The Davenport Division I ACHA men's ice hockey team hit the ice for the first time this season on Friday and Sunday in a home-and-home series against Indiana Tech. The Panthers debuted a great deal of fresh faces and the team earned a split. DU won on the road 5-3 on Friday and then the Warriors won in Grand Rapids by a score of 4-3 on Sunday.

In the season opener, five different Panthers lit the lamp and three of those goals came on a potent power play. DU scored twice in the first and second periods and then added an empty-net goal late in the third period. The Panthers trailed 1-0 at the 12:06 mark as Brandon Plummer scored unassisted for the Warriors. Jonathan Dubbink tied the game just 1:05 later on the power play with assists from Nathan Nickelson and Aidan Talsma. DU scored again at 19:16 of the first period on another power play goal from Jacob Boucha. Kristers Klavins and Zachary Currie had the helpers on the second unit of power play pairings.

Alex Potter tied it up at 8:20 of the second period unassisted for Indiana Tech. Robert McLaughlin at even strength gave DU a 3-2 lead with an assist from Talsma just 1:10 later. Austin Thompson scored the team's third power play goal at the 11:49 mark from Nickelson and Noah Hippolyte-Smith for a two-goal cushion.

Joel Holmberg cut the deficit to 4-3 at the 6:17 mark of the third period for Indiana Tech. The see-saw affair ended on the empty-net goal by Currie with 12 seconds left on the clock. Nathan Gauthier made 36 saves in the contest and was tested throughout to earn the win.

The Warriors took the win on Sunday but Currie picked up where he left off on Friday with the first goal of the game for Davenport. He scored at 17:56 from Hippolyte-Smith but that didn't last too long as Fabian Granquist scored at 19:15 to tie it up heading into the first intermission.

Neither team could find the net in the second period but five goals were scored in the third. DU took a 2-1 lead as Klavins got a feed from Justin Turner and buried it at 1:33 of the third. The Panthers then led 3-1 as McLaughlin scored at 3:56 from Hippolyte-Smith.

The wheels began to fall off with under eight minutes to play. The Warriors came roaring back with three straight power play goals including the game-winning goal at 18:15 by Alex Carrothers unassisted. Stephen Smoody took a five-minute penalty at 15:46 and Indiana Tech took full advantage. Indiana Tech finished 3-for-7 on the power play while Davenport was 0-for-4. Gauthier made 39 more saves on Sunday to conclude a solid weekend between the pipes.