for me was losing on Friday and then winning the way we did Saturday, it just really frustrates you that you lost on Friday. But momentum is key going into the Oakland weekend but you can really throw a lot of stuff out of the window, it's a huge rivalry. There are so many implication on the line with the good luck duck, a trip to nationals, league playoffs, and a possible first round bye if someone sweeps this weekend. There is just so much on the line, what better team than against Oakland.”
Post-Game Notes
Davenport improves to 18-15 on the season…The win snaps a two game losing streak (both at home) against Grand Valley dating back to last season…Davenport has won two straight games at Grand Valley State.
